The Hungry Bunny

Many moons ago, I tended to use store-bought pasta sauce in my dishes. Until I realised how easy and quick it was to make your own! So, now, instead of using bottled pasta sauces from the supermarket or those high-end gourmet provision stores, I spare about an hour or so to make my own. This way, I get to control what goes into my sauces and adjust accordingly to my preferences (the control freak in me is yelping for joy right now). The secret to pasta sauce lies in the tomatoes, so get the very best the market has to offer. Get those of the plum variety (the small-ish oval shaped ones), and I find a mix of Roma and San Marzanos to be a good balance of the tart and sweet. I also add a dollop of tomato paste to even out the sharp piquancy of the tomatoes. As for the herbs, I gravitate towards basil and thyme, but rosemary, oregano and parsley are very well-received as well. I also like to saute aromatics like onions and garlic and toss them into the mix as I find they lend sweetness t...

I've never really taken to the restaurants under the Paradise Group of restaurants, mostly because I'm a Crystal Jade traditionalist and Imperial treasure loyalist. But, for some inexplicable reason, the Paradise Group has surreptitiously grown into a competitor to the Crystal Jade and Imperial Treasure restaurant empires. Just look at Canton Paradise , the casual restaurant concept of the Paradise Group, it's hugely popular, and always seems to sport long queues. Generally, the food at Canton Paradise isn't bad, but it is a little choppy, with a few misses littered amongst the passing grade majority. Compared to its direct competitors, the heavyweight Crystal Jade Kitchens and Imperial Treasure Noodle & Congee Houses , I'd venture that Canton Paradise scores a solid B- to Imperial Treasure's consistent A and Crystal Jade's occasionally-floundering A-. The ubiquitous Steamed Pork Dumpling ($5.80) 'siew mai', topped with flying fish roe, c...

The Bar at Morton's is reputed for its Mortini Nights , a wallet-friendly happy-hour serving up cocktails and free-flow of complimentary steak sandwiches. But because the service hours were between 5pm and 7pm, it was always tough to get there in time to snag a spot at the immensely popular bar. But, I was recently in the vicinity for a conference, which just so happened to end at 5pm, and so, a couple of my conference buddies and I all trooped on over to The Bar at Morton's to wind down and chill out with drinks, and fill up on their much touted sandwiches. While their cocktails were indeed commendable, all of which were appreciatively generous in alcohol content, I thought that their steak sandwiches were overhyped. Stuffed simply in a plain hotdog bun, the sliced steaks seemed insipid. Disappointing, considering how high a regard I have for the food at Morton's the Steakhouse . It was exacerbated by the fact that the sandwiches were in such short supply that each o...

The Handburger is part of 3 restaurant concepts under 1 roof at the Soup Spoon Union . It's a semi-self-serviced joint where you queue up, supermarket checkout-style, to place your orders and make payment, then find a table and sit yourself, cafeteria-style, where the skeleton crew serves your orders. I'd heard good things about their gourmet burgers, and was on the lookout for a worthy successor to &Made after burger maestro Bruno Menard ceased his collaboration with the Pacific Plaza burger bistro. While the selection of burgers is decidedly limited (they offer up up to 3 variants each of the poultry, game and seafood burgers), The Handburger does excel where it counts. The beef-centric burgers were superb in an all-American, hearty, generous way, even if I wasn't blown away by the chicken patties (I'd taken away the cajun one on a separate occasion and was unimpressed). The Works ($16.80) was the "everything-bao-ga-liao" option, with a 150gm...

I'd first sampled the wonderful brews at the Pasarbella outlet of Dutch Colony Coffee Co. The open-concept shop space was teeny tiny, and it was operating at a full capacity on a weekday mid-afternoon. When it opened a second branch in the far east, a proper cafe amongst the shophouses lining the gentrified Frankel Ave , I made sure to pop by. A full menu of brunch classics and selection of sweets is offered here at their industrial-chic bistro setup. I'd already eaten lunch, so I couldn't quite fit in brunch eggs, but because desserts occupy a different stomach, there was room for cake! The bergamot-scented Earl Grey Citrus Cake ($5) was excellent. The dense confection was delectably moist, and aromatherapy-like accents subtle and layered. A must-try here. Strictly for chocoholics, the Chocolate Truffle Cake ($7.50) was luscious and sumptuous in its nuanced sweetness. The Latte ($4.50) was a potent adrenaline zinger, full-bodied, rich and frothy. A absolute ...

To-Ricos Guo Shi , or more commonly known as the Blanco Court Kway Chap , is one of the many hawker legends at the renowned Old Airport Road Food Centre . It's been on my to-try list for the longest time now, and we made sure to arrive early over the weekend to avoid the purported snaking queues. It opens at 11am, and a somewhat manageable 15-min-long queue had formed by 11.05am when we arrived. While some have lamented that the quality has gone down over the decades, I found it perfectly lovely and delicious. While most kway chap are redolent of robust heavy herbs, this was harmoniously delicate and nuanced. A very substantial set to stuff 2 persons to the gills for just $16.30. I customised our kway chap platter with Large Intestines ($4), Beancurd ($0.80), Braised Egg ($0.70), and Pork Belly ($5), all of which were scrumptious and slathered in a delicate soy-based gravy layered with subtle accents of cinnamon and star anise. This was the Hubs' virgin foray into offal...

I remember when the Westin hotel chain sold the iconic Stamford Road hotel to the Swissotel group back in the early 2000's and exited entirely from Singapore. I spent a large part of that decade referring to the hotel as the Westin, confounding taxi drivers and bungling up many a meetup with friends. Even now, I sometimes catch myself thinking of the Swissotel as Westin. The Westin has now returned to our sunny shores, occupying the top floors of Asia Square Tower 2 in the Marina Bay downtown financial sector of the CBD. In spite of its prime grade A locale, the hotel doesn't quite afford the expansive view of the bay or the sea beyond because it's flanked all round by equally towering office blocks. Very unfortunate, methinks, because the lack of a seaview in most rooms would likely work against the hotel because staycationers would naturally look for a seaview to wake up to. Seasonal Tastes , Westin's in-house all-day buffet restaurant, recently launched their th...