The largest tasting menu I've ever eaten

I must have looked like someone who could really eat a whole cow, or maybe the waitress was too polite to tell me NO, but anyway, I ordered the Rijstafel tasting menu at Bumbu Bali in Nusa Dua, Bali last weekend, and lived to regret it. Don't get me wrong, the food was fantastic, and with tasting portions that represented a large portion of the restaurant menu items, but there was simply too much food for one person to finish.

For starters, there were 4 different types of skewered meat, a very delicious and unusual green papaya salad, a tuna salad and a rice cake dish with 2 accompanying dips. The main dishes arrived on a large platter with various types of meat - marinated chicken, sweet pork stew, various types of grilled meat in wrapped in banana leaf, a spicy vegetable dish, beef rendang, another chicken stew and a final met dish that I couldn't remember (and barely tasted).

A barely made a dent, only managing to taste tiny morsels of meat while having some of the white, yellow and red rice varieties. Anyway, finally on to dessert, there was a mixed tropical fruit platter, a black rice pudding, a palm sugar rice pudding and some local glutinous rice pastries. There was definitely enough food for two, but it was just a pity I was dining alone that night.

Bumbu Bali also has cooking classes during the day, and will arrange to take students to the local market to shop for ingredients before the lessons start. The open air kitchen is a great place to watch the experts cook up a feast, and there are cookbooks on sale for those really keen on trying their hand at Balinese cuisine.

The restaurant is located at Jalan Pratama, Tanjung Benoa, P.O.Box 132 Nusa Dua 80363, Bali - Indonesia. Tel: 62 361 774502, 772299

Back to the Macaroni Club

Ah, my favorite joint along the Kuta stretch is still around. It's been two years since I had a meal at the Macaroni Club, lots of fond memories and good food. It still looks pretty much the same, except maybe they've spiffed it up a bit. The three-storey high skylight that covers the entire club was what drew me to this place many years ago when I first stumbled upon it during a walk down Kuta one afternoon. Love the drinks, love the music and the food. If you happen to get the front row tables by the roadside, you get a great view of the street scene in front of the restaurant, like watching a music video that loops endlessly, while the hanging TVs play more MTV fare.

Today, as I finished my morning surfing session, I was on the lookout for a quick bite before heading back to my hotel to get some work and emails done. Saw a couple of new Italian bistros by Kuta Beach, a couple of new bars serving lunch, and passed TJ's the old Mexican cantina in Poppies Lane II. As I emerged from the side lane onto the main thoroughfare, I saw the Macaroni Club right in front of me, and knew that was the answer. I ordered the set lunch, a really good deal at Rp59,000 - choice of pizza or pasta, a drink and a coffee. I ordered ice cream for dessert as well. The macaroni alla matriciana was very tasty, and well done. Thank goodness they also had free wifi! I was able to shoot out a few emails while waiting for my food, and so everyone back at the office probably had no idea I was goofing off in Bali and sending out emails at a club in Kuta. Well, that's modern technology. It will enrich our lives in many ways, and eventually enslave us to our virtual desks wherever we may flee to.

P.S. Cafe Palais Renaissance, Singapore

When a couple of my fellow die-hard Coldplay fans came down to Singapore from K.L. for the concert, we had to grab dinner before heading out to Kallang. They took me to the newest P.S. Cafe at Palai Renaissance and we had a wonderful time as rushed as it was.

The owners and their eye for the perfect light and space have created another lovely venue from basically nothing. Like the Dempsey location, they have taken this formerly unused area and turned it into a cosy cafe with a French bistro influence.

Their drinks are really good (try their mojitos), their oysters fresh, the good ole' Ceasar Salad and truffles fries wonderful comfort foods.

If I had the luxury of a tai-tai lifestyle, I would be here everyday chilling, reading, eating and drinking.

Still a distant wish....

An Italian experience in Bali

A couple of years ago, I remember having some delicious fried calamari sitting at the outdoor patio of Salsa Verde, the Italian bistro at the Grand Hyatt Bali in Nusa Dua, Bali. I had just arrived very late tonight and was famished, so between Italian and Japanese teppanyaki, Italian won out. I think one of the beauty of Italian cuisine is the subtle nuances that distinguish the different regions of the country, be it Puglia in the south or Ligure in the north. Tonight, this season, they were featuring cuisine from Tuscany, and I was really looking forward to expanding my palate.

I ordered a starter consisting of rare grilled tuna fillet, orange wedges and fresh sliced tomatoes. The tuna was lightly seasoned with salt, olive oil and a healthy sprinkling of chopped chives. Simple, fresh and very tasty. My main was the penne with fresh and smoked salmon in a tomato sauce. The fresh salmon texture was just cooked perfectly, and the smoked salmon lent a smoky seafood flavor to the fresh tomato sauce. It just shows how a standard dish like this can really stand out with the right ingredients technique. I wished there was room for dessert, but I had too much fresh bread sticks before the meal, and will have to let it pass.

The restaurant that no longer exists

San Marco At the Lighthouse - For a cool name like that, you got to have some high expectations about the restaurant. Well, I've been disappointed before, so I went in without expecting much beyond a good meal. The restaurant was located on the 8th floor of the Fullerton Hotel, which was once the Singapore General Post Office in a bygone era. Perched on top of the building is a small tower room large enough or 6 small tables and 2 private rooms large enough to seat a total of 14. It's a very cosy little restaurant tucked away in a hidden corner of Singapore, and makes for a great romantic dinner for two.

The fresh bread was excellent, and since I was a sucker for freshly baked bread, I started filling up on them very quickly. First up was the caramelized walnut broth - warm, earthy walnut flavors infused into a rich, creamy flavorful broth. Why I've never tried anything like this I don't know. This dish was an instant hit for me, I loved how the nutty flavors complemented the creamy texture of the broth so well. We decided to give the dinner special a try - roasted piglet loin for two. Again, this was an excellent dish, the meat was cooked to perfection, crispy around the skin, and juicy and tender on the inside, and the fact that it was made with Kurobota pork made it even more special. The chef has specially prepared a small chocolate birthday cake that ensured the meal ended on a very sweet, uplifting mood. It's a shame I discovered San Marco only a week before this closed the restaurant, otherwise, I'd definitely will be back again. And the view from the restaurant's roof top ain't so bad either.

1010 Hunan Pop, Eslite, Taipei

Spicy, spicy, spicy!!!! If you are ever in Taipei for a short trip and like screamingly spicy food, you should visit 1010 Hunan Pop at the eclectic Eslite Building in the Taipei 101 vicinity.

Their stir-fried green peppers start off deceivingly mild but start kicking in as you work on your meal. The deep fried chicken with dried red chili was an excellent rendition of one of my favorite hunan dishes and the steamed fish with green chili was decent. The beef with pine nuts and rice cakes was also nice but rendered almost bland by the preceding dishes.

1010 Hunan Pop

Eslite Xinyi Branch

11 Song Gao Road, 6F

02 2722 0583

Cascal in the valley

It's been at least two years since I last went to Cascal, the Spanish restaurant at the end of Castro St in Mountain View. Unfortunately, the only reason we went there was because Nami Nami was closed on the Monday night we were there. My memories of Cascal were mostly of the amazing sangrias on the menu, but i have to admit the food is pretty decent as well, not the small tapas sizes common in San Francisco, but much larger variety found in the south bay. Quality does not always equal quantity, and there was nothing 'tapas sized' at all with the dishes.

My favorite dish that evening was the Mexico City style beef shortribs, tender, juicy and flavorful, and in some ways reminded me of the Indonesian beef rendang dish. The tuna tartar didn't turn out the way I expected, it didn't look tartar-ish at all. More like a salad, but nonetheless still quite savory and tasty.

Lian, Indochinese chic at the IFC

So, I finally managed to get a table at the ever-popular Indochinese bistro Lian on the second floor of the International Finance Centre in Central. I had just flown into Hong Kong just hours before, and was fortunate to get a slot for an early dinner, and although it was a Monday night, we were requested to vacate our place by 8:00pm for the next seating. I guess in these tough economic times, people still need to eat well.

Walking past the curvaceous foyer and into the main dining hall, we were greeted by an amazing water feature that was the centerpiece of the dining area - a lily pond with counter seats encircling it, bathed in glowing light in the water and adorned with hanging lilies from the ceiling. The decor was what you'd expect of a very hip, modern Indochinese bistro, with dark wood furniture, shades of rich fabric in brown and beige hues, and Asian accents embellishing the dimly lit room and dining booths.

We opted for a the counter seats in front of the lilly pond centerpiece, and ordered our usual Indochinese favorites. First up was the fresh tom yum goong with a large prawn that was so amazingly flavorful it almost didn't qualify as a traditional Thai soup. It reminded me of a blend between tom yum goong and a Vietnamese sweet and sour fish soup. But this is what Lian did best, deftly mixing the best of Indochinese cuisine into a unique, blended potpourri of exotic flavors.

Next we had the grilled beef with garlic, a typical Vietnamese restaurant staple that was done perfectly with tender beef strips and crispy garlic slivers. Then there was the jumbo prawn fresh roll that reminded me of a Japanese tempura roll, except the dip was made from prawn roe and coconut cream and tasted absolutely decadent. Not your typical Vietnamese 'goi cuon', but very tasty nonetheless.

Our last appetizer was the pomelo salad, and unlike your regular fare, the dish was served with just pomelo slices and a spicy sweet and sour dressing. This was the most refreshing dish for me, simple yet mouth-watering delicious. Our main course was 'pho', the traditional Vietnamese beef noodle soup, which we shared a bowl between the two of us. The broth was one of the best I've had since my hunt for the best 'pho' started in earnest two months ago - rich, flavorful and just the right amount of spice, accompanied by thin, smooth flat rice noodles reminiscent of the best 'hor fun' from Ipoh, Malaysia. But I'd have to say the sliced beef was the best part for me, they were so melt-in-your-mouth tender they could have been wagyu grade.

We ended the meal, too full for a go at the dessert selection. I'm glad I was able to give Lian a try this trip, it's been on my To Do list for the longest time, and will remain there for some time to come.

Fuel - Nice name for an espresso bar

While walking around IFC this morning, I came across Fuel, a coffee bar on the 3rd level. Friend of mine was raving about the Chai latte they served here, but I'm not much of a Chai drinker, so I ordered an espresso to go. Not too bad. But I've had better. But definitely a notch above the usual coffee chains. The next day, I was at the IFC again around lunch time, so I swung by to grab a latte and one of the freshly made sandwiches. The roast beef, horseradish and caramelized onion sandwich on a multigrain bread was wonderfully tasty, and the latte was a great accompaniment to wash down my quick lunch. at HKG$25 for an espresso and HKG$34 for a latte, it's pretty steep by local standards, but for the same price, I'd have my caffeine fix at Cova any day. It's just a question of taste. Pity that they have a tiny seating area in the rear though, four single bar stools against the wall. More like a longer hangout than the sort of cafe that nurtures conversation over hot drinks.