Gastro Esthetics DaDong in Beijing, China

I went to an outlet of Dadong many years ago, but that was not their main Nanxingcang location, and it was before it got a Michelin star (22A Dongsi 10th Alley). It has since been upgraded with an odd-sounding name and tacky decor, but the food was slam-your-fist-on-the-table delicious.

Indeed, I don't remember liking the Peking Duck so much last time, but the specimen tonight was amazing. It was leaner than most other shops and thus less soggy, yet with enough fat to make it velvety rich and crispy too. Granulated sugar seemed weird as a condiment, but it worked, as did some very finely pureed garlic.

Everything else that we had was good, with a seasonal shanshu fern from Taiwan being particularly memorable, as well as a shredded cabbage salad, ham stuffed with sticky rice, and baked croaker with green peppercorns. I left here very happy and was hoping for more of that duck.

Danjiang Fishing Village in Beijing, China

This small chain of seafood restaurants in Beijing was quaint with its wooden courtyard decor, and the food was pretty good too. I liked it better than last night, with pretty much everything they served tonight being good. There were some rice and lotus root cakes that I kept reaching for, and those beef slices above were nice and tender too. The service tonight was a bit unpolished, but I was happy with the food.

Chef MA's Master Studio @ DI Chinese Restaurant in Beijing

That's a rather long and confusing name above, but it is a rather posh restaurant inside the Intercontinental Beichen Hotel in Beijing, China (8 Beichen West Road). The food in our banquet was pretty good, including that spiced tofu above, not to mention some deliciously fatty lamb ribs as well as deep-fried yet tender tofu. The service was attentive too.

OMMA Korean Charcoal BBQ in Singapore

When this place first opened a number of years ago, its main selling point was that they had different types of wood for you to select to create more aroma. When we went to its second outlet today (126 Telok Ayer Street), they didn't even ask us which one we wanted. They admitted that it would have been just a few bits of wood anyway, whereas the bulk of the heat came from standard charcoal.

The good thing though is that it didn't really matter, as the food was decent and wasn't as commercialized as I had feared. We had a beef set that came with a number of different cuts, including kalbi, chadolbaegi, and that yukhoe above. The banchan was passable too, even if it couldn't compare to places like Um Yong Baek and Joong San. They even had a range of different salts for you to choose from.

Aladdin Lanzhou Beef Noodle at Textile Centre

I had my hopes up for this Lanzhou beef noodle place, but was kinda let down (200 Jalan Sultan #01-07). That was because of the texture of both the slightly tough beef as well as the slippery smooth noodles. Now, silky noodles could be a virtue in it's own right, but I wanted something with more bite, and these didn't have it.

The good thing is that the clear broth was crisp, while the chili sauce was the best thing here, especially with its very pronounced sesame seeds. But I would rather go to Shejianjian if there were one nearby. If I am here again, then I hope that they are doing chuanr since they weren't available today.

Japan's Gatten Sushi in Singapore

This place at ION Orchard looks like it's another low-grade kaiten sushi place from the outside (2 Orchard Turn #B3-20, 6876-1210). But the quality of the fish is so much better than places like Sushiro and Genki. They featured a number of specials today that I was quite happy with, while that flamboyant fried green onion and mayonnaise-topped squid above is more of an exception to what is otherwise a surprisingly conservative menu. The quality of the food comes at a higher price than those other shops though, as I racked up quite a bill when grabbing some rather pricey items off the conveyor belt. In that sense, I'd rather go to Sushidan, which delivers even better fish at a lower price.

Katsu by Kyu at OUE Downtown Gallery

One the surface, this place looks like it's a ripoff of Tonshou, especially since they finish their tonkatsu over a grill (6A Shenton Way #01-09). They may not get any originality points for that, but the good thing at least is that the food is actually pretty good.

That includes the quality of the ingredients as well as the techniques used in things like the perky salad dressing and smoky tartar sauce. Wrapping the prawns in super thin threads of kadaif pastry may have been for showy theatrics, but nonethless it was impressively light and airy without being soggy. I don't mind going here again, even if Tonshou is still my first choice.

By the way, it looks like "Kyu" is neither a restaurant nor a person. But this place is from the folks who brought in Song Gye Ok, and also run Tofu G. I'm quite a big fan of Tofu G's smooth soybean taste, and I even went there afterwards for dessert. These guys sure seem to have a thing for wooden decors at their restaurants.

Hong Kong's Bari Bari Steak in Singapore

Here's another Japanese hot plate steak place, but this one's from Hong Kong. And if you hadn't told me it was from Hong Kong, I would've thought it was a badly done knockoff of Keisuke's hanbaagu shop given the prominent positioning of a salad bar that even included a big tub of hard-boiled eggs. The salad bar turned out to be rather sad and small, and certainly was not a draw on its own.

The good thing is that the meat quality was better than I thought it would be. I got the cheapest flank above, and it was surprisingly tender. In that sense, I don't mind going back based on the quality of the beef. But that salad bar was lousy, and those potato wedges were like what one would find at Saizeriya. I'd rather go to Yappari, which is better as a whole.

Crab Roe Ramen from Chen’s Singapore

It looks like these guys are doubling down on their distant Michelin association. The top of the menu features dishes that they say are curated from Chef Chen's repertoire, like this crab roe noodle.

I assume that it is meant to be like the one that I had in Shanghai last year. I don't know the dish well enough to make comparisons, but this one had some delicately sweet and savory bits of crab meat and roe in a silky a sauce that one could accentuate with black vinegar.

Perhaps more interesting was the fact that one could get a small bowl of his mapo tofu on the side. It didn't come with any rice, which felt odd, but at least I could satisfy my cravings for it for just a few bucks more.

The Rainforest Fried Rice from KANTIN Singapore

I told you that I'd be back here. This time I went for their rainforest fried rice above, and I liked it. The rice was firm yet carefully seasoned, and even garnished with crunchy nuts and crispy tapioca leaves. I also got to try those banana leaf-grilled ikan balut fish packets. There was a delicate and moist piece of fish inside that was accentuated with some ginger flowers. Thumbs up. It was all better than that headhunter chicken meal from yesterday.

Taverna by The Tokyo Restaurant in Kuala Lumpur

The name above looks confusing, but it's a spinoff of a place called The Tokyo Restaurant. It's an Italian itameshi place on the third floor of The Gardens Mall. And I was quite happy with that mentaiko pasta above, as it was super savory and buttery without being overwhelming. The thick noodles were chewy, and they provided a generous portion at that.

On top of that, the parent restaurant is apparently known for its burnt cheesecake, and they serve it here too. It was deliciously rich; I gobbled it all up in the blink of an eye despite how heavy it was. I'll be very happy to come back here again, and perhaps also check out the many Japanese restaurants here at The Table restaurant area at the Isetan in Mid Valley.

Returning to ChoCha Foodstore in Kuala Lumpur

I'm not intentionally on the hunt for ingredients from Borneo two times in the same day. I just liked this place so much from last time that my heart was set on coming here again. It was only only after I sat down did I realize their Borneo heritage. Yet it was completely different from KANTIN's traditional tribal take.

As with before, ChoCha is progressively modern, and fantastic at it. I loved everything I had, including a duck leg with duck fat fried rice as well as a smoked golden pomfret salad, all of which was balanced and accentuated with local herbs and aroma. That thing above might look weird, but it's mackerel paste stuffed into a betel leaf-like thing that was deep fried and topped with a gel made from a wild ginger from Borneo. It was comfortingly soft and savory.

I just love how this place does everything, like how it handles its ingredients, as well as the charming old venue that was filled with a smoky aroma and calming music. I'm really surprised that this place hasn't gotten more praise and attention, because it really deserves it.