masak

sunday dinner was a real treat! the word masak conjures images of my childhood. masak masak, a malay word, was a familiar one in my peranakan family. it meant to play around (?) or so went the context it was used in. however, what chef larry reutens served was far from child's play. T summed it up best, "you can get more authentic but less good food in flushing". so it was really a question of quality over authenticity. don't think the chef was going for replication of singaporean favourites but more reinvention. appreciated the comfort of familiar flavours complemented by novel presentation and conceptualisation. read some reviews where diners/haters berate masak's failure to remain true to singaporean cuisine. on the contrary, i find that chef larry was faithful to the cuisine by making it accessible to more western palates. if i wanted real singapore food, i'd go to singapore and not east village. 

we shared kueh pai ti (same shell and bangkuang or turnip filling but with inventive toppings like foie gras) and chilli crab dip with fried mantou. oh the joyousness of chilli crab without having to chip away at the shell! the stuffed quail was a winner with the salted egg pairing and we had sambal kale instead of the usual sambal kangkong. for dessert, chef larry paired tang yuan with chocolate sorbet and coffee nibs. WOW. tang yuan like never before. peanut tang yuan but served similar to how the japanese do little rice mochi with ice cream. was chatting with chef about the restaurant and its influences, both decor and cuisine and before i knew it, he very sweetly comp-ed his favourite carrot cake dessert. aww :) free food is surely the way to my stomach but this is by no means a paid review haha. was mighty impressed with masak and have been telling everyone i meet to go there if they've a chance. plus, they serve kaya toast for brunch. WHERE TO FIND!!