farewell dinner

maternity leave rolled round pretty quick and my consultant was kind to organise a farewell dinner. felt far from deserving as the most junior on the team, but any excuse for a curry meal! we went back to the curry resto we'd the welcome dinner at four months ago and it didn't disappoint. the GP trainee had left too and the staff grade was also going on maternity leave, plus christmas was around the corner so it was nice to get the team together before the holidays. granted, we were due the ward christmas party the same week but it wasn't too much of a good thing ;) 

very efficient dinner - seated at 6, food by 630 and out by 730. i like how once the conversation slowed down, consultant called for the bill and we were all off to respective families at a decent hour. 

it was undoubtably a tough job, compounded by the fact that it was my first, and i'm grateful for the incredible support and guidance i received. appreciate it won't always be that good, and i lucked out with this consultant and senior support. trying not to think about what i'll be returning to (because at this stage, goodness knows!) and to live in the present. enjoying some down time before baby comes, and then the plan is to take things a day at a time. can't pre-empt every future problem, can't solve for every possible exigency.

santa maria

first foray to santa maria near work was a roaring success and had spied one dangerously close to home. visited at an odd time but it was still relatively busy for tea-time. weirdly there was an old man with younger male (looked like bizniz buddy?) who was openly chatting up one of the sweet young waitresses. am usually not this sexist / ageist but it was really gross and almost enough to put me off my pizza. but hey, why not... maybe i'm just so attuned to safe guarding vulnerable adults / children that his sleaze really got my heckles up. think he was asking her about her boyfriend and if he was any good (presumably at horizontal activity) and i wanted so much to interrupt and ask her if she was ready to take our order. but she did seem to be encouraging him so who am i to meddle. ew ew ew all the same.

self-appointed protector of womankind rant aside, the pizza didn't disappoint and it's hands down better than franco manca and rosso pomodoro which are also in the 'hood. so glad to have discovered it and can see myself going back. oh and the tiramisu (technically contraband with all that raw egg...) was also incredible.

hawksmoor

one of my oldest and dearest friends was in london after sitting PACES just outside birmingham and of course we'd to celebrate with steak. have heard lots about hawksmoor but never been. suppose there's just so much in london that i'm often spoilt for choice and have an ever-growing list of places to try but am often too lazy / stuck in comfort zone to get round to it. also have the bad habit of being reluctant to leave the 'hood so friends were nice to pick the hawksmoor in the 'hood. teehee :) perks of being pregnant. 

it was fun getting the two families together, 3/4 C siblings were there, with +1 and colleague who also sat PACES in tow, and my brother and i represented our fam. nostalgic how we've grown up together and spent many sunday lunch times together with our folks. it's almost like extended family, really, and there shared understanding and how well we know each others' quirks and foibles (plus embarrassing stories) is something that is very precious to me.

there's loads on offer at hawksmoor but we were el cheapos and went for the sunday roast cos there were 17 (?) left and 8 (?) of us. generous portion and lovely sides but gimme the maze grill sunday roast any time.

team dins

i like work and am fortunate to be in a good team. appreciate this might not always be the case so am extra grateful to have lucked out this job with wonderful consultant and seniors. consultant is a wonderful mix of fatherly concern and font of wisdom. it's funny how he's convinced i'm working too hard (far from) and chases me home when i'm still in the office. during my maternity assessments, he's been incredibly fair and while i've yet to use any of the wriggle room he's so kindly made available, it's nice to know it's there should i need it. couldn't have asked for more. 

team dins is another highlight and we went to a pakistani curry where our party was the only non south asian clientele! always a good sign ;) the curries were fantastic and my inner el cheapo was thrilled when it came to £10/person including service. say what??? methinks i need to venture out of RBKC more often heh.

ckt

my palate is decidedly asian and i'm happiest slurping noodles in soup. the MSG gets to me and being parched / disproportionately thirsty after is never a good thing. that'll teach me to not make broth from scratch. but noodles in other forms are great too and one day i was craving char kway teow so badly i practically ran from the tube to the restaurant. it must've been a wednesday afternoon cos that's when i slope off a little bit earlier and thank goodness i didn't have far to go for my fix. this may or may not have been triggered by my fam sending pics over whatsapp from singers. 

the restaurant was surprisingly crowded for mid week afternoon but i got my ckt and then banana fritters after. sometimes comfort food is all i need.

incidentally, a friend just moved near me and she makes a mean ckt from scratch so i'm planning to take up her kind offer of popping round for dins one night :)

angeleno's

every year when i'm back in sg, the doctorlawyers are kind to invite me to tea at their practice. far from being the only crazy, there's a close circle of similarly masochistic folk. it's not often that i meet such kindred spirits who are in a similar boat (though much further along on their journey) who encourage me with the incredible ways their putting their talents to good use. it's inspiring to watch them do the things they love, and they get the whole medicine vs law dilemma. what i find the most reassuring is how they've resolutely stuck to medical practice ;) while having a bit of law on the side.

after a full dinner at theirs, made the mistake of arranging to meet friends for a massive carb overdose at angeleno's. what was cute was how there were 8 of us but 11 heartbeats, and the boys went crazy over-ordering without taking into account their pregnant wives food aversions. although who's counting, really, because team preggers sort of closed one eye (or both!) and nibbled on the baddies and sipped the wine that made its way to their end of the table.

sg eats

didn't have much time in sg. always want to be around for longer but somehow something gets in the way and i end up shortchanged of entire weeks. need to be better at planning life! but what's nice is that family friends are incredibly generous and let me choose where i want to go. it's bad i get so spoilt that if i ever move back in the distant future, i'll be gutted to no longer get first dibs. hadn't realised i'd been missing peking duck till aunty M invited us to lunch at imperial treasure. their dimsum is the best, and the peking duck divine.

was also gutted the coffee shop in the 'hood has since been sold and renamed / rebranded :(

home cooked nasi lemak dins at our former neighbours who are like surrogate grandparents to me was incredible. so many happy memories of sunday lunches round their dining table.

and greek lunch with family friends that left us stuffed to the gills.

have a little tradition of celebrating with a pig and it was only fitting to dig into one with my law prof who brutally edited my personal statement when i applied to medsch. owe much to him and my lawsch dean who was my referee. five years on, i can't safely say i've kissed law goodbye and am still scheming of ways to marry the two skill sets. but that might have to wait a while.

party animal

have a dear friend in singers who first clued me into the joys of a roasted pig. the mister and i would traipse round to his bearing hawker centre goodies and a roast suckling pig to celebrate getting into medsch / his phD / numerous other life-changing achievements, and occasionally just because because being young and alive is reason enough for celebration, no? so it was kinda cool when our hosts took this a level up by slaughtering the fattened teenage (as opposed to suckling?) pig because there was lots more pig!!! and come on, how dramatic is watching it slow roast on a spit for hours and hours? delayed gratification at its best ;) also, i can sorta get why mark*zuck made a thing about only eating animals he'd slaughtered himself. not that i did any slaughtering but there's something less guilt-inducing about eating an animal that was born and bred in supreme comfort, treated really well during its (short) life and killed humanely. makes me want to avoid supermarket bought pork now and only have pork if it's from a farm shop and reared on site.

but this is quick evolving into a husbandry / responsible farming + consumption lecture so no! needless to say, piggy tasted amazing. roasted to perfection (our hosts are not new to this game, oh no...) and lechon as they taught us was customary for them. the skin was crispy, crunchy and chewy at the same time. they very kindly gave me the ear (!!!) which i enjoyed thoroughly and hm i don't think i can go back to duck*waffle pig ears in a bag after enjoying the real deal.

fresh off the boat in more ways than one

the mister is one of the most resourceful people i know. it's one of his most attractive qualities because who doesn't want to mentally check out and completely relinquish control to someone who's bound to do a better job (guilty!). when i'm with him, my brain goes on holiday and i know whatever it is will get done, and done well. read something recently about how a couple needs to decide who drives the bus on individual issues. like a couple can agree to do something but someone needs to step up and actually deliver, be it planning a holiday / investment / sorting out dinner etc. without going into too much detail, i'll admit the balance is horribly skewed and the mister overperforms in every area. so hey, why not play to strengths and let him drive the bus (of life)?  

where is all this going?! well was craving japanese because goodness knows it comes at such a premium in the UK and he found that tuesday was the best day for omakase. undeterred that we were in a brand new city, fresh off the proverbial boat, he made a couple of calls, got a friend's friend to recommend someone, made direct contact with the chef who was happy to oblige and bam! helloooo uni fresh from tsukiji, amongst other goodies. in fact he managed to charm the chef (oh ho ho good sake is such a social lubricant) that they're now on 'brother' terms. this is looking mighty fine ;)

and view from the hotel. meh.

steamboat

after repeated failed attempts, finally made it to imp*treasure steamboat. felt bad cancelling the previous times and poor SIL would make a reso only to have to call it off later. inlaws had been raving about the stock and sauces, two things they know i'm crazy for, and they're so sweet to want to take me there. continuously humbled by how their thoughtfulness, and how they indulge my strange tastes so. really should've taken a photo of the steamboat cauldrons and spread but forgot. was a little -_- at the price because steamboat is cheap and easy (AND I CAN MAKE IT TOO!) but i wasn't paying so best to hold peace ;)

villeneuve and aosta

spent christmas with this little monkey climbing all over my face, and wouldn't have had it any other way. it's strange - not the biggest fan of children nor they me. offspring of friends one sort of has to grin and bear. although i'd be the last person to offer cuddles on tap. yet when i met this little bundle, something in me melted into a pile of goop. can't explain emotional attraction / attachment but little L i love to bits like no other. maybe it's his magnetic smile, or how we seem to have the best conversations. he also can't seem to stop rubbing his cute face into mine, and i get plenty of kisses back. love at first sight, if i ever knew it. doesn't hurt that i adore his mama (and papa) so mega love fest all round.

it was also such a treat to visit C (his gorgeous mama) in her hometown, with lunch at her childhood home. unabashedly a product of our parents, past and providence. i feel someone would only really know me if they've been to singers, met my family and seen where i grew up. and while i know C from london, spending time in the town where she grew up, breathing in the alpine air, exploring the streets she walked as a school girl was such a privilege. doesn't hurt that aosta (the nearest city) is pretty darn gorgeous and after lunch we went walking till late :)

room with a view!

food files

little known fact but the dolomites have stars aplenty! i'm a little wary about chasing stars and find it doesn't always live up to expectation, plus inner scrooge doesn't want to be oversold nor spend too much on food. i'm easy enough to please, eat everything and don't have so fine-tuned a palate as to differentiate between haute cuisine and regular. in fact, haute cuisine portions are often too small to satisfy my ravenous appetite. so there. the in-house restaurant had a star but what the chef did to his own disservice (?) was to make the bistro food (included in full board) so darn good that we never felt the need to top up for dins at his m*star resto in the same floor space! he said himself that his trick was to do simple food well and oh my did he more than live up to that. the pasta each night was out of this world, it just kept getting better, and the starter and mains and dessert were as good. really lucked out and i figure it's more the chef's skill than the setting that makes for incredible dining.

munich eats

went a little overboard and researched where to eat in munich, only to have plans scuppered. but it's ok - book first, talk later! after a long day out to the castles, the last thing any of us wanted to do was to haul ourselves across town. cancelled original reso and got the hotel to book something closer by. not proud of it and ended up being half an hour late for that, because, well, inertia. so the queue was out the door by the time we got there and had to be thick skinned about the dirty looks (sent brother in! always send the scout hehe) as we walked to the head of the queue and to our relief found they hadn't given the table away. thank goodness had foresight to book in hotel's name (tip: resto less likely to cancel reso for fear of damaging goodwill!) and couldn't help but feel smug about not having to queue :) hearty german food and while i initially thought the waitress was trying to scam us (paranoia wahey!) what she recommended (two course traditional german taster with starters and mountain of mains) did work out well. although i think she was trying to push us to order for the table, i saw through her sneaky ploy and ordered two (minimum order) and supplemented that with small sides. hah! (like the bavarian ox tartare below)

german food does not photograph well!

lunch the next day was the only one of my original resos we made. it was a safe choice and surprisingly tourist-free and found ourselves surrounded instead by well-heeled locals. elegant sorts who waltzed in amidst a whiff of expensive perfume. must've sounded pleading in my reservation about being a family from singers on holiday that they gave us a lovely table with a view of the opera house :) gorgeous interiors too with frescoes and the food was excellent. prices up 30% from already touristy hotel muller but hey, go in with eyes open.

consome with dumpling

wiener schnitzel and rosti

venison goulash

deep fried pork (!!!) in bavarian beer

hamsteak under eggs

and i need to sing praises of white beer. i'm not a beer drinker, only starting to drink when i first moved for uni. but i do enjoy craft beer and local ales, and did try to drink something brewed (practically) on site at every pub in the lakes. but if i was in japan, i'd only drink sake and when in munich i only drank beer. no gluehwine, even! just lots and lots of wonderful white beer. so very good and doubt will find better any where else.