superheadz

It was with sadness that I had received a Goodbye email from Asylum saying that their retail shop will be closing in a few weeks' time. Asylum, for the past 5 years has been, in Singapore, one of the foremost purveyors of all things cool, fun, hard to find and mostly useless. It was also with great excitement that i read in the same email that stock from the shop will be cleared at half off or more, perfect time to pick up things that I don't need but vaguely want to own. Though I was a little late to the sale, I managed to grab this superheadz digital harinezumi camera. Took it out over the weekend for some happy snapping. The very basic digital camera produces images with the washed out vignetted feel of lomo cameras but without the hassle of having to develop the film. Even the most banal scenes, cast in soft focus and shrouded with a green-blue hue, become charged with a sense of melancholy but they are also elevated above the everyday, even if it's only in the dead fragment of a moment past.

Bless n°40 Whatwasitagain

layered stefano pilati

Stefano Pilati must be one of the most stylish male fashion designer in recent times. He has always embodied the idea of the YSL man that he himself has crafted, relaxed tailoring with a pinch of razor sharp edge thrown in and worn with ineffable ease. I'm particularly enamoured by this picture of him taken with Melanie Ward on the streets of Paris, layered in a curious but harmonious ensemble of a grey chalk stripe blazer with white capri pants over leggings, a grey scarf a twirled around the neck and a piece of thin jersey fabric wrapped around the waist. The components when considered individually are menswear staples that can easily be found in a good wardrobe or in shops, but when put together, a game of juxtaposing and decontextualizing is played, everything tied together with subtle shifts of grey accented with accessories in warm and cool tones. What I find so attractive about his style is its ungraspability, it brushes at the edges of so many established styles in the vast continuum of fashion but itself yet to be named.

iggy's

After a failed attempt to get a reservation during the inter-holiday break at the end of last year, I finally made it to Iggy's for lunch recently with a couple of friends. Known to be one of the best restaurants in Asia, we were naturally excited, even if it's just for lunch. Iggy's offers a set lunch that is priced at $55 for 2 appetizers, a main course and a dessert or $75 for an additional appetizer, a rather reasonable price compared to other restaurants of a similar calibre which charge a similar price for 3 courses.

Situated at The Regent, the restaurant is discreetly tucked at a corner on level 3 at the end of a row of function rooms. A small sign marks the unmanned entrance which leads into a narrow corridor, where where we are greeted by a member of the staff who happen to walk past as we reach the end. The restaurant is made up of a number of small dining areas - counter seating around a show kitchen in the main dining room and a few dining rooms which can be used for private parties. We are seated in a room that can best be described as a library. A wall of half empty shelves greets us as we enter, displaying a hodge podge of culinary books (including a paper folder of material from El Bulli as if to lend some credence from the famed establishment) and an gathering of random and uncoordinated ornaments. The room is small and potentially intimate, with warm lighting and a tastefully bland colour palette. A series of large red paintings, seemingly still dripping wet with pastels are hung on the walls. 3 similarly sized round tables are set in the room, one for us 3, one for a group of 5 and the other one for 2 persons. Even though the room is quite small there is an awkward spaciousness between the tables, as if the fellow diners are some friends of the host at a house party but the tables too far apart for any kind of spontaneous interaction to happen. Service is borderline polite, seemingly echoing the half hearted charm and warmth of the space. After taking too long deciding which courses to have, we finally made our orders.

Before being served the appetizers, we were treated to an intriguing pre-course which gave the meal quite a promising start. It wasn't quite an amuse bouche as it was a small platter that came in 2 parts, a glistening slice of tomato pierces through the centre with a small stainless steel pick and a frothy liquid that was contained in what looks like a mini beer mug. We were told as the platters were laid on the table that the liquid was tomato soda. Interesting. We were instructed to have the slice of tomato first before sipping the tomato soda, instructions which we followed obediently. Funny how we let go of all sense of criticism and self will when confronted with food concepts that are somewhat strange and unfamiliar. I popped the whole slice of tomato into my mouth and was hit with the berry like sweetness of the tomato, and which at this point i realized that the tomato was chilled and the temperature further enhanced the sweetness of the tomato. I then started sipping the soda in little mouthfuls (perhaps scaled down to match the mini-me proportion of the beer mug, haha). The flavour of the soda was mind bending, it tasted like tomato but in a different way from the tomato slice I had just eaten, perhaps more earthy and aromatic with a hint of saltiness, the flavour profile resembled a very light chorizo. It was strangely pleasant, but only in a small serving.

I was first served the mushroom flan with a fricasse of mushroom. The savory mushroom flan was served in a giant dish smouldered in mushroom foam and topped off with a medley of mushrooms. The flan was fairly well made, a delicate custard with the consistency of steamed egg, the flavour of the mushroom and egg well balanced. The delicate gelatinous quality of the flan was contrasted with the bite of the mushroom on top. The foam, though, added just a little bit of aromatics to the dish before quickly dissipating into a pool of liquid even before I had managed to polish off half the flan. With every component of the dish containing mushroom, I experienced a bit of palate fatigue towards the end, would have been great of there were something that broke the monotony. I was reminded of the mushroom fricasse I had some months ago at Jaan which was richer not only in terms of the profile of flavours but also texture and presentation.

For my second appetizer, I had the peppered beef tongue with tomato relish and root vegetables. Served on a bed of frisee, the slab of beef tongue was nicely browned at the top and bottom. Beef tongue is typically quite springy and chewy, so I was quite surprised by the one I had this time. The browned surface had a mild crisp which crumbles into a tender centre that had a texture somewhat akin to foie gras, a little less cooked than what I am used to but enjoyable. I can't comment about the taste of the beef as it was mostly covered by the taste of the crushed peppercorn which coated the beef. I can't say I didn't like the heaviness of the peppercorn but I enjoyed it the same way I enjoy a pack of heavily salted potato chips. The tomato relish added a nice tartness to the whole ensemble.

Being the gluttons that we are, we of course chose to have 3 appetizers. I rounded off the series of starting courses with the tomato tart with basil cress and parmigiano-reggiano. Expecting the same tomatoey goodness that the slice of tomato served at the beginning of the meal promised, I quickly bit into a chunk of the warm tomato tart only to be greeted by the underwhelming blandness of tomato filling followed by the flat crunch of the thin tart base. It wasn't inedibley bad, but definitely subpar. To be fair, this dish wasn't all bad, the shaved parmesan on top of the tart was excellent, kudos to the buyer for the restaurant and the great cheesemaker.


Next up was the main course. I had been tempted to order the Iggy's burger but in an attempt to my own predictability, I ordered the slow cooked red snapper with gruyere , baby aubergine, tomato confit and poultry jus. The description sounded safe enough but it turned out rather disappointing. The piece of snapper, though fresh and well cooked, rather tasteless and uninteresting. None of the garnishes shined (maybe except for the gruyere, kudos again to the buyer and the cheesemaker). But the thing i found most disappointing was that the chef somehow decided on a whim to throw in a heap of chopped green olives which totally overpowered the rest of the ingredients. This was made known to the waiter who promptly offered to remove the olives. I was secretly hoping that they would offer to change the whole thing altogether. The overall feel of the dish reminded me of a certain style of Chinese steamed fish done with dried salted radish (the olives being a decidedly western replacement, only grossly overused).

Rapidly descending downhill from the promising pre-course, this roller coaster ride of a meal ended with a major upswing as the dessert brought it to a relatively good end. I ordered the pina colada which consisted of 3 parts - a pina colada shake and a souffle and a scoop of vanilla ice cream. While the plating was not particularly elegant, the ensemble had a good variety of textures, juxtaposition of hot and cold, and different intensities of sweetness moderated by the tartness from the small chunks of pineapple in the shake. The souffle was perfectly raised, light and fluffy with a crusty top.

Being a restaurant that has received much accolades, I am surprised (and frankly, a little shocked) that the food served can very so greatly in terms of conceptualization and execution. Some people might say the lunch menu do not fully represent what the restaurant is but I think any good restaurant must be able to put the same amount of pride and passion into every plate regardless of price and time. I won't write the place off as yet, based on just a single meal, but at my next visit (whenever that is), I will have my critical eye (and tongue) sharpened.


Iggy's
level 3, The Regent Singapore
1 Cuscaden Road

patrick ervell fw10

Inspired by the uniform of the Chinese army, Patrick Ervell's fw10 collection is a continuation of his cerebral take on sportswear, a study on silhouette, function and materiality. In this collection, the lines are hard and militaristic, many a times obscuring the lines of the body. The palette of solid neutrals is stark interspersed with splashes of deep red and gentle hues of yellow. The use of latex and rubber gave his signature tech garments a slight twist, juxtaposing the solidity of the fabrics with the soft translucency of the latex and rubber outerwear, floating ethereally around the body. The effect is almost magical in this set of photos taken by Tommy Ton of jakandjil blog.

rolex learning centre / sanaa

a thousand tales

Amongst the flurry of construction and shop refurbishments along Haji Lane, I came across this yet to be open cafe (presumably), occupying one of the shophouses. Called A Thousand Tales, name is possibly a reference to 1001 Arabian Nights, given its location is right smack in the heart of the Arab district, but that's just a guess. Looking through the window, the room is filled with an assortment of mid century modern chairs scattered within a palette of bare concrete, white plaster and exposed brick. An open riser staircase is set to one side of the space. The single stringer leads the eye to the lightwell at the back, which allows natural light to filter through casting the space with a diffused glow and soft shadows. I can't remember what used to be here. Many of the shops that came (and gone) after the pioneers at Haji Lane after the street's rapid rise into Singapore's urban consciousness, lack charm and quirkiness. Perhaps it is not a lack but the quirkiness degenerating into a homogeneous mass of popular culture, a low brow Haji Lane feel (if i may make a casual stereotyping). This new cafe seems to mark a slight shift from the current Haji Lane mould. And as a sucker for mid century modern furniture and a supporter of indie cafes, I hope this place will turn out to be a credible cafe with great coffee and friendly people, not just a trendy passer-by.

restaurant ember

Walking into Restaurant Ember is like visiting the house of a close aunt who dishes out really nice food everytime you go. Situated at the ground floor of Hotel 1929, it serves what I can only describe as modern european cuisine with an asian twist. Introduced by a friend several years ago and it has become one of those places that I've been so many times that I almost can decide what I want to order even before I sit down. The menu hardly changes though not never. New menus are often minors tweaks than major revamp, why change sucessful dishes, right? On my last visit for dinner, my dinner party (all of whom are fans of the restaurant), got a little surprise with the addition of many new items on the menu. The perennial favorite, the pan fried Chilean seabass with yuzu butter sauce and mushroom ragout, along with other signature items were still there, but my favorite crab cake was no longer available, it has been on the menu for as long as I had known the place. channelling a sense of adventure and the slight disappointing, I decided to try items that I have never ordered before.

I started with foie gras with mango sauce, passionfruit and shrimp crisps, which was fairly good. Hard to mess up foie gras paired with a sweet/fruity sauce but I found the sauce to be a tad too sweet and the crisps, while adding a nice contrast to the buttery soft foie gras, somewhat distracting. It was quite good on the whole, just that frivolous parts can be trimmed off, foie gras is usually good enough to stand on its own and do not require boosts of flavour or great contrasts from the other components on the plate. Another version of foie gras at Ember paired with shoyu and mirin, which I have had on previous occasions, I find to be excellent, with the relatively subtle sweetness of the mirin and the aroma of the shoyu going very well with the foie gras.

For my main, I ordered a brand new item on the menu, the Chilean seabass encrusted with mentaiko with bottarga hollandiase sauce. The mentaiko crust added a nice dimension to the dish, contrasting with the silky texture of the fish. The bottarga hollandaise, presented (somewhat hilariously) like a muddy shoeprint, added yet another dimension to the dish, adding a luscious creaminess to the ensemble. The use of bottarga ties in very well with the rest of the components, creating a light fishy basenote that runs consistently thoughout.

There was less of a shuffle in the dessert menu. I had my usual banana tart with basil oil and a scoop of vanilla ice cream. The tart consists of a flaky and buttery base topped with fanned slices of banana baked into a golden disc. Not mindblowing or paradigm changing (especially when it's the 10th time you are eating) but the flavours are harmonious, familiar and comforting. This perhaps goes for most of the dishes that I like Ember for, easy and familair but always with an extra something to make the meal special. I hope I can find something to replace the crabcake soon.



Restaurant Ember
Hotel 1929
50 Keong Saik Road

alexander mcqueen no more

"British fashion designer Alexander McQueen has been found dead after taking his own life.

The 40-year-old committed suicide just days after the death of his beloved mother, Joyce, last Tuesday.

It is also just three years since his close friend, Isabella Blow - who plucked him from obscurity and helped him become a star - killed herself.

McQueen, who was christened Lee but used his middle name for his label, was found at his luxury flat in Mayfair, central London. It is believed he hanged himself." dailymail

Revisiting some of my favorite moments of Alexander Mcqueen.

SS99


SS01


SS03, especially, 9:01 onwards and more in part 2


and the wonderful he-outdid-himself-again SS10 collection

derelict orchard

A gaping hole within the grove of malls and hotels lining the 2 sides of Orchard road, devoid of activity. The remnants of what once stood there lay behind a clean hoarding, sterile and unmarked, and unseen by the passers-by. There will be action on site in due time, but the doctor has yet to decide what to do, the carcass of the mostly demolished building lays silently waiting for a new body to be grafted on, and the bolt of lightning to bring it back to life. The adjacent buildings bear scars from the forceful removal their neighbour, a relationship as close as siamese twins, but as cold as runners running next to each other in a 100m race. More haunting is the imprint of what once stood there even before the now demolished building had existed. A phantasmagoric spectre hangs over the apathetic city dweller. What once stood there was deemed to have no value. Neither does it have a price.