Buyan Russian Restaurant

It's pretty hard to find Russian restaurants in this part of the world. Even in Sydney, there were only one or two Russian restaurants. My first encounter with real Russian food was when I was doing a course on Russian culture studies in university for fun. I was invited for a Russian night, where a lot of the Russian community cooked for that night and most of them were at the event. My friends and I pigged out major. I discovered their use of sour cream and potatoes. I think I have been craving for that sort of Russian comfort food since.

This is probably one of the very few Russian restaurants in Singapore. This place has three levels. I have only ever been to level one for food. The place is quite dark with log wood panelling that gives the feeling of one being in a log cabin in Russian or Siberia. Except its not cold enough outside.

I have been here for dinner and find it quite expensive. Lunch though like a lot of places is affordable. The three course meal is $35+.

Some dishes my brother and I had:

Lamb Stew

This reminds me of a minestrone. It has that dominant tomato taste to it. The difference is that this dish has lamb and barley. Its a rustic dish but doesn't seem unique to me.

Crab soup

This reminds me of another dish. Shark's fin and crabmeat soup without the shark's fin.

Chicken Kiev

Nicely battered on the outside and moist on the inside. Even though this popular dish seem simple, I have had plenty of places get it wrong. Chicken is easy to overcook but this is a good chicken kiev.

Roast Chicken with spices

This tastes quite Indian. I guess Russian is a place where East meets West so it shouldn't surprise me that so many dishes have Eastern influence. When I asked the waitress what was in the dish, she said the spices were a secret Georgian mix. But the yellow of the chicken indicated to me that there was turmeric in the dish. The other obvious spice in it was ginger. I must say I'm not sure what else they added into it but I don't think its cumin as the spices are pretty mild. Not a bad dish but I won't go WOW.

Sorbet and a fruit pastry

Nothing very special about this. I don't know if I have much to comment about this. 

I would come here for lunch. Not sure about dinner. I am not really blown away by the food. 

Website: http://www.buyan.sg/

Location: 9/10 Duxton Hill, Tanjong Pagar

Opening Hours: Rest 12pm - 12am

Price: $35+ for lunch

Contact Number: 62237008

Wok and Barrel

I have been to this place for desserts before. The desserts are interesting enough as it is fusion style but not quite to my taste buds. Since I have no pictures of them I will not elaborate on them.

It's a nice place to sit in air conditioning for a meal that is about $10.
I will speak about the Nasi Lemak I had with a friend for lunch.

Nasi Lemak pulled pork

My friend had the Nasi Lemak with fried chicken. I had the Nasi Lemak with pulled pork.

Both were alright. The fried chicken was nicely fried and crispy. My pulled pork had the shredded texture you expect. But at the end, it was not a great Nasi Lemak. The taste of the rice and chilli was ordinary. You would eat it without a thought as it doesn't have any Wow factor.

This is a nice place to fill your tummy and have a chat. But expect nothing out of the ordinary.

Website: http://www.thewokandbarrel.com/
Location: 13 Duxton Hill
Opening Hours: Tues- Sat 1130am-10pm; Sun 1130am - 4pm
Contact Number: 62200595

Latteria Mozzarella bar

This place used to be the Jackson Plan but has been changed to an casual Italian restaurant. Beppe de Vito who runs the place. He also runs Forlino and ll Lido.

I think this is what they should have done in the first place instead of "fluffing" around for 6 months with the average food in  Jackson Plan! 

The main theme of the place is around mozzarella which is served in about 15 different forms as an entree. This mozzarella bar concept seems to have taken a leaf off Mario Batali's Restaurant. 

I love mozzarella and only had enough stomach space to share 2 entrees. Mozzarella after all is pretty filling given it is cheese.

Bufala with cherry tomatoes

This is a pretty common dish that can be seen in most italian restaurants. Like all Italian food, the success of a simple dish is dependent on the quality of the produce. The produce here was fresh and the dish very tasty. 

According to the wait staff, the tomatoes are from Italy. What I like about it more than the fact that the tomatoes are from italy is that they have flavor. Too many tomatoes grown in the region are mistreated when grown, they have too much water and not enough flavor.  The restaurant seems to suggest from their menu that their Bufala comes from Puglia in Campania. Some of you would know that Champagne can be only called champagne if it comes from the Champagne region. In a similar way, Mozzarella di Bufala Campana has protected status and comes only from Campania.  This is done to ensure a certain standard and quality of the Bufala. Bufala comes from Buffalo milk.

Fried Bocconcini balls in arrabiata Sauce

Little Bocconcini balls were covered with a crumb mix and fried. This is so delicious as it plays on textures. You cut through the crispy fried layer and the cheese oozes out. But it would all be too dry without the arrabiata sauce- tomato and chilli. 

 Vongole in a tomato base sauce

My husband ordered this. I only had one vongole because I'm currently having post pregnancy rashes and have to avoid seafood. It was rich packed with flavor. I think the same tomato base used for the arrabiata sauce for the bocconcini was used for this. 

We asked for bread so that my husband could wipe the sauce up. 

Risotto with truffle and smoked mozzarella

This had the wonderful aroma of truffles when it came to the table. The truffle paste was used for the dish. Smoked mozzarella in the risotto helped to create a even creamer risotto. It was a good dish but the portion was far too large for such a rich dish In fact, I think the dish may go better as a small entree with some mushrooms. I'm not quite sure if the rocket adds much to the dish.

Tiramisu

This was huge. I mean huge. It was a portion for 2 or 3 rather than one. It was tasty enough but nothing special. It was just a typical tiramisu done well with good cream and good coffee cake pieces. The Etna pistachio tiramisu was definitely much better.

I have rarely been blown away by Italian desserts other than the gelatos anyway. 

This is one good Italian joint and I'm glad they decided to bring this concept in.

Location: 40 Duxton Hill

Contact Number: 68661988

Prices: About 80 per pax for 3 course meal excluding wine.

Speciality: Mozzarella Entrees

L'entrecote

One of my favourite things to do in the evening after dinner on some occasions is having a sinful after dinner dessert at L'Entrecote.

L' Entrecote is at Duxton Hill which is a lovely little cobbled lane lined by trees and shophouses.

Salad with walnuts and light vinaigrette dressing

Medium rare steak and fries

The restaurant only serves one main. So if you are not a steak lover, this isn't the restaurant for you.

If you are a steak lover, the meat is well cooked and goes well with a lovely acidic sauce and crispy fries. There is even a healthy salad on the side to complete the nutrition of the meal.

Profiteroles with chocolate sauce

Waffles with Caramel and Vanilla Ice Cream

The waffles are crunchy to bite and moist. Caramel is not overpoweringly sweet but with a hint of bitterness that adds depth to the sauce. Store bought caramel does not have this.

Crepes Suzette with Vanilla Ice Cream

 Seats outside L'Entrecote

Dessert can be served at one of the outdoor tables. When its a nice cool night, this is a pleasant place to enjoy conversation with good company. 

Website: http://lentrecote.sg/

Location: 36 Duxton Hill

Opening Hours: Mon- Fri noon to 1030pm, Sat & PH 6pm to 10:30pm

Price: $30 for steak and frites. Desserts about $15. 

Flor Patisserie

Flor is a fantastic little shop based on Duxton Hill.

The Cakes. Don't you feel hungry already??

Most people think that Sponge cakes are just Sponge cakes. Flor makes the ordinary sponge extraordinary.
The sponge is light and moist, eating it is a bit like floating on air. The cream also has the same lightness that accompanies it. 


Some Picks:

Waguri Millefeuille

French chestnut cream with layers of  crisp, flaky puff pastry and topped with  Japanese chestnuts. I love the taste of chestnuts in this one and the texture is excellent. Chestnut cream then crispy millefeuille layer, soft cream and then light sponge. Yum Yum.  Its a bit unusual given there aren't many chestnut cakes around. 

Earl Grey Chocolat

Earl Grey infusion is subtle. Bananas and cream are at the centre of the surrounding sponge that make up the base of the cake. Very yum. Texturally, the Waguri Millefeuille is better. 

Wakakasuyama is a very delicious green tea sponge cake with cream. Green tea was not overwhelming or powdery but melded well with the cake.

Flor has a couple of seats in the bakery to have afternoon tea

Website: http://www.cakeflor.com.sg/
Address: 01-01, 2 Duxton Hill
Specialities: Waguri Millefeuille, Wakakusayama
Business Hours: Mon- Sat 11am-7pm, Sun & Pub Hols 11am-6pm
Prices: About $6-$7 per slice. Tea/ coffee & cake set $9.