Since I got my handicap card, it makes me much more adventurous and eager to try out new courses. It is always nicer to play somewhere other than the home club. Decided to join TF and his friends for a game at the Tering Bay Golf and Country Club. It was designed by Greg Norman and the layout and the greens were defended by a lot of sand bunkers. Well, at least, they are not as deep as the China golf courses I went to. Overall, had a good game. The short game was good and surprising, I managed to chip all the balls quite well and didnt duff any.
Didnt realized how cheap Batam is compared to Bintan -drinks and food. The whole trip cost S$104 for the weekend and $10 for the caddie. Had a nice 45 min massage that costs me only S$20. Nice experience - at least I can say I have been to Batam. Else, the only thing I know abt that place is Singaporeans keeping their mistresses there. haha.... I was also amazed that so many Singaporeans went there for gambling - the Ah Sohs and Ah Chets. It was such a massive jam when we came back to Singapore. Maybe I can set up a loanshark business when the IR project is completed in Singapore. :-) Btw, the photo showed TF, aka canon launcher, teeing off.
Saturday, May 20, 2006
Batam Golf 20 May 05
Thursday, May 18, 2006
Sin Huat 17 May 06
Decided to go with buddies for a good dinner at Sin Huat Eating House, 659 Geylang Road, Lorong 35 Junction. This is supposedly the best place for crab bee hoon in singapore. Anthony Bourdain, the chef, has proclaimed the dish is something to die for.
Anyway, drove up there after having gin tonics as appetitzers with Vincent at Far East Sq. Surprisingly, there was no crowd at around 7 plus so we placed our orders before the rest arrived. This is one of the rare places where I can pay through credit cards - coffee shop settings with restuarant prices. The chef is always in a sulky mood like the last time I saw him.
Ordered gong gong shells, prawns, fried vegetables and the crab beehoon. The chilli sauce went well with the gong gong and the prawns were solid with the garlic and spring onion garnishings. Of course, the star of the night was the beehoon. The sri lankan crabs were huge and they managed to cook it in a way that the roe was evenly distributed among the beehoon. The crab shell was so flushed with bright red roe - absolutely sinful and heart attack material. But heck, eat first then say. The other thing we missed for the night was the scallop - not available.
S$365 for 6 persons abt $60 per pax. Pretty reasonable for the yummy crab beehoon.
Remember not to order steamed fish - the person kept asking us why we dont want to order it. The price is simply CUT-THROAT .... i still recall paying S$170 for a fish the last time I was there.
Very nice evening. Good food with wonderful company.
Monday, May 15, 2006
Graze, Rochester Park 13 May 06
The group decided to host a dinner at Graze. Graze is affiliated with the famous, Philippe Starck's designed hotel in Hong Kong called, Jia. In fact, their consulting Chef, Chef Teague Ezard, is the same award winning Melbourne chef that currently consulting Opia at Jia.
Graze, 4 Rochester Park, Singapore 139215 Phone: +65 6775 9000
It was a fabulous bergundy night again.
2002 Fourrier Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru Combe Aux Moines
2002 Humbert Freres Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru Les Poissenots
2002 Joseph Roty Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru Les Fontenys"
2002 Jean et Jean-Louis Trapet Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru Petite Chapelle
2002 Varoilles Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru Clos des Varoilles (Monopole)
2002 Varoilles Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru La Romanee (Monopole)
2003 Bruno Clare Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru "Clos St.-Jacques"
2003 Lucien Le Moine Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru "Cazetiers"
Save for Petite Chapelle & Les Fontenys, the rest of the Gevrey primeur cru are from the Combe Lavaut sector, which largely consider to be the finest of all three sections.
It was an unanimous decision to vote for the Fourier as the best highlight for the dinner. It was rustic, good acidity and the finish was awesome. I liked the Varoilles02 and Bruno Clair02 - the precision of the acid was very well defined.
Else, the starters for the resturant were overcooked, esp the prawn and crabs. Probably the best highlight was the bread accompanied by the cheese and the salsa. I found the ox cheek quite nice but the others thought it was a bit too salty. We were so full that we skip the dessert. Service was so-so and a bit slow. Had to ask for a couple of times before we got served water and even then, we waited for a loooong time. The nice part of the restuarant is the ambience and the laid back enviroment. There is a video projector screening old movies in the garden and the outdoor sitting was nice and airy. Quite an ang mo place.