Element @ Amara Hotel

There is a buzz along Tras Street with cool rhythms in the air and a large merrymaking crowd gathered at the new Element on Tras Street, the new alfresco terrace of Element at Amara Hotel Singapore. The newly renovated Elment at Amara Hotel Singapore unveils an unique contemporary integrated dining that fuses food, drink, social dining and lifestyle in a sensational, all encompassing package. With the different elements at play, the new concept of the integrated gastronomic options offers an International Buffet (Heritage Element), Basque Cuisine (Basque Element), Toby's Estate Coffee (Barista Element), Outdoor Bar (Hip Element) and Flexible Dining (Individualist Element)

Toast of Grated Tomato and Iberico Ham 4.2/5

With the newly opened Element at Amara Hotel Singapore, a bold concept of introducing Basque cuisine with a young talented 22 years old Chef de Cuisine, Chef Mikel Badiola from San Sebastian in Basque Spain. Mikel picked up cooking at the age of 14 when he joined a txoko, a traditional gastronomic society where make members come together to cook in typical Basque culture. Went to culinary school and work in several local restaurant kitchens. At the age of 20, he worked with feted 3 star Michelin chef Martin Berasategui at his eponymous restaurant in Lasarte-Oria, Spain. Left for London to work before returning to Spain as Head Chef at the Real Nuevo Golf Club where his talent was spotted.

Showcasing Basque cuisine by the talented new Chef de Cuisine, Mike Badiola, we started with a selection of Pintxos equivalent to tapas. First up was the Toast of Grated Tomato and Iberico Ham ($15 for 2pc). The combination of the flavourful iberico ham and grated tomato was an excellent pairing whetting up the appetite.

Mushroom Brochette in Oporto Sauce 3.5/5

The Mushroom Brochette in Oporto Sauce ($12 for 2pc) has a delectable earthy flavour with a nice hint of spiciness form the oporto sauce.

Cod Fish Bechamel filled in Piquillo Pepper 4.5/5

The Cod Fish Bechamel filled in Piquillo Pepper ($12 for 2pc) with its love shaped like presentation was not only delight in sight but in taste. Meticulously prepared in grounding the cod fish into a paste and filled in Piquillo pepper, paired with a delish buttery and creamy bechamel sauce, bursting with beautiful flavour with each mouthful.

Spanish Omelette with Potato and Onion 4.2/5

Spanish Omelette with Potato and Onion 4.2/5

The ordinary looking round shape Spanish Omelette with Potato and Onion ($10) was surprisingly very delicious. The moist interior of chopped potatoes and onions is wrapped in a fragrant slightly charred omelette packed with homely goodness.

Basque Fish Soup cooked with Oven Roasted Bread 4/5

The Basque Fish Soup cooked with Oven Roasted Bread ($16) took me a while to get used to the acquire taste of burnt bread. As I got used to the taste, I could appreciate the different medleys of flavours hitting the palate with a aromatic smokiness in it. A very comfort and hearty bowl of fish soup.

Basque Tuna Stew with Potato and Pepper 4.2/5

While the Basque Fish Soup has a very robust and complex flavour, the Basque Tuna Stew with Potato and Pepper ($28) will come across as a cleaner version with delectable potatoes and pinkish tuna in cube shape. Given a choice, I would prefer this over the basque fish soup.

Squid with Tartar Sauce 4.5/5

Unlike Singaporean which likes the batter of our calamari to be crispy, the Spanish prefers it to be thin so that it can enjoy the freshness and juiciness of the squid. Squeezing a little zest from the lemon, the Squid with Tartar Sauce ($18) was both springy and crunchy allowing one to enjoy the freshness of the squid to the fullest.

Traditional Roast Suckling Pig 4.5/5

To adapt to the local palate, Chef Mikel has made a number of fine tuning such as making the skin more crispy. I really enjoyed the crackling paper thin skin and the extremely tender meat of the Traditional Roast Suckling Pig ($88 for 3 pax). Paired with the "Amara" sauce which went very well with the roast suckling pig.

A trio of dessert ended our night on a sweet note with the Cheese Cake ($9), Honey Jelly Yoghurt with Walnut Cream ($9) and Cold Strawberry Soup with Fruit Brochette ($9). The Honey Jelly Yoghurt with Walnut Cream is an interesting introduction to Singaporean as a dessert instead of breakfast. The combination of honey jelly and nutty walnut cream with yoghurt was interesting nice and great as a dessert. My favourite was the Cold Strawberry Soup with Fruit Brochette ($9). An unique and refreshing drink of infusing the savoury bruschetta with fruity strawberry.

The exciting young talent in Chef Mikel with its Basque cuisine will delight patrons with his culinary skill while the different flexible dining element allow one to eat and sit as one please. The integrated, multi-concept cuisine means that under a single roof one can dine from the international buffet, Spanish a la carte, Spanish set, Spanish pintxos, signature appertiser from Thanying, Silkroad Cafe Oriental (three other restaurants within Amara Hotel).


Element and Element on Tras Street
Amara Hotel
165 Tanjong Pagar Road
Singapore 088539
Tel: +65 68792555, +65 68792607
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/amarasingaporehotel/
Website: http://singapore.amarahotels.com/dining/element/
Nearest MRT: Tanjong Pagar (EW Line)

Opening Hours:
Breakfast (Daily): 6am - 1030am
Lunch (Mon-Fri, except PH): 12pm - 230pm
Brunch (Sat-Sun, PH): 1130am - 330pm
Dinner (Daily): 630pm - 10pm

Direction: 
1) Alight at Tanjong Pagar MRT station. Take Exit A. Walk towards Gopeng Street and turn into Tras Street. Walk to Amara Hotel. Journey time about 5 minutes. [Map]

Audacious Cakery @ Everton Park

Unknowingly there was some form of high expectation from Audacious Cakery when IS Magazine listed their Monet cake as one of the 50 things to eat before you die. From the sound of it, the cakes at Audacious Cakery must be heavenly. When the bar is set so high, inevitable the expectation of their products is raised. So on one weekend I went down to the little cafe with Maureen and Sihan who was back from Sydney to check out what is the hype all about.

Strawberry Shortcake 2.8/5, Faith 3/5, Zacharie 3.5/5

We started with a trio of cakes. The Strawberry Shortcake ($6.80) was too light in taste for our likings. The Faith ($6.80) fared much better with the distinct green tea flavour. I am a sour person so for me the Zacharie ($7.80) was my favourite among the three. I liked the sourness of the passion fruit cutting through the sweetness of the mango. Only disappointment in the ginger biscuit base, we could not taste any ginger flavour at all.

Lemon Meringue 3/5, Chocolate Souffle 2.8/5

The Lemon Meringue ($5.80) was packed with luscios lemony richness but lacked down by the tart crust which suspiciously seemed factory made rather than homemade. The Chocolate Souffle ($6.80) was served warm (being heated up) which was weird to us. The souffle centre became gooey and messy for consumption. The heating also caused the tart to be chewy instead of crusty. We were served another chocolate souffle chilled and it was much better. Don't really know how to appreciate why customers like it heated up (accordingly to the cafe).

Macarons 2.5/5

Audacious Cakery also offers a selection of Macarons ($2.50 to $2.80). We had the following flavours in Chocolate Earl Grey, Salted Caramel, Intensely Chocolate, Lemon, Cream Cheese Passion Fruit and Coconut & Lemongrass. Overall this was the weakest link for me. The macarons was lacking in crispiness, sweetness and fillings.

Matcha 3/5, Lemon Raspberry 3.5/5, Sesame 3/5

The Matcha Cupcake ($3.50) is topped with macha Italian meringue buttercream and served on a full bodied matcha cake made with green tea from Japan. Green tea lover will love this with layers after layers of green tea flavour. The Lemon Raspberry Cupcake ($4) is topped with lemon Italian meringue buttercream made with a homemade raspberry jam core on a vanilla buttermilk cake sprinkled with raspberry croquelin. My personal favourite among the three as I found it more balanced in both taste and texture. The Black Sesame Cupcake ($3.50) is made with a blend of Japanese and Taiwan black sesame seeds giving it a nice aroma. One for the black sesame lover.

Foret Noir 4/5, Chocolate Obession 4/5

If I would to go back to Audacious Cakery, I would go back for the Foret Noir ($9.80) and Chocolate Obsession ($8.80). The Foret Noir or Black Forest is alcoholic with Krish soaked cherries and Kirsh cream on a dark Valrhona chocolate genoise. Rich and moist with a nice balance of bittersweet alcohol flavour. The Chocolate Obsession has a chocolate creme brulee centre on a dark Valrhona chocolate genoise. A cake definitely made for customers that are obsessed with chocolate.

I like the cafe itself, the white theme gives a very welcoming and casual ambience where one would love to laze the day away enjoying a slice of cake and a cup of coffee. Maybe there was too much hype about their cakes in the media and my expectation was raised. I felt the cakes was rather average in taste and texture but scores excellently in presentation. My comparison is rather straightforward. If I am to recommend a place of cakes, cupcakes, tarts or macarons, sorry to say audacious cakery will not be in the list.


[CLOSED]
Audacious Cakery
Blk 2 Everton Park
#01-161
Singapore 081002
Tel: +65 62233047
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AudaciousCakery
Website: http://theaudaciouscakery.com
Nearest MRT: Outram Park (EW Line, NE Line)

Opening Hours:
Mon-Sat: 10am - 7pm

Direction: 
1) Alight at Outram Park MRT station. Take Exit G. Walk down Cantonment Road towards the direction of Pinnacle. At the junction of Cantonment Road and Neil Road, cross the junction walk to towards the block of flats. Walk to destination. Journey time about 6 minutes. [Map]