Chik's Crib

29 January 2016

Muah Chee Recipe

Recipe January 29, 2016 0

I'm surprised how well this recipe turned out. I had a recent spate of bad luck with recipes taken from casual baking blogs: two recipes which I googled for and baked on a whim (green tea tuiles and milo lava cakes) were downright unappetizing, despite the bloggers' convictions on how delicious their adaptations are.

Cocoa Colony (The Star Vista)

Singapore January 26, 2016 0

Sigh. So much promise, but so disappointing.

I wasn't full from my lunch at Rollie Olie, and I was (as per normal) craving chocolate. We were wandering around the un-airconditioned section of Star Vista and because it was a hot day, I thought it'll be nice to get something cold. Cocoa Colony's Iced Cocoa Shakerato ($7), which sits at number 2 on their Favourites menu, seems like a good idea as we walked past, so I stopped and ordered it.

Huh. It sounds really fancy, but it's just a chocolate drink with a large quantity of ice? It has a gritty mouthfeel too, like the copious amount of cocoa powder hasn't been fully dissolved. Drink fast, before the ice melts and dilutes the drink further.

I like Cocoa Colony's decor, with the chocolate fountain obstructively located over at their counter where their wagons stand displaying their wares. If only they spend as much effort on their food.

It's easy to criticise and tear something down. Criticism without suggestions is useless as hell; any half-wit on the internet can do that. With that said, here's what some of your competitors have been doing. Go ahead and try their ideas.

Koko Black's Iced Chocolate, the finest iced chocolate I had.

1) Make sure the cocoa powder dissolves fully. Or, if the low temperature re-precipitates the cocoa powder, use chocolate bars instead of cocoa powder. Try using the hot chocolate recipe from Wittamer, one of Brussels' finest chocolate shops.

2) Take a leaf out of Koko Black's book: Skip the ice cubes, and add two scoops of ice cream, one vanilla, and one chocolate. The beverage gets creamier and creamier as the ice creams melt. If Koko Black can sell their Iced Chocolate with two scoops of ice cream for $8.90 with local minimum wage laws stipulating $20++ per hour for employees, you have no excuse. Charging $7 for cocoa powder plus milk plus ice cubes is excessive.

3) Top your beverage with chocolate shavings, à la Koko Black. To hide the ice cubes if nothing else. Or some whipped cream from a can. Anything. The version I bought looked really drab. You're a homegrown brand (I think), and I really really hope you do well.

24 January 2016

Rollie Olie (The Star Vista)

Review January 24, 2016 0

I had my first taste of American style sushi rolls in you-guess-it! America, Unlike traditional Japanese sushi that pay homage the freshness of their ingredients by keeping their sushi simple, the American way highlights their sushi with chunks of cream cheese, avocado, mango slices, melted cheese and anything else you could think of. Everything under the sun is fair game.

My favourite dish from Sushi Tei is their Dragon Roll, which comes with sliced mango, prawn tempura and ... . (So I guess you guys know which camp I fall into.) But Sushi Tei ain't got nothing on these guys. This may be some of the most impressive sushi I have ever eaten in Singapore.

Sunday Folks (Holland Village)

Review January 21, 2016 0

Gula Melaka ice cream served atop a charcoal waffle biscuit base

When J texted me about Sunday Folks, sister chain of Creamier, I was still on the fence about it. Then she sent me pictures of her waffles, and I had no further qualms.

Miss XS was angling for their pistachio ice cream, but pistachio was sold out when we arrived mid-afternoon. Based on Hungrygowhere's top recommendations, Miss XS and I shared Waffles with Seasalt Gula Melaka Ice Cream ($11.80). Gula Melaka, or palm sugar, is processed from the flowers of certain palm trees (such as from coconut trees, or date palm trees).

The waffle was fresh and fluffy and the edges remained crispy even as the ice cream melted and pooled over. How does it manage to do that? The sheet of crunchy charcoal waffle just below the ice cream was also a nice touch.

creaminess of the coconut base is apparent the minute it crossed my lips, but we couldn't taste any salt. Shame. Large flakes of seasalt perched on the swirl of ice cream would have been picturesque, and would have nicely balanced the cloying sweetness of the ice cream. It's sweet, not in-your-face-until-your-tooth-aches, but a more subtle sweetness that creeps up and accumulates in your mouth, until you start craving for a glass of water for the rest of the day. With the syrup drizzled around the perimeter of the waffles, the sweetness is overkill. We downed cups of water from their water dispenser with an adorable gold tap, but it was too little too late. But the consistency of the soft-serve was perfect, I just didn't care for the gula melaka flavour.

The Verdict
Love the waffle, Neither of us enjoyed the Gula Melaka Ice Cream, but Miss XS is a fan of their Roasted Pistachio ice cream. From the way she described the pistachio vs gula melaka, I will be back to try the Pistachio.

17 January 2016

Awfully Chocolate

Singapore January 17, 2016 0

Walking along East Coast Road after lunch at Boon Tong Kee, we chanced upon Awfully Chocolate, which makes one of the most impressive chocolate ice cream I ever had. They come in the most adorable boxes that are shaped like Chinese takeout boxes, and it's joyous to walk around while scraping every last bit of ice cream out of the box.

So what else would I order, if not their chocolate ice cream? We individually ordered the Single Scoop, which came in beautiful, rustic serving cups.

We didn't look at the menu before ordering, so it was kind of a shock to see the bill. We paid about $6 for one scoop of ice cream. In hindsight, it'll probably be cheaper if we a) ordered a double scoop instead of two single-scoop, b) have the ice cream to go, so we wouldn't pay the 17% service charge and GST.

Was the ice cream worth it? I did get palpitations when my friend told me we could each get a pint of Häagen-Dazs for $3 more. It was lovely to sit in the cafe for a bit, and we did get a cup of water along with our orders, which I definitely needed to counteract the richness of the ice cream... Hmm.

The Verdict:Awfully Chocolate serves some of the richest chocolate ice-cream I had. Thank goodness for the water. I don't think I could make it through a scoop without having a sip of water now and then. Shame it's so expensive.