Overall:
Well first of all it's not really private dining. You just ask for a table like any other restaurant, there's no pressure to find 10 friends and chope the whole place.
Apart from the great first course the food wasn't refined at all, nor where the creativity executed particularly well. Although portion sizes are definitely not something to scoff at, it's course after course of meat. I guess if you're not used to mid tier restaurants then you would really love the food here, seeing how you have generous portions. That seems to be the clientele that day anyway, a lot of people were gushing about the food.
The chef was nice to chat with though. However the place is tiny and really quiet and you're seated way too close to your neighbours. I could hear every word they said and could touch them if I stretch my hand out. It's really uncomfortable being there because everyone knows everyone can hear everyone so people werent chatting away. So it was just an awkward silence half the time for the entire duration, the other half the chef is talking to one of the tables (and everyone can hear ofc)
Ultimately it will probably be a disappointment for anyone who's been to a few somewhat fancy restaurants. At first I was relieved it's not communal dining but hey, idk maybe this is even worse with the suffocating whispers
Food:
Grilled bananas were good. Lard tart crust was quite fluffy, brown sugar meringue was pretty good but too sweet. The gula melaka ice cream tho, was not good. It tastes like milk powder, and the texture wasn't ideal either
A4 wagyu, tastes like it sounds, doesn't quite taste like A5 and needs abit more seasoning. The oyster pasta was on the soft side and doesn't rlly have oyster flavour. Soup was ok, doesnt have much character and tends to get overpowered by the fried shallots.
Overall the different elements didn't clash cos nothing had much character
The rendang dry rub was but a hint, fortunately the rempah in the rojak added abit more flavour to it. 24hr sous vide apparently wasn't good enough, the texture was not as soft and sticky as the 48hr sous vide that's much more common
Was cooked to well done, so it's terrible. Also supposed to be brined but the meat itself had no taste at all. The ikura paired well tho, and the achar was very good (taste similar to Johnson duck's)
The tiger prawn was huge but abit mushy. Lard sucked, it wasn't crunchy and wasn't flavourful. Sambal belachan was standard. The twice steamed rice tho, that's quite unique. It's very different from your normal nasi lemak rice, it's got this coconut milk sweetness to it.
The meat itself was supposed to be marinated in braising sauce but there's really no taste. The accompanying sauce had balsamic, the acidity is a innovation I guess. Breast texture was also abit chewy and not crispy at all despite being finished on the grill. Tea aroma was too mild
This has got to be the heartiest amuse bouche. It's literally a personal pizza no joke hahahahhaha
One pizza per table. Thus this single diner got a full meal for the first course.
The chef takes a lot of pride in making sure no one can eat anything else afterwards. That's why no one managed to finish the amuse
The pizza is seriously good tho. The crust is super unique, it's a mix of 3 different kinds of flour which produces a very soft yet hearty texture with good density. It works extremely well due to its thinness. The cheese cream sauce was no slouch either, comprising a mix of pecorino, grana padano, and parm for a suitable amount of umami. The toppings were equally well thought out, a mix of mozz and 2 kinds of cheddar with crunchy pork floss. The exterior wasn't the most crunchy but that's easily forgivable
Absolutely delightful. If I heard her right, she's been making pizzas for 20 years and it really shows. Very unique in many ways and a must try
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The fat-inspired menu showcases indulgent, oil-rich dishes such as Lemak (twice-steamed nasi lemak with prawns, crustacean-infused oil, coffee sambal, sambal balachan) and Ah Buta Den (lard sambal with kurobuta roasted house-cured bacon steak), with Chef Shen Tan's various signature chillis being stellar as usual. The night's showstopper was the Bok Bok (kampong chicken confit with chicken fat scones, chicken fat soy caramel, butter), with the magically umami butter instantly enlivening every inch of surface it coats, lending to its underneathlings a savoury merriment the equivalent of gustatory technicolour glory.
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The dinner was paired with curated wines from Epiphany Wines (@sgepiphanywines), with the dishes prepared using some of the newest models from Bertazzoni's range of cooking appliances. The vibrant and eyecatchingly-coloured ovens from the Professional Series - clad in Lamborghini and Ferrari-esque coats of paint (the cookers undergo the same painting processes as those for the famous Italian sports cars) - are essential for every Stepford-pretty kitchen.
A couple of months ago, my ears perked up when I heard Chef Shen Tan was launching a fruit-centric menu ($99 per pax) for her @ownselfmakechef private dining. I promptly made a reservation and that is how a group of us indulged in it last Saturday night.
The 8-course menu featured at least one fruit in each dish, but sometimes it wasn’t immediately obvious what fruit it was, which made it kind of fun because we got to play guessing games. The following were my favourites from the entire menu:
- Green banana (or plantain) layered mille-feuille style with slices of Wagyu beef which was then breaded, battered and deep fried. This painstaking creation tasted a lot like mashed potato and beef but with the benefit of a crunch factor. It was served with a sharp-ish kalamansi marmalade and kewpie mayo and the combination was terrific in my opinion.
- One of the top crowd-pleasers of the night had to be the huge and fleshy mussels from @ahhuakelong that were cooked in a piquant guava chilli sauce. It possessed the kind of appetite-whetting flavour that triggered a craving for more. In me anyway.
- Inspired by the tapas from her recent trip to Madrid, Chef Shen came up with croquettas of green jackfruit and mashed up cooked jackfruit seeds. Crunchy on the outside, and thick and creamy on the inside, they were served on fluffy Japanese rice topped with a curry sauce and onions. This also proved to be a hit with everyone around the table.
- Although Chef Shen and her assistant chef Joy proclaim to not enjoy desserts, the brown butter cake with lychee sorbet, coconut ice-cream and a dusting of red peppercorn seemed to suggest otherwise. I inhaled it despite how full I was feeling by this point.
This is actually the fusion Ba Chor Mee Pasta from Chef Shen Tan where she uses handmade tagliatelle tossed in a spice mix of chilli, lard and vinegar, and served with slices of 5 spice pork confit. Delightfully light and appetizing due to the vinegar, the noodles absolutely stole the show.
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ownselfmakechef
Address: Reserve your slot for the different dinner themes via email. More details at www.ownselfmakechef.com
The highlight for me is : .
💕Bak Chor Mee Pasta.
Hand made tagliatelle tossed through chilli, lard. Topped with Chef Shen’s 5 Spice Pork Confit
💕Make MEE GREAT Again
Extra Umami Mee Siam
Prawn and crab infused mee siam with quail eggs, chives, tau pok, prawns, deep fried crab spring roll
💕Lamb Curry
The Wok & Barrel’s signature tender slow cooked lamb curry
💕Super Gao Mee Rebus
Extra rich Mee Rebus made by braising beef tendons, simmering prawn stock with beef bone broth, thickened with sweet potato mash..
💰$99
📍84 Commonwealth close, pls email the Chef @ownselfmakechef for reservation.
Upon hearing this, we are half scared and half excited of what’s to come in this Wok & Barrel Redux + Make Mee Great Again dinner ($99/pax), essentially a Mod Sin meal featuring chef’s best dishes during her Wok & Barrel days. You will literally be stuffed silly, so do bring an empty stomach and be prepared to start standing and walking midcourse of the meal.
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We started off the meal with some carbs loading of Super Gao Mee Rebus and Extra Umami Mee Siam, both equally good and I’m torn apart to choose my preferred one between the two. On one side there’s the extra rich and nutty broth of the mee rebus made from a stock of prawn and beef bones, thickened with sweet potato mash and served with tofu puffs, quail egg and beef slices. Then, there’s the mee siam that brought a slight tang from its flavourful broth served with prawns and a deep fried crab spring roll.
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ownselfmakechef
Address: Reserve your slot for the different dinner themes via email. More details at www.ownselfmakechef.com
One of my favourites in the private dining experience. The Nasi Lemak rice is so super fragrant, and with the clams, was surprisingly quite ‘light’ to me. Sambal here is definitely not for the faint hearted. You have been warned.
Looks like a winning combination, tastes like a winning combination. The broth is so ‘Unami’ and the noodles ‘QQ’ (very much reminding me of Taiwan’s 曾拌面. I thoroughly enjoyed Chef Shen’s seafood feast, every dish was so creatively thought and brought flavours familiar yet ‘new’. I would gladly pay to try another menu here at Chef Shen’s.
Chef Shen Tan @chefshentan has a couple of menu ongoing at her private dining location, and I got a seat at the one that has a seafood thread going through each of her dishes.
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In the cover photo was the dish I liked from her seafood menu. The housemade oyster noodles came in broth rich and flavourful from the use of various seafood and pork bones simmered in hours.
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The full menu includes:
* Mee siam ceviche (2nd pic)
* Oyster fritters with salted egg yolk aioli (3rd pic)
* Seafood tau pok pau (4th pic)
* Luxe hae mee tng (cover pic)
* Green pepper curry clams with nasi lemak (5th pic)
* Grilled salted egg cured grouper (6th pic)
* Durian tempoyak mussels and bacon (7th pic)
* Crab and mango crepes with salted egg yolk ice cream (8th pic)
Besides the Nasi Lemak with its two killer sambals and the three incredible desserts, I would vote the “Beef Rendang Pizza” as my other favourite from the “Wok & Barrel Make MEE Great Again” dinner at @ownselfmakechef.
Laid on the soft and chewy dough was a good amount of cheese, a little tomato sauce and the pièce de résistance of Wagyu Beef Rendang. The ratio of each topping to the others worked well so the outcome was a tasty and balanced flavour profile. I was also very pleased to find the chunks of meat aromatic, very tender and spicy enough to be taken seriously.
On the whole, this themed dinner by @chefshentan differs from the other two I’ve attended: “Sinfully Seafood and “What The Duck” because it is more of a trip down culinary memory lane albeit with tweaks since quite a few years have passed since her “Wok & Barrel” days. Furthermore, it includes a couple of new “mee” dishes as well.
If you are keen to try this menu ($99 per pax), be warned that it is extremely carb-heavy. Skipping a meal prior to it is highly recommended. And pacing yourself during the meal itself is paramount.
Even those who would flee at the mere mention of durian tried this. Yums!
The rice was so good and on point, just the way I like it and here it’s paired with a lemak curry of local clams and kampot green peppercorns. So good!
The broth is so rich, simmered in hours with pork bones, carrots, shallots, crab, prawns and clams. The prawns are a real treat. Dig in and you will find handmade oyster noodles and bits of lardons. Hands down the best Hae Mee Tng!
Served with some killer chilli lime. This was another addictive course and it was so freaking good. Plus that killer dressing which set some of us on fire.
