Lunch at The Flying Squirrel

Local music duo Jack & Rai's cheekily named The Flying Squirrel was on the lion's "to eat" list for quite some time but he never seem to have luck arranging a meal there. New places popping up elsewhere would distract him from the original agenda. He finally scored a business luncheon at TFS one day. The lion had curiously checked out the place via its hidden entrance at the side of a tiny street one evening (very underground, speakeasy vibe). And to his abject horror, the little claustrophobic space with its small windows was packed full of diners. A good thing for the restaurant but noise resounding off the walls became deafening echoes. Not a good thing for folks wanting some conversation over dinner. He made a mental note to come back for lunch, hoping that it might be a quieter affair.

One of Time Out Magazine's Best Restaurants of 2013. TFS recently celebrated its
first anniversary.

With its exposed brick walls and concrete accents, decor was raw minimalist.

Truffled Ebi Fry ($15). You can almost hear the sound of
your teeth breaking through the crisp and crunchy coating.
Must-order! Only the lion's ahem more sensitive palate
could detect the hint of truffle. An above average but
straight forward dish.

The Sashimi Set ($26++). Five types of sashimi, karaage chicken, japanese salad
and fruits.

The Chef's Surprise Set ($30++). Go for this superb value-for-moolah lunch set
instead. When the rattan tray came that day, the lion was bowled over by the
impressive slab of unagi (so generous chef!). Other sides include the onsen egg,
pumpkin croquette, tako wasabi and pork katsu salad.

Pork Katsu Salad (Chef's Surprise Set). We must say that
they do fried items pretty well.

Onsen egg with soba jelly (Chef's Surprise Set). This sublime,
silky smooth side dish that was so refreshing probably eclipsed the
juicy main. If only tau huey was this "glide down the throat"
smooth.

A perfectly grilled and marinated eel.

The Sashmi. 

A favourite with Japanese expats as well.

You might like to kick back with some after work drinks here.

The lion had heard a lot about the chirashi bowl here but did not get to try it that afternoon. Overall, the Chef's Special Set was quite a stunner. And the portion was beautifully right for a midday meal.    

The Flying Squirrel

92 Amoy Street

Singapore 069911

Japanese Curry Express at Fortune Centre

Opened six months ago, the prosaically named Japanese Curry Express flies so charmingly under the radar that only a privileged few know of its unassuming existence. Hidden at the third floor of the rather archaic looking Fortune Centre, this joint is budget-style kitsch and proud to be so with its unfashionable table covers and utilitarian stools. But it more than makes up for the lack of ambience with the warm, down-to-earth service on top of awesomely tasty and affordable fare. The menu is pretty straightforward, showcasing comfort food like donburis, makis, ramen and of course, curry rice. 

Packed on a Saturday night but cosily quiet on a Sunday afternoon,
this joint makes no apologies for its modest appearance. Patrons are here
mainly for the wallet friendly prices (no svc charge nor gst too) and
simple but delish fare.

Salmon Mentai Maki ($8.50)

Spider Maki ($8.00)

Pork Katsu Curry Rice ($6.50)

Ebi Fry Curry Rice ($6.50)

Char Siew Ramen ($6.50)

Katsu Don ($6.50)

Hiyashi Ramen ($6.50)

Finish your meal with a hot cup of slimming green tea.

At such stunningly decent prices in the heart of the city, don't expect your grub to be gourmet stuff (even though the makis were lip-smacking restaurant quality). The lions are so won over by this place, they foresee themselves becoming regulars already. Somehow the vibe and food rather reminded them of the nondescript Tamako at Upper Thomson Road, albeit a little more stark.

Japanese Curry Express
190 Middle Road
Fortune Centre
#03-04
Singapore 188979

 https://www.facebook.com/SGJapaneseCurryExpress

Nobu-Ya - Foodies' Best Kept Secret

Hello folks, it has been a month of feasting in March with hardly any time for bits of sharing with you guys. So the lions vow to catch up on backlog this busy month. Sweat!

The lions head for the low key Fortune Centre at Middle Road,
more known for its humble sprinkle of vegetarian stalls. The recent
months have seen a quiet explosion of great joints here for meat
lovers as well. Out of these, the lions' favourites are two Japanese
hole-in-the-wall joints. One of which is already steadily gathering an
ardent fan base among the Japanese expat community here, including
local foodies. The other is a home grown humble Jap joint headed by a
local chef whose jaw-dropping friendly prices will stun you speechless.

We start with Nobu-ya, the low key blue-eyed boy of the
Jap expat community here. We are almost reluctant to share
it (shiver if it goes the way of reservation nightmare -Teppei).

Head in via this door at the facade - it's more fun this way.
Like a traditional izakaya joint in Tokyo.

Take some time to go through the 3 page menu that consists
mainly of small bites. And then proceed to order without
a care in the world - yes, prices hover at around 6 to 8 for
non premium items. No pesky GST and service charge too.

Mmmmm icy cold draught Sapporo on a sweltering hot day.

Meow! Judging from the full house and incoming stream of
people, this beckoning cat is doing a great job:)
Then again, with friendly prices, great grub and founding chefs
that used to work for Mikuni, what's there not to like?

Simple furnishings in a tight space that sits less than
20 pax.

Eihire Tatami Iwashi or Sundried stingray and anchovies
was a steal at 6 bucks. The Eihire was delightfully chewy
and fragrant while the homemade anchovy crackers were
toasted to a nice crisp. A perfect complement to beer.

Homemade Goma Tofu looks deceptively straightforward
but charms with its unique texture. It's not silky smooth
like tau huey but comes with a welcomed coarseness and bite.

One of the chefs was coaxing the lions to try the
Hokkaido Matured Potato. "It is matured under the snow",
he quipped. They loved the yuanwei or the innate sweetness
of the warm potato slices. Another dish to savour slowly.

There are daily chef specials and that night, a selection of fish
flown straight from Kyushu was available. The lions decided to go
for the "Tai" or Sea Bream. "Tai", an important symbol in Japanese culture,
is usually in season in spring and is called the "King of Fish" in Japan.
A whole "tai" is usually quite expensive at restaurants but the whole
fish (done two ways: grilled & sashimi) was going for $28 that night.
The "tai" sashimi slices were fresh and very clean tasting with a rougher
texture.

Counter seating is best.

The fresh "tai" comes in its entirety when grilled with pickled daikon.

Very tight set-up for the compact restaurant. Purists will lament the absence
of a live charcoal fire for grilling, most of which is done in a mini oven here,
but the quality more than makes up for such theatrics.

Takenoko Jako Gohan or Spring Young Bamboo Shoot Rice.
Cuchi rather like the experience of cupping this warm bowl
of rice while huddling shoulder-to-shoulder at the counter
with other hungry patrons. Simple, peasant stuff makes her
thoroughly happy nowadays.

These drapes offer some privacy from curious eyes.
A few uninitiated ones sneaked in to check out the action
before slipping away.

These lightly boiled baby squids with a citrus sauce
and seaweed were refreshing.

Of course the lion couldn't resist a bit of offal
- a trinity of chicken, pork and beef guts was braised so well
even the lioness could stomach a few chewy pieces.

What's interesting is that the chefs would display some of the pre-cooked
food in bowls at the counter for that visual feast. The lions thought that
these bowls were only for display until the wait staff started scooping some
of the warm grub out to serve. Lol.

The not-so-fun entrance. The lions were lucky that day to get counter seats
without any reservations, otherwise calling in early to book is recommended.
We hear that Bjorn Shen from nearby Artichoke is a huge fan as well.

Other tenants (but we are not revealing the other Jap joint yet):

Vegetarian bakery with very healthy tasting breads.
The lioness tried the bun with yam filling. It was
like cooked teochew orh nee without any fatty oil.
A little too dry for her... ...

Ok meat and dim sum lovers, please try this and tell us
about it. It was full house during the weekends.

Vegetarian Japanese where fruits are used to mimic sashimi slices.

OMG hahahaha love the tongue-in-cheek name of this
cafe.

A vegetarian bakery & cafe.

This place just sends us back to the 70s... ...

Time to jalan jalan after the meal... ...
the archways of Stamford Arts Centre.

Old school letter boxes.

Albert Food Centre

with its resident fat cats getting huge on hawker fare.

Old style toys.

Nobu-ya
190 Middle Road
Fortune Centre
#01-05
Singapore 188979