Before Sunset

I watched Before Sunset again tonight – the last time I watched it was in 2005, nearly 6 years ago. The strange thing was, you know how it’s such a good film that now having grown older, and watching it again, different parts of the dialogue resonate with me. I can identify with that loss of idealism, that recognition that what was once the infallibility of youth has passed us by. It was as though the younger version of me that had watched it with innocent eyes and marvelled “Oh so that’s what it’s like turning thirty and all”. The irony is though I may be soon down that road, I now watch it with new eyes and it feels somewhat despairing and depressing. Sometimes, it feels as though all your youth, you wait with bated breath for your prime, and then when you actually have it, it’s not all that it was made out to be, or all that fabulous. And time passes like Celine says, even faster and faster as you grow older. Watching it, it reminded me of how connections, real connections, with people are so hard to find. And all the more reason to cherish. How many people can you truly connect with in one lifetime?

Part of the wonderful aspect of the film is that the dialogue between the 2 leads is so natural and so affectionate, it feels as though you are listening in on what could be 2 soulmates'(or 2 very good friends) conversations. The concept of The One is absurd, but the concept that two ple could connect with each other so nicely, is not.  When Celine was angry at Jesse, I could understand why she was angry – not at him, but at for having wasted all that time searching and feeling lost. When I was younger, I thought I found someone like that, but it turned out not to be the case. Age drove us apart.

Paris is captured beautifully – the city is beautiful, in spite of its service and hangups. The trees line the sunlit boulevards, the lovely cafes lining the trees, the smell of the fresh air, the space in the city. I was there last year, but cos of various reasons, my initial happiness of going resulted in some sadness, and I remember standing by the side of the road tears welling up.

At the beginning of the film, a journalist asks Jessie if the two of them end up together- he says “well, it depends if you’re a romantic or a cynic”. I am not a romantic, but I like to believe that Celine and Jesse having found each other again after so much time apart, would end up together.

“I want to remember how your face looks like now, forever.”

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I have been in better moods. Just one week more- I can last this.

the illusionist

So touched, and so sad after watching Chomet’s The Illusionist.

20 March 2011, 7.37 pm

Modern girls

All the news over Chanel recently has been of the ad campaigns of Blake Lively advertising the Mademoiselle bag- however, what is really exquisite in my opinion, was Chanel’s Spring/Summer 2011 Haute Couture collection. For one, it featured jeans. Coco Chanel was famous for saying that girls should not be in jeans, but Karl Lagerfeld felt that this reflected what modern girls wear. His inspiration for the show was none other than Blake Lively.

The show featured clothes that for a haute couture show, looked surprisingly wearable. I love the pointed black heels with the plastic see-through ankle strap, the gorgeous black ribbon worn at the necks of the models, the skinny pants with buttons on the side carelessly unbuttoned, to the metallic sheen of the tweed to the beautiful usage of tulle. Everything was astonishingly elegant,graceful and polished. The girls looked ethereal.

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Cloud 9 ice cream

Cedele is better known for its sandwiches, soups and salads. For a period of time however I decided not to patronize the stalls after the bad service at a number of its branches, made worse by the fact that after writing into management to give feedback I did not hear from them at all. This sentiment of poor, brusque service is lamentable given that the quality of its breads and expanding selection of sandwich fillings is a step in the right direction. They have also had Cloud 9 ice cream but it wasn’t until today that I managed to sample. Each cup is $3(4 cups for $12)and $2.80 if you add it to a meal. There’s quite a selection of ice cream n sorbets – mango tango, blueberry cheesecake, cappuccino almond, vanilla bean, mango sorbet, sea salt caramel, lychee.

I had the vanilla bean- the texture of the ice cream is smooth and creamy with the scent of vanilla coming through. It was however in my opinion a tad sweet and strangely chalky. Apparently the ice cream is eggless without trans fats as with the advertising for the sandwiches. Half decent if you want something cold to round up your meal, aside from the cakes.

I would

…really like to be in Paris now.

Artichoke

I know that I really love a place when I find myself thinking of the food there, and visiting the same place twice within a week. It of course, doesn’t hurt that the place is a small, independently run place that serves up food with soul and heart. So you’re probably wondering – where is this place? Well, it’s a small joint called Artichoke, nestled in a corner at Sculpture Square (near NAFA, off Middle Road). The food is  unique and one of a kind – a mix of Morrocan / Middle Eastern / Mediterranean morsels are served, and the two meals I’ve had there have left me wanting for MORE MORE MORE. (In fact, I almost selfishly wanted to keep this a secret so fewer people would crowd the place – but hey, good food should be shared right?)

The concept behind Artichoke is all about sharing – they serve a mix of big and small plates that are perfect for sampling their wonderful food amongst friends. On the 2 occasions I’ve been there, I’ve had (yes, both times) the Moorish Dips with Toasted Bread and the Marrakesh Chicken Wings. Of the dips, my favourite has got to be the roasted carrot, which marries the sweetness of the carrot with some interesting spices (i believe there is some cumin, but my taste buds could be off). The avocado tahini hummus was an interesting take on the traditional chickpea dip, while the yogurt and feta dip was the only one that didn’t quite blow my tastebuds away. One drawback, though, is that we would have liked if the bread was more of a pita texture (and if they gave a little bit more bread). The turkish bread that was served together with the dips was like a crispy ciabatta – while nice, it seemed – dare i say it – a little too fancy for the dips. We had to order more bread to mop up the dips, but at S$4 for 2 slices, this was a little steep. The Marrakesh Chicken Wings just exploded in juice and flavour once I bit into it – I will declare that I have not had a juicier, yummier chicken wing in a VERY long time. The harissa paste brought some nice heat and a little smokey flavour into the yummy wings, and I would not hesitate to order this EVERY time I visit. It is, however, S$15 for 6 pieces (really 3 full wings), so it’s not exactly terribly cheap, BUT, they were huge wings I would add.

 

People who know me, also know that I’m a huge eggplant / brinjal fan. Like HUGE. So when I saw the description of the Iman Bayidi on the menu, I knew that this was something we HAD to order. We were not let down. The eggplant was soft and mushy just as expected, and the smoky flavour suggested that it had been grilled over an open fire for a while. The walnuts added a nice crunchy texture to an otherwise soft dish (both the tomatoes and onions were also roasted and meltingly soft), and as a whole, the dish came together perfectly. It was almost like a reinterpretation of a “bhaigan bharta” (an Indian eggplant dish), and was just gobsmackingly addictive. Only one drawback to this dish – it was slightly on the oily side of things, which I attribute to eggplant, which usually needs plenty of oil to get it to that texture, but that could be just me.

For a big main to share, we picked the Lamb Kleftiko (Stolen Lamb). The only real reason why we ordered this the second time around, was because the table next to us on our first visit had ordered this and it looked and smelled terrific (i’m not much of lamb-eater myself). This particular dish had a nice stewey texture below that super crunchy cheesey crust, and we used that crust to soak in to the lamb gravy. It was like comfort food (x a million if you are a lamb-lover), and I could totally envisage myself digging into it in a cold winter evening. But alas, I am not a lamb lover, and anything I say about it perhaps will just not justify how good it tasted. I will say this – I liked the use of celeriac in the dish (at least I think it was celeriac), it gave the dish a little depth and plenty of oomph and sweetness, with a slight hint of parsley / celery.

Overall, I cannot emphasize how great a place like Artichoke is, and how fantabulous the food chef/owner Bjorn is churning out. I do wish he could train the servers a tad better. Save for the “manager” /  front of the house, the other wait staff were slightly clueless and inflexible. A request as to whether they sold the dips for takeaway went unanswered, and a request to swop seats (just to be under the lighting) was also denied (they apparently pre-set their tables and one is only allowed to sit at the table at which they are seated). Other than these slight service glitches (nothing some good training can’t remedy), I wholeheartedly recommend this place to anyone and everyone. There’s so much they have to offer, and I do sincerely hope they continue to serve up the delish soulful food!

Artichoke

161 Middle Road
Tel: 63366949 (Reservations on fri / sat recommended – it’s not a big place)

http://www.artichoke.com.sg

Tues – Thurs:	3:00 pm	–	10:00 pm
Fri:	3:00 pm	–	12:00 am
Sat:	11:00 am	–	12:00 am
Sun:	11:00 am	–	4:00 pm

 

Celine clutches

The Celine Fall clutches are beautiful. They also look suitable for carrying iPad. Ultra stylish and sleek.

I love Lanvin

I love Lanvin by foodsmithone featuring leather flats

Gorgeous, gorgeous Lanvin.

Alber Elbaz

 

Lanvin H & M Show

While snacking on rice crisps today, I watched videos of Lanvin’s latest collections and browsed its e-shop (only open to US customers) – and came across a NY Times interview of Alber Elbaz. He must be the world’s cutest designer. Elbaz has been credited with making clothes that women love to wear, and understanding why women want to wear certain things. I say his clothes also evoke this beautiful sense of effortlessness, as though you didn’t try too hard but look very feminine and polished.Most of all, he recognises fashion is about fun. I have a particular weakness for his things – the ribbons, bows, ruffles, and frills all thrill me.

Through the interviews, you can guess why he has that special touch. Such a cute man- particularly when he steps out onto the runway at the end of the H & M show to thunderous applause. When he said he never stops thinking even after leaving Lanvin’s studio, I thought of how he very nearly faded into oblivion after not being restored as YSL’s head, and how far he has come.

Yazbukey

One of my recent acquisitions from Doorstep Luxury was a lovely necklace from Yazbukey Accessories.Yazbukey was created by two sisters: Yaz & Emel, ottoman princesses and descendants of Mehmet Ali Pasha King of Egypt. The world of Yazbukey describes a very playful universe, inspired by old musicals & Gershwin’s music, tales of La fontaine & Grimm, the movies from Hitchcock to Tim Burton.

One of my favourite pieces that I’ve been trying to get my hands on, is the Karl Lagerfeld brooch which is out of stock. Doorstep also has the Lady Gaga brooch, which is beautiful, and I wish I had the spare change to buy that. What I love about the accessories is that it reminds me of pop art: it’s not afraid to have a bit of fun, and can be so irreverent. The accessories play on references to pop culture, and pop culture icons. That tongue-in-cheek reference reminds me so much of Warhol and Lichtenstein.

Go to Doorstep Luxury to have a bit of fun too!

Current object of Lust

I’ve always loved books. I’ve always loved clutches. Combine the two and there’s Combustion.

Can I just say that my current major major OBJECT OF LUST is this book clutch? It is oh so perfect for bookphiles like me.

Spotted recently on Diane Kruger at the Berlin Film Festival – it doesn’t quite go with her dress, but the clutch is Divine.

Balenciaga bags

On an average day strolling through Orchard Road, you can count the number of brands represented in the form of handbags. One such ubiquitous bag is the Balenciaga motorcycle bag, which actually has been around since 2001, but is still making its rounds. Part of the reason is that the brand continues to unveil beautiful new colours(this Season’s spring/summer colours are a sight for sore eyes) and new shapes (they now have a tote bag). And there are also plenty of copies of the bags inspired by the BB (not such a good trend).

However, on the runways, you rarely see a Balenciaga bag in sight. The focal point is normally the clothes – after all, Balenciaga was better known as a forerunner in constructing clothes flattering to the women’s shape. This Fall 2010 however, new bags have been featured on the runway.

Photos via vogue.com

 

Looking at the bags, I can’t decide which is worse- the clutch that looks like it has a case of mumps, or the slightly garish mix of colours. The black and white clutch is fairly beautiful, but I still say the motorcycle clutches and bags are much more palatable. At least with the motorcycle bags,the knobs and the mirror and the tassels all made for an interesting mix.

Spring Summer

Spring Summer by foodsmithone featuring a leather crossbody bag

Some of the current items I am lusting after- so incredibly beautiful and summery. This is the best time for writing, and the best time to feel free.

Street style blogs

One secret habit I have is poring through fashion magazines and editorials during lazy weekends (when I am not at work, or in the salons while waiting for the hairstylist to trim my hair). It’s a guilty habit I have, because I can be quite obsessive about buying all the different periodicals on the news stand. After some time, you realise that the editorials feature the same events in the Singapore circuit, but you do get the odd occasional interesting piece. As a remedy, I’ve turned to looking at street style blogs to see what people are wearing.

 

Photo Credit: The Sartorialist

Impossibly chic, and beautifully radiant – these street style bloggers have become the new reference points for style & fashion. While in the past they were relegated to their virtual domains, now street style bloggers are revered for their keen eye, and for their commentary. I have to say though that my favourite ones are still The Sartorialist and Jak & Jil. Both have a fabulous eye for colours that cuts across age, race, nationality. The Sartorialist features men’s fashion quite often, and genteel gentlemen in their dapper suits, but his photos always capture a certain radiance in his subject, or a certain sadness.

Photo Credit: Jak & Jil

Jak & Jil has beautiful close-ups of accessories, and inside shots of the runaway shows.

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The street style blogs capture so much beauty and sadness on the streets- real lives in the making.

Now isn’t that far much more interesting than fashion editorials in the magazines?

Deluxe: How Luxury lost its Luster – Dana Thomas

I was browsing at the Art Section in Books Kinokuniya, like I always do on Saturday, when I chanced on the aforementioned book. The comparison to Fast Food Nation (allegedly responsible for turning away Fast Food Fanatics into Freedom Fighters) made me have some initial doubts, but after googling the excellent reviews(the plus points of having an iPhone + internet on the go), I decided to get it and proceeded to breeze through it for the next 72 hours or so.

Deluxe- How Luxury lost its Luster is less a critique of a billion dollar industry, than an expose of the luxury industry. Thomas’s eye for detail and meticulous painstakingly elaborate research leads her to uncover industry secrets such as the manufacturing of luxury handbags, to sweat factories in China, to the secrets in the counterfeiting trade and anti counterfeiting vice squads to takeover bids mounted (successfully and unsuccessfully) to a luxury emporium right in the heart of Brazil.Rather than make you question the origins of the handbag (though admittedly, the reformed may come away with such a view), the book is remarkably even-handed in its approach.

I have always been innately fascinated with luxury marketing and brand positioning so this book confirmed some of my most basic beliefs of how luxury brands are able to brand themselves apart from the mass market brands in the most subtle of ways. Ironically, the central premise of Thomas’s book is that the luxury industry is in a time of upheaval and the ‘ democratization’ of luxury (as Thomas puts it) to cater to the middle market has led to a consequent drop in quality and workmanship of its products, originally intended for the truly luxe. The potent unanswered question posed at the end when Thomas asks- what happens when the market becomes saturated, what happens when the niche clients decide no longer to patronise their brands, is a compelling one.

But, for those of us who appreciate the luxury (and by luxury, I don’t just mean expensive), the prospect of a luxe-less society seems light years away.

DB Bistro Moderne

With the new restaurants / celebrity chefs that have zoomed in on Singapore, Singapore’s a great place to be right now for food lovers like me (and hopefully you, that’s why you’re reading this). The (long awaited) opening of the remaining outlets down at Marina Bay Sands (there may be some more, I’m not entirely sure), drew foodsmithone and myself to DB Bistro Moderne one lazy Saturday afternoon.

 

Born in France, chef Daniel Boulud is probably most famous for his Michelin / NYT starred restaurant Daniel. He’s also put up a few more casual dining concepts around the world, and DB Bistro Moderne is one of such ideas that have come to fruition. Modelled after a French bistro, DB Bistro Moderne has a sleek interior (sleeker than most French bistros I’ve been to), with comfortable sofa seats providing a nice cosy feel.

Neither of us are huge brunch fans – eggs and pancakes are not really our kind of tea, so we were quite happy when we saw that they were serving a mix of the a la carte dishes as well as some brunch items.

We zoomed in first on the Original db Burger, described on the menu as a Sirloin Burger Filled with Braised Short Ribs & Foie Gras Served on a Parmesan Bun. They have a number of other burgers on the menu, but we thought we would try the “Original”. We were not disappointed. The burger was moist, and the braised short ribs stuffed inside the burger gave the patty a hearty, meaty flavour. It brought out the best in the sirloin mince, although I would also attribute the juiciness of the burger to the slab of foie gras which was stuffed inside the layer of short rib. I know of people who would probably say that the use of foie gras in the burger might have been a little wasteful (you really do lose that crunchy layer that one usually gets with pan fried foie gras), but hey, i’m not complaining about a little extravagance to keep the patty juicy (and not when it’s going at S$35 a burger).

At the recommendation of our server, we also ordered the Barramundi Grenobloise, which was accompanied by cauliflower, turnips, radish and topped with a brown butter sauce (I know the photo below suggests a sauce that is not browned butter – but it was. The dark purple sauce around the fish was a tart-ish sauce that went well with the vegetables). As barramundi always is, the fish was perfectly cooked and had a meaty flavour to it. While the dish on the whole was very well executed (and definitely not pedestrian in any regard), we were probably more enamoured by the juiciness of the beef patty in the burger that this did not leave as lasting an impression. The nutty flavour of the brown butter sauce however, was something that pulled the dish together for me.

The dessert course was, however, our let down of the meal. Being a little greedy that day, we ordered the classic Ile Flottante (which is a meringue floating in a creme anglaise base), the Clafoutis Tout Chocolate (which was really like a molten chocolate lava cake), and some warm Madelines. The texture of the meringue in the Ile Flottante was as it should be, and the apple confit was also pretty complementary. However, it looked (unfortunately) more like an iceberg had broken off and was floating in the sauce. The sauce had a strong armagnac flavour to it, which is probably something that could make or break the dish for each individual (in my case, I did not enjoy the heavy lacing of the alcohol in the dessert, but I’m sure there are others out there who would beg to differ). The chocolate cake was nothing spectacular – perhaps I’m getting a little tired of soft centre chocolate cakes – somehow I’d hoped for alot more. The madelines were a good rendition of the traditional french cake, and I can imagine that a basket of those warm madelines would be quite popular amongst a group of friends.

In all, it was a pretty enjoyable experience at db Bistro Moderne. I’d say that the price point of the restaurant is about right for a nice meal out (but definitely not for a everyday meal), and you can count on them to provide well executed dishes that won’t disappoint. While desserts did not seem to be quite their forte, it could well be that we’d ordered the wrong desserts. Given the good quality savoury items, I think I’ll be back there to give them a second chance on the desserts, and at the same time, perhaps slip in another Original db Burger?

DB Bistro Moderne

Address: 10 Bayfront Ave, #B1-48 Marina Bay Sands

Tel: +65 6688 8525

LUNCH
Noon to 2:30 pm
Monday through Friday

DINNER
5:30PM – 10:30PM
Seven Days

WEEKEND BRUNCH
Saturday & Sunday
11:00AM – 3PM

BAR SERVICE
Daily 11:00AM – Midnight

 

Food for Thought

The first rule I learnt in economics is that businesses are profit-driven.

I thought of that while stepping into Food for Thought’s new pad at the Singapore Art Museum on Queen Street. The place prides itself on supporting charitable causes which by itself, is a novel concept for a cafe. Judging from the crowds, it is also a concept that works. The menu covers fairly standard fare for a cafe, but has some interesting finds. For instance, sandwiches come with pickles on the side, that taste more like achar and is quite a treat.

The fries are also to die for- I’ve been secretly nursing an urge to return just to feast on the fries. Huge potato cuts, not miserable shrivelled potato ones. I also loved the butterscotch berry apple crumble topped with vanilla ice-cream. The crumble’s texture in a baked dish oozes out nicely, with a delish serving of apples and mixed berries. We also had the Ferrero Rocher cake, but felt that the cake portion could be more moist as it was a tad dry.

At the end of the meal, besides walking away satisfied (the price point is decent), it also doesn’t hurt that you feel you did your wallet(and charity) a service. Now, what was that about the profit motive again?

A Curious Teepee

As a reflection of how Singaporeans’ tastebuds are getting more international and adventurous, new lifestyle shops have dotted our island – some have closed(Anthropology at Raffles City) while others are shouldering on, and yet new ones continue to open. I’m not complaining as I love lifestyle shops- they sell kooky, odd items from abroad, and are often arranged such that you feel you are stepping into someone’s living room, or museum. An intimate space where there is an imaginary dialogue of sorts between you, the consumer, and him, the ‘curator’. A Curious Teepee at Cineleisure’s Escape is one such curious creature. There are lovely things to buy- necklaces by By Invite only, swimming costumes that are quite beautiful and limited edition, a Longchamp collective bag that can be collapsed into a donut.

But this is a food blog after all – A Curious Teepee also plays host to a cafe, managed under the auspices of the Lo & Behold Group (Overeasy, White Rabbit…) The menu has not been finalised and will only be out later this year. Serving a mix of cocktails, coffee,tea, sandwiches, waffles and desserts, the current menu is a little underwhelming. That said, there should be plenty of reasons to rejoice once the menu is finalised. Papa Palheta coffee is strong and potent, a really good cuppa if you are a coffee addict like myself. While we were there, we had just come from dinner so we couldn’t order the Apple Drummer with vanilla ice-cream but that looked potentially interesting. They also had tiramisu and usual suspects like Valrhona chocolate cake. Give it some time and this will be a nice spot to meet friends. I just wish they had more food on their menu. Apparently, they do a savoury waffle but you need to ask for it.

After all, who doesn’t like a place that serves cocktails & home made desserts?

hello stranger

Those of you who have religiously following this blog, might have been wondering where Foodsmiths have been since September 2010. We have not dropped off the face of the world, save to say that work and other commitments have taken a slight toll on us. That said, eating still continues, and the good food feasting will continue as well.

We’ve tried a number of places since the beginning of this year and will be posting more regularly (crosses fingers) on these places. Watch out and check back!

And we’re off to HK!

For those who loyally follow our blog, foodsmithone and me are off to Hong Kong tomorrow for a short jaunt! We’ve got some new places in mind to try, so check back soon for more tasty morsels of Hong Kong food!