Always on the hunt for new dining spots? We bring you sound bites on where to eat, including new restaurant and eatery openings, the best places for your after-work tipple, and what’s new in the food scene.
What to check out this week: Yun Nans has opened a new stonepot fish concept in Northpoint City, fine dining Japanese restaurant Hashida rolls out an autumnal menu, Czech and Slovak cuisine by the youngest MasterChef title holder in the world, and more.
Fine dining Japanese outfit Hashida is back with an autumn menu that highlights the bounty of the season, and with the imaginative touches that Hashida is known for.
Our meal, dreamt up by head chef Yasuda Itaru, commenced with an exquisite presentation of snow crab meat enveloped within pickled radish, baked butterfish with rosemary, and caviar and ikura served in a hollowed-out lime. A refreshing cold chawanmushi with scallop and sesame sauce, Japanese asparagus and cherry tomatoes followed.
Moving on, the sashimi platter narrows in on sawara (Japanese Spanish mackerel) that’s smoke-kissed with binchotan, buttery chutoro (medium fatty tuna), and Mizu tako (fresh octopus) that’s paired with homemade cooked seaweed. Freshly grated wasabi mixed with skin and simmered with soy sauce brings delicate heat to the table.
You can expect a stellar sushi line-up too, from the smokey Akamutsu (Blackthroat seaperch) seared with binchotan, to ishidai (Japanese stone snapper) sprinkled with a botanical gin salt and creamy botan ebi brightened with yuzu. Then there’s a handroll of tachiuo (beltfish) and bafun uni that delivers a contrast of warm savouriness with a sweet burst of flavours.
The post-sushi soup’s worth mentioning too, with an intense prawn base that goes down like a warm hug. It’s followed by a fluffy moist almost cake-like tamagoyaki, and Hashida’s signature otoro that quite literally melts in the mouth.
Lunch starts from $200+ and dinner (omakase only) from $450++. Hashida is at 77 Amoy Street, Singapore 069896. Visit its website for reservations or more information.
After opening to much fanfare in China, Yun Nans Stonepot Fish has landed in Singapore.
How it works: Sustainably sourced fish from local farms is freshly culled and placed into a granite stone pot, then poured over with a rich nourishing fish broth that has been simmered for over six hours. It’s then covered with a traditional handcrafted straw lid, before undergoing a high-pressure steaming process that extracts the natural flavours of the fish while retaining its tenderness.
And it all happens right in front of you, taking just four to six minutes for the fish to be fully cooked. Pick between the signature Collagen Fish Soup ($18++) concocted with the likes of dried scallops, salmon, old hen and ginseng or the earthy Wild Mushroom Soup ($18++) that uses Yunnan’s Shangri-La Matsutake mushrooms, porcini, and cordyceps. Your choice of fish includes sea bass, patin and soon hock (from $28++).
Make it a heartier affair with other ingredients like beef, lamb and pork, as well as handmade beef balls, seafood and vegetables. Or go for signature and new dishes from Yun Nans such as Crispy Duck with Dried Chillies, Stir-Fried SpicyClam, and the new Crispy Barramundi Collar ($9.80++).
Enjoy 50 per cent off Stonepot Fish (A choice of live fish & soup base) for three days only Nov 8 to 10, 2022, only for dine-in at the Northpoint City outlet.
Yun Nans Stonepot Fish is at #01-103 Northpoint City, 930 Yishun Ave 2, Singapore 769098.
The youngest MasterChef title holder in the world, Kristína Nemčková, is arriving in Singapore, and showcasing her culinary creations with a two-night-only dining experience happening on Nov 10 and 11, 2022.
Nemčková became the first female and youngest winner of MasterChef Czech Republic at the age of 17 in 2019. Presented by creative-tech startup Avventura, you can expect to have a taste of fine Czech and Slovak cuisine at the “Made By Kristina in Singapore” while delving into the sights and sounds of the Czech Republic and its rich history during the multi-sensory experience.
Sommelier Valentin Krug from Artisan Cellars will be pairing each course with innovative natural wines produced by Czech winemaker, Milan Nestarec.
Each evening can accommodate up to 30 guests, so fastest fingers first.
Tickets are at $288++ per person for a six-course omakase-style dinner, and $338++ with the addition of wine pairing.
On Nov 10 and 11, 2022 (6.15pm) at Eat At My Kitchen, 8D Dempsey Road, #01-01A, Singapore 249672. Visit Made By Kristina’s website for tickets and more information.
Japanese–Indian izakaya Barood, a brainchild of acclaimed Indian restaurant Revolver and Michelin-starred Hamamoto has set up shop on the second level of the same shophouse that Revolver is at. All sumptuous colours and dim cosy lighting, step inside and be welcomed into an oasis that carries the rich Moorish influences of 1960s Paris.
Menu-wise, Revolver’s executive chef Saurabh Udinia sends out a curation of elevated tapas with sprinkled with robust flavours and exotic spices. Think Goat Biryani Arancini ($26++), Mini Duck Pancakes ($22++) that see crisp paniyaram topped with spiced pulled duck and a piquant tomato chutney, and Balls of Barood ($22++), succulent sweet-spicy chicken meatballs glazed with spicy Manchurian sauce.
Tame the heat with Barood’s rotating selection of libations, from Cafe con Leche ($24++) concocted with Tried & True vodka, coffee liqueur and coffee-infused coconut topped with hazelnut hot foam, to The Dark Knight ($28++), a heady concoction of Mitcher’s Rye, vermouth blend, and mushroom black truffle bitters.
You can also go for single malts, tequilas and mezcals, or sip on a glass of natural wine or sake.
Barood is at 56A Tras Street, Singapore 078977. Visit its website for reservations or more information.