Date Night Spots

[OUTRAM PARK, SINGAPORE] we are very used to the usual Mexican fare like burritos and tacos, but there are more than just these 2! I think I have found my favourite dish here at @mamistamales 😍

For starters, we had the Tableside Guacamole & Chips 🥑 ($26) which would be familiar to most people, but just that they create the guac fresh by your table side. Because everything is made really fresh in front of you, it is extra rich and fragrant; really addictive with the chips.

Next is their famous Pork Salsa Verde Tamales 🌽 ($18), which will be unfamiliar to most people. Made with corn dough and filled with pork and other ingredients before steaming in corn husk, this was a very interesting dish to have. It's flavourful yet somehow tasting healthy at the same time; comforting is the word to call this dish. It's probably the only restaurant selling so far so do give this a try!

I also tried their Pozole 🍲 ($18), which was like a light soup broth with loads of meaty and fresh ingredients. If you like another comforting dish, this will be up your alley!

My favourite dish is definitely their Mami's Enchiladas Suizas 🌮 ($26) which was this sloppy mess that is packed with so much flavour. Tender, succulent shredded chicken is filled in each tortilla, and I like how it was grilled for a slightly crispy texture. SHIOK.

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[SIGLAP, SINGAPORE] Everything just hits well here in @nextdoorspanishcafe 🥹 From the service, to the food, to the vibes... You know you are in for a good time with your partner or friends!

All the food we've had was amazing with no misses, and I have to give a shoutout to their Escalivada y Sardinas 🐟 ($16) which featured the loveliest roasted vegetables cooked down to a sauce, with smoked sardines that added a smooth briny richness. You know it's quality stuff they are putting on the bread!

Another shout out got to be their Chicken Skewers or Pincho Moruno 🐔 ($16) as those were probably the best western ones I've had yet. They were nicely seasoned with spices that reminded me of kebabs, and they were so meaty yet tender at the same time. The sweet potato puree below is quite sweet, which helps cut the savoury flavour.

Don't miss out on their house made Churros con Chocolate 🍫 ($12), as these were absolutely delightful. I never had a crisper churros, with a soft fluffy centre. Their chocolate sauce is house made as well, which shouts dark decadent chocolate notes.

Drinks are a must here, especially when they have White Sangria 🍹which is quite rare to find! Sweet, refreshing yet fruity, their drinks will brighten up your evening.

While dishes might be a little pricey, quality is assured here. This is one place to come for celebrations, date nights or just a fun time with loved ones. Thank you @nextdoorspanishcafe for the invite 😍 I will definitely come back again.

[TANJONG PAGAR, SINGAPORE] I think @fortunaitaliantrattoria needs no introduction, and we finally paid a visit here! We ordered so much 😂 and here are some of our favourites:

If you can only order 1 pizza, get their fried versions! The Fried Smoked Margherita Pizza 🍕 ($29) was absolutely heavenly, not only because the toppings themselves were amazing, but the crust as well. The crust was crispy yet fluffy within and we were addicted! The Classico Diavola Pizza ($29) was also very delicious, just not as mind blowing as the fried pizza hahaha

The Maiale or Pork Chops 🍖 ($48) were good as well, as I never knew pork can be this tender 😍 they managed to remove the porky odour as well, and pairing it with the mustard was such a good idea!

As for starters, you need to get the Woodfire Sourdough 🍞 ($18) with the Ricotta Dip 🧀 ($12). Yes $18 for bread seems ridiculous, but it was an absolute joy to savour. The bread was crispy yet fluffy, with a nice smoked flavour. Pair it with the ricotta dip and you get a beautiful hint of savoury flavours! The temperature contrast between the hot bread and cold cheese was notable as well.

As for the rest, they didn't seem too mind-blowing. Wished the calamari was bigger 😂

Vibes wise they were immaculate ✨ this is definitely a date night spot and is good for celebrations! Do note that they are quite strict on the dining time limit and the waiters are rushing here and there to make sure every request is addressed. Kudos to Aminah, our waitress who was so attentive. We casually mentioned that we ran out of water and next thing we know a new bottle was given 😂

All in all, I felt like this is a great place for a celebration (it can get quite expensive), but not for big groups. As much as some dishes were amazing, you need to pick the right ones.

[TELOK AYER, SINGAPORE] @santis.sg serves up Italian fare with interesting twists in a casual yet intimate setting that is great for group catch ups and date nights. Interestingly, we came for pizzas but stayed for their pastas as the latter were much better.

We ordered the Pesto Cream Stracciatella Pasta 🌿 ($22) as I'm a sucker for pesto 🤣 and it delivered WELL. You get a strong punch of the basil aromatics, followed by a nice savoury flavour that it's too overpowering. The cheese makes it rich yet somehow light at the same time, and I totally can finish this by myself. Pastas are made fresh weekly, and you can tell by the nice al dente mouth feel.

The Vodka Sugo & Italian Sausage Pasta 🌭 ($24) was another delight to have. The light touch of vodka balanced the cream used, making this a much lighter pasta to have. Minced sausages added a meaty and smoky touch that puts the flavour savoury forward. Absolutely lovely.

The pizzas we ordered unfortunately did not deliver the punch we wanted it to 🥲 indeed the sourdough crust was chewy and smoky, but the ingredients on top doesn't seem to match well. The Pepperoni & Hot Honey 🍕 ($30) was way too sweet, Butter Chicken 🍗 ($28) and Not so Classic Margherita 🍅 ($24) was not flavourful enough somehow. We managed to add flavour through the homemade chilli garlic oil provided though!

With 20% discounted cash vouchers on Chope, I think it is worth it to come back for their pastas! I've heard that their sides are good as well, so will try more of that next time 😃

[CITY HALL, SINGAPORE] Sushi Zushi is an upgrade from your usual sushi chains. As the sushi pieces are made 1 by 1 by hand, the quality of their sashimi is higher, though prices are higher as well.

Each sushi order comes in pairs, and prices can vary according to how premium the seafood cuts are. Salmon can almost never go wrong, and their Salmon Belly 🍣 ($5.50) were indeed full of umami flavours. The most premium cut we got was the Scallop ($9) that was scrumptious.

There was a sashimi promo going at $1.50 a piece, which was actually quite worthwhile considering how thick the Hamachi 🐟 slices were. Those were succulent and fatty too!

We would say the sushi quality here is very decent though not mind-blowingly good. It's definitely quite a few steps below that of omakase courses. As the sushi pieces are not big, an average male may need to spend about $60 per pax to be adequately full 😂 Perhaps this is a place to try once!

[RAFFLES PLACE/DOWNTOWN, SINGAPORE] ate here for one of my lunches in town area and I was surprised to find pistachio pesto pasta here! Their pasta quality turned out to be scrumptious, and the ambience is so posh, perfect for work events or date nights 😍

Their Pesto Siciliano ($20) 🍝 came in a sizable portion, with a very interesting conchigilette pasta that resembled conch shells, and did its work well to capture the pesto sauce. It was very al dente, and the pesto sauce was not too salty and yet full of umami flavours. You get the strong nuttiness from the grounded pistachio and aromatics from the basil used. Very enjoyable!

During weekday lunch timing, you can add on a side and a drink for $4.90! I tried to be healthy with my mixed salad 🥗 but I tried my friend's fries 🍟 and it was so good! Crispy, fluffy and flavourful.

Now @gigi_gourmet_deli_gastrobar is a place to try if you are working around the area :)

[TANJONG PAGAR, SINGAPORE] If you want to treat yourself to a good lunch in a posh restaurant, @chefstavern is one option to think about! They have a variety of teishoku lunch sets ranging from $28-48 per pax, and we decided to get the premium ones 😁

The Wagyu Flank Steak 🥩 ($48) was wonderfully executed, and it was soft enough to cut using a spoon. The sauces used were interesting, with flavours I've not tasted before. The Teishoku Set came with a variety of appetiser dishes and a choice of either a Japanese rice bowl or sourdough bread. Though I was slightly disappointed with the texture of the hanjuku egg, the vinegared rice made up for it and I was wolfing down that bowl!

If you are a fish lover, the Alaskan Black Cod 🐟 ($48) is an absolute banger. They somehow managed to pan fry the skin till it's really crispy, while making sure that the meat is perfectly cooked. A curry sauce is used to flavour the cod, which complements it well with its aromatics. Sourdough was chosen to mop up the curry sauce, and it was so soft and fluffy!

Just realised that there's 25% off total bill vouchers on #burpplebeyond 😆 will come back with those vouchers!

[TANJONG PAGAR, SINGAPORE] Ok I think @rappu.sg isn't new to most people who love their handrolls, but they have recently introduced the lunch don menu! We won a giveaway to try their new lunch menu, and we were given Mt. Zermatt 🍚 ($65) which was a sharing portion between 2 pax.

There were loads of ingredients, from fresh chopped up tuna, scallop, salmon mix, to unagi and duck tsukune or meatballs. Hidden beneath the ingredients were flavoured rice and some really addictive lotus chips. Felt like the duck meatballs were a tad dry, but the unagi and sashimi mix were delicious. The truffle grilled edamame was a plus point as it was hella addictive too!

We were also given the seasonal handroll, which was their Chu-toro ($24), definitely pricey, but it comes with large slabs of chutoro and uni which were HEAVENLY. Definitely one of the better uni quality I've had.

Lunch dons are definitely a good option given their quality of fresh seafood, but I would like to try their handroll course one day 😋

[CHINATOWN, SINGAPORE] Tried the very famous @damichelesingapore and while their pizzas were absolutely fantastic, their pasta and sides fell short of expectations.

Out of the many pizzas we've had that night, the Truffle Porcini Pizza ($40) was absolutely heavenly. With a huge amount of umami coming from the mushrooms within the pizza, the truffle paste had a good amount of truffle flavour without being too overwhelming. Their dough is really of a different level, as it was chewy yet pillowy. They were very generous with the cheese as well, and speaking of which, if you love your cheese then you gonna love the 4 Cheese Pizza ($35). It had the right amount of savouriness and earthy flavour, with a slight funkiness from the blue cheese. What a delight!

As much as I would like to give compliments for their pizza, their pastas and sides were unfortunately rather disappointing. We had a couple of them like the Linguine Alle Vongole ($35) and their Ragu Della Portiera ($36), and they were at most average. Indeed they were fresh tasting, but just normal.

Their sides were pretty overpriced too, like the Insalata Di Polipo ($36) or Octopus Salad. There were only a few thin slices of octopus for the price paid 😂

All in all, still great vibes but maybe just come for their pizza?

Finally checked @kafeutu off my bucket list! African style food isn't common in Singapore and it was definitely an interesting gastronomical experience! We decided to play abit safer and here are the items we got:

Smoked Pork Belly ($18) - very delectable, the pork belly was rather tender and very rich and smoky. Flavour profile is close to bacon! It is a bit too rich for 1 to finish; would make a good sharing dish.

Buttermilk Fried Chicken ($20) - this was well executed, with the light crispy batter and succulent meat within. The interesting part is their chilli sauce. It has a good kick, with a hint of spices that I have not tasted before!

Calamari Essaouira ($31) - a good hearty stew, it has a good savoury tangy tomato base, with a hint of spice. The calamari was very fresh, due to its crisp texture. This was a comforting dish to have with rice.

Mocha ($7) - good dark chocolate was used and I could still taste the strong coffee notes. It was a good blend and I wished I got a latte instead so that I could taste the coffee more!

Dishes and drinks were all well executed, but it wasn't anything really mind blowing. Considering the price, I don't think I will come back again anytime soon actually. Still, it's an interesting place to try once!

Been a long time since I've eaten at this restaurant, and the quality is still pretty good! Here are the dishes I've tried:

1️⃣ C&C&C&C&C Pasta ($25.90 for main size) - yes their pasta name is interesting, but basically its filled with ingredients starting with C. This cold dish boasts of creamy seafood flavours coming from the crabmeat and lobster bisque! Pretty decent dish that is worth a try.

2️⃣ "Hainanese" Pork Tomahawk ($32.90) - I was surprised how meaty yet tender the pork cutlet was! The sauce that it's drenched in definitely reminds me of Hainanese chicken rice chilli, and the addition of fruit jam definitely made it interesting. It does not get too surfeiting because of that! However, there is still a slight pork smell that some may not like.

3️⃣ Waffles & Roe ($9) - an interesting dish, with deep earthy flavours coming from the waffles and seafood savoury punch from the ikura roe. This is a mix of sweet and savoury flavours that will open up your palette!

With their menu changing every 4 months, you can see the innovative elements in their dishes. Will be back to try more dishes next time!

Finally had a chance to try this pretty fancy restaurant!

Their $35 3 course lunch menu consist of a starter, main and dessert. For the starters we had their Garlic Escargot and Chicken Pate. The Garlic Escargot were okay but we hoped that it can be more garlicky. The chicken pate was really rich and went well with the bread given. It can be quite surfeiting so it's best to share with others!

As for the mains we got the Angus Ribeye and Lamb Chops. The Angus Ribeye was tender and well seasoned and I loved how the compound butter added extra richness to the steak!

The lamb chops were tender and well seasoned as wdll, but the gamey flavour was quite strong. Perhaps lamb lovers will appreciate it better!

Desserts were okay, nothing much to shout out about. The food was overall alright but the ambience is definitely date night worthy!