Yan Restaurant (宴) Chinese New Year 2017 @ National Gallery Singapore

Chinese loves the auspicious number 8 because it sounds like '发' (Fa) in Chinese, which symbolizes wealth and fortune. For a year of abundance and prosperity, Yan Restaurant at National Gallery has introduced 8 Prosperous Set Menus to usher in the Year of the Rooster, ranging from $118++ to $268++ per person.

Signature Yellowtail Fish with Golden Flake in Shun De Style 4/5

Lo Hei is a tradition for all Lunar New Year nowadays. Apart from the more traditional Prosperity Salmon Lo Hei, bigger group can toss to a year of abundance with the Signature Yellowtail Fish Yu Sheng with Golden Flake in Shun De Style. Guests also have the option to add on cubes of crispy lobster fillet for an additional price. Instead of shredded vegetables, this is replaced with crispy fried vermicelli. It is then topped with slices of ginger, spring onion, crunchy capsicums, finely grounded peanut and drizzled in a homemade soya sauce and peanut oil.

Signature Roasted Suckling Pig

Crispy Skin 4/5

A signature at Yan Restaurant is their Signature Roasted Suckling Pig ($124 for half, $248 for whole) which comes with three ways of appreciation. First is to enjoy the tissue thin crispiness of the crackling skin with steamed pancake, cucumber and scallion.

Carved Shoulder 4.5/5 and Oven Baked Fillet with Lemongrass 4/5

The second way is the Carved Shoulder which comes with a layer of the crispy skin and another lay of the succulent meat. Lastly the pork is Oven Baked with Lemongrass which some what tastes like Japanese yakitori.

Braised 2 Head Abalone with Wild Mushroom 4.2/5

A delicacy on each set menu is the abalone. We tried the Braised 2 Head Abalone with Wild Mushroom. The bouncy texture of the abalone is well complimented by the flavoursome braising sauce. A delicacy indeed.

Dual Style Roasted & Szechuan 'Bon Bon' Chicken 4/5

A new item on the menu is the Dual Style Roasted & Szechuan 'Bon Bon' Chicken. This is a popular dish in China also known as Bang Bang Ji because of the pounding sound of the stick or hammer, hitting against the meat to tenderize it. The spring chicken is served in 2 ways. Half of it is shredded and coated with traditional homemade Si Chuan Ma La spice, while the other half is aromatically roasted.

Wok Fried Mee Sua with Shrimps, Honey Glazed Pork & Capsicum 4/5

In every Chinese's meal, there needs to be either a noodle or rice dish to ensure everyone on the table has a satisfying and full meal. A good change from the usual fried rice of Ee Fu Noodle is the Wok Fried Mee Sua with Shrimps, Honey Glazed Pork and Capsicum. I usually have mee sua in soup but I did not know wok frying it, gives it a different dimension and has a nice texture bite to it.

Pan Fried Sweet Rice Cake 4.8/5

The Pan Fried Sweet Rice Cake is a must try and not to be missed because it is only available for the festive season only. The contrast of crusty exterior and soft interior made this a delightful dessert. The softness of the rice cake felt like having mochi.

Chilled Mango Cream Topped with Vanilla Ice Cream & Oats 4.5/5

Wrapping up our dinner is the Chilled Mango Cream. It is served in a coconut husk and topped with vanilla ice cream and oats for the extra crunch. The bonus is that you can even have the coconut flesh after cleaning up the chilled mango cream and ice cream.

Yàn’s Chinese New Year menus are available for both lunch and dinner from 9 January to 11 February 2017. 2 reservation slots for dinner at 5.30pm and 8.15pm are available on the eve of Chinese New Year on 27 January 2017. Guests can refer to www.yan.com.sg for the respective menus and make theirreservations at reserve@yan.com.sg.


Yan Restauant (宴)
National Gallery Singapore
1 St Andrew's Road
#05-02
Singapore 178957
Tel: +65 63845585
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Website
Nearest MRT: City Hall (EW Line, NS Line)

Opening Hours:
Daily: 1130am - 230pm, 6pm - 1030pm

Direction: 
1) Alight at City Hall MRT station. Take Exit D. Turn left and walk down North Bridge Road. Turn left onto Coleman Street. Walk down Coleman Street. Walk to destination. Journey time around 5 minutes. [Map]

Chir Chir Fusion Chicken Factory @ Chinatown Point - New Highlights at Singapore's Favourite Chimaek Restaurant

With the opening of the first outlet at 313 Somerset in February 2015, Chir Chir Fusion Chicken Factory continues to open another 2 outlets at Bedok Point and Chinatown Point within the same year in May and December. The restaurant is fast to build on their success with the introduction of several new additions to the menu.

Mojito Double Smoothie 4.2/5

New on the beverage menu is the Mojito Double Smoothie ($12.90). The ice blended mango puree is topped with lime slushes, freshly whipped cream and rainbow sprinkles. It is a very refreshing drink that is perfect for the humid Singapore's weather as well as for the fried and spicy food at Chir Chir. There are also the Raspberry Double Smoothie and Aqua Double Smoothie.

Honey Butter Chicken 4/5

The honey butter potato chip craze that swept through South Korea has been brought to the table at Chir Chir with a spin off in the Honey Butter Chicken ($28.90). Not the prettiest plating but the delicious pile consists of boneless fried chicken, Korean rice cakes, potato wedges, dried cranberries, sliced almonds, honey butter sauce, honey butter seasoning. Besides the chunky chicken which is crispy and succulent, I enjoyed the Korean rice cake which has a thin layer of crispiness on top of the chewy texture.

Topokki & Cheese 3/5

A twist from the Mac & Cheese is the Topokki & Cheese ($9.90) that comes Korean rice cake, creamy cheese sauce, chicken ham, bacon bites. Substituting the macaroni with Korean rice cake gives the dish more bite but it is not my kind of thing as I am not a big fan of topokki. I would also prefer the cheese to be richer and more intense in flavour.

Spicy Seafood Soup 4/5

Chir Chir is not just about chicken. It does have other items such as the Spicy Seafood Soup ($26.90). The spicy clam base broth comes with fresh seafood such as squid, crayfish, prawns and mussels. Glass noodles are also added completing the whole enjoyment.

Spicy Topokki with Breaded Chicken 4/5

Be warned if you have a low tolerance of spicy food. The Spicy Topokki ($15.90) with Breaded Chicken (add $5) is really fiery. It will left you with a tongue burning sensation throughout the meal.
The pot comes with Korean rice cakes, Cajun battered squid, deep fried hard boileg egg and sweet potato cubes in spicy gochujang (red pepper paste) sauce. I would recommend dunking the breaded chicken into the spicy gochujang sauce to soak up the spiciness, for a sweat breaking enjoyment.

Rosemary Chicken 4.2/5

My favourite for the dinner has to be Rosemary Chicken ($29.90). It is a good change from all the various fried items. Marinated for 12 hours, the whole chicken chopped into huge pieces and roasted to golden brown. The tender and juicy roasted chicken is accompanied by a salsa dip, salt baked egg and baked potato with sour cream.

For supper seeker, you will be please to know that Chir Chir at Chinatown Point is opened until 3am daily.


Chir Chir Fusion Chicken Factory
Chinatown Point
133 New Bridge Road
#01-43
Singapore 059413
Tel: +65 65381069
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Nearest MRT: Chinatown (DT Line, NE Line)

Opening Hours:
Daily: 11am - 3am

Direction: 
1) Alight at Chinatown MRT station. Take Exit E. Walk to destination. Journey time about 3 minutes. [Map]

Cafe Insadong @ South Bridge Road

With the bingsu craze storming the island, many Korean dessert cafes such as Cafe Insadong has been opened in the little red dot. Located at South Bridge Road, Cafe Insadong is actually quite a small cafe with limited sitting space.

Red Bean Patbingsu 3/5

The signature item at Cafe Insadong has to be their patbingsu. The Red Bean Patbingsu ($8.50) comes with a a scoop of ice cream and generous topping of red beans, almond and even mochi. While the topping was a lot, the shaved ice came across bland and coarse. It lacked the sweetness of the milk and the melted in the mouth, snow-flake like texture.

Green Tea Patbingsu 3.5/5

Faring better is the Green Tea Patbingsu ($9.50) with green tea ice cream, red beans, almond, mochi and green tea infused shaved ice. Like the earlier bingsu, the ice is bland and coarse. Compared to other Korean dessert cafes such as Nunsongyee and O'ma Spoon, it came across as a disappointment.

Injeolmi Toast with Salted Caramel Ice Cream 3.5/5

Having tried a couple of Korean dessert cafe, I would say the Injeolmi Toast with Salted Caramel Ice Cream ($7.80) is more generous in its ingredients compare with the others. The injeolmi sandwiched by the lightly toasted bread and dusted with an abundance of kinako is both nutty and chewy enjoyment.

Cafe Insadong pricing is very competitive compare to the other Korean dessert cafe. They are also very generous in their ingredients and toppings. However the bingsu ice needs much improvement to be considered as one of the best bingsu in Singapore.


Cafe Insadong
279 South Bridge Road
Singapore 058828
Tel: +65 85332003
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Nearest MRT: Chinatown (NE Line, DT Line), Telok Ayer (DT Line)

Opening Hours:
Mon-Thu: 12pm - 930pm
Fri-Sat: 12pm - 1130pm
(Closed on Sun)

Direction:
1) Alight at Chinatown MRT. Take Exit A. Walk down Pagoda Street towards South Bridge Road. Turn right on South Bridge Road. Cross the road and walk to destination. Journey time about 10 minutes. [Map]

2) Alight at Telok Ayer MRT station. Take Exit A. Walk down Cross Street towards Club Street. Turn left onto Club Street and walk to the end. At the end of Cross Street, turn right onto Ann Siang Road and walk towards South Bridge Road. At South Bridge Road, turn left and walk to destination. Journey time about 12 minutes. [Map]

Crystal Jade Golden Palace (翡翠金阁) @ Paragon

Mentioned Crystal Jade and many may known as a household name in Singapore. However many may not know that Crystal Jade has actually 22 concepts with over 120 outlets in 19 major cities in Asia Pacific region and the United States. One of these is the fine dining concept at Crystal Jade Golden Palace located on the fifth floor of Paragon in Orchard. To welcome the year of the horse, the themes of the lunar new year menu is health, wealth and prosperity featuring seasonal delicacies from around the world done with a light, contemporary touch using premium, fresh and nutritious ingredients.

Hearty Five Treasure Yusheng 4/5

A staple Lunar New Year dish is the Yusheng to usher in the year of the spirited horse. Crystal Jade Golden Palace has brought back the Hearty Five Treasure Yusheng ($78.80/$128.80) after its successful debut in 2012. The auspicious dish comes with healthy vegetable salad, energy giving pine nuts, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, white sesame, peanuts and slices of fresh mango. Fresh salmon and premium amberjack fish slices topped with gold leaf flakes are drizzled with Crystal Jade's special plum sauce and hazelnut oil for a toss to abundant wealth and health in the Year of the Horse.

Deep Fried Japanese Amadai 3/5

Deep Fried Japanese Amadai 3/5

The Japanese Amadai ($5.50/37.5gram) is a small and elegant fish specially imported from Japan. Deep fried to golden brown and sprinkled with shichimi powder, it is enjoyed together with the crispy shimmering scales to resemble a field of gold. It was quite interesting to eat the deep fried Japanese amadai together with its scale. While I appreciated the texture, I thought the execution was lacking in flavour. I was actually hoping that there was a sauce to give the dish a much needed lift in flavour.

Stewed Canadian Lobster 4/5

Using the yin and yang style of cooking, the Canadian Lobster ($11/100gram) is first seared in hot oil and then gently simmered in superior stock containing halibut. The luscious firm white flesh of the lobster was sweet with mildly infused with the sweet taste of halibut.

Sauteed Kurobuta Pork Strips 3.5/5

The Sauteed Kurobuta Pork Strips ($32) uses premium Kurobuta pork from Japan. The rich and juicy pork is sauteed with assorted mushroom, capsicums and cordycep flower. Using organic raw extra virgin coconut oil from Thailand, it gave the dish a light, fragrant and creamy finishing.

Braised Sea Cucumber and Scallop with Barley 4.5/5

The Braised Sea Cucumber and Scallop with Barley ($38) is a good and healthy substitute to the usual fried rice or glutinous rice served in Chinese restaurants. Cooked in a special sauce, the barley was infused with beautiful flavours and each mouth of has delightful bite to it.

Festive Trio 4.2/5

Dinner ends with the Festive Trio of Steamed Black Eyed Pea Cake ($25.80), Steamed Glutinous Rice Cake ($23.80) lightly tossed with shredded coconut and peanuts and Pan Fried Carrot Cake ($25.80). These delectable cakes are available for takeaway at all Crystal Jade restaurants.


Crystal Jade Golden Palace (翡翠金阁)
Paragon
290 Orchard Road
#05-21/22/23/24
Singapore 238859
Tel: +65 67346866
Website: http://www.crystaljade.com/
Nearest MRT: Orchard (NS Line), Somerset (NS Line)

Opening Hours:
Daily: 10am - 11pm

Direction: 
1) Alight at Orchard MRT station. Take Exit C or D. Proceed to the road level. Walk down Orchard Road until the junction of Orchard Road and Orchard Link. Cross the road and walk to Paragon. Journey time about 12 minutes. [Map]

2) Alight at Somerset MRT station. Take Exit B. Proceed to the road level. Turn left on Orchard Road and walk down Orchard Road until junction of Orchard Road and Orchard Link. Cross the Road and walk to Paragon. Journey time about 12 minutes. [Map]