Tempusfugitive.com Personal Blog

Nibble me, Spin me, Feed me - then Repeat

I'm back from Singapore and sad that somehow 45 days went way too fast. As per normal let me start my blog by saying sorry for the lack of updates as per normal. But it is amazing that when your doing nothing, no one is around but the second you start to read or write, a person will pop right up. But that's what I travel for, the people. I can read or write uninterrupted 24/7 at home, so sure you all understand. Besides aside from Ronny or Maria, no one reads this thing anyway. Even then, I think they just tell me they do.

So on past trips some of the staff from the hotel have invited me to outside events. In general I don't often go, because I think they won't have as much fun if a guest is there. Maybe they will be afraid to be to open. But this trip I decided to accept their kind offer.

Some of the key members of the Pacific Club team are leaving or have left. This group sees to your every need should you be lucky enough to be staying on the three floors they cover at the Pan Pacific Singapore. Their job role is referred to as butlers, but they do so much more.

So I couldn't turn down a chance to join them. The plan was to go to the Fish Spa and then to the Singapore Flyer. I then set-up a special dinner treat for them to say thanks for all their kind service and friendship.

Since all the staff can't take off for the night, some of the crew had to stay behind. As it turned out the guys got stuck, leaving me with all the ladies. Wow, so sad about that :) Of course it should be noted that all the ladies are quite taken but eat your heart out anyway.

As mentioned the first part of the day was to go do the Fish Spa. If you haven't heard about this new trend, you will as it's become a hit everywhere. The concept of a Fish Spa is where you have a pool of fish nibble off your dead skin. Hmmm..that doesn't sound too nice stated that way.  Sure the marketing people have a better way of saying it, but the bottom line is a fish nibbles on you.

So as you can see from the above pictures, I'm sharing this experience with some of the beautiful ladies. Not all wanted to join in as the charm of the fish has their limits or maybe it's my charm that's lacking. So when you first put your feet in after cleaning them of course, there is an initial shock. The first bites make you jump. Not because they hurt, but more because they tickle. In the third picture you will see little Connie, who had the most funny reactions. First she was all but screaming, then shaking, then into some sort of trauma coma, and finally boredom. Given her tiny nature I did keep a careful eye on her, I was worried that after the fish got done with her, there would be nothing left.

I found it to be fun thing you do with friends, but I don't think it really does as advertised. My skin didn't feel any smoother. Maybe I'm just not tasty to the fish. So this could be a clue to why my dating life sucks. I don't think people who do manicures should be worrying about lost business or how to raise fish themselves. If you do try it, go for the big fish. The small fish are a waste. As any honest person will tell you, size does matter. Even though I will warn you that when the fish are too big, it just gets creepy. There was this one big fish that clearly had heard about my love of sushi and seemed to just be attacking for vengeance.

Next up is the Singapore Flyer. Currently the largest observation wheel in the world. For more info check out http://www.singaporeflyer.com/ During my last visit to Singapore they were doing final testing, but it had not yet opened. I was a bit non-plused about going on the wheel, but sharing it with a group of beautiful woman, yes please. Remember I stay on the 33rd floor, so I almost see the same view every day. But overall, I must say I did enjoy it a lot. We were lucky to have our own capsule, actually it was due to the do what I say skills of Tashida, one of the lovely ladies.

One of the cool things you can see riding the Singapore Flyer is the work being done on the future casino site. This work is done 24/7 as shown in the first picture and as my lack of sleep can tell you. Lucky most of the pile-driving is now done. What's amazing is how fast they are moving now. For a while it just seemed like a lot of cranes and some holes. But now each week adds more super-structure. By the time I return in December I'm sure I will be shocked by the progress. The second image above shows a model of the finished casino, which you can only see by riding the Singapore Flyer. The casino has an entire Central Park like garden on it's roof Can't wait to see the real thing. One thing my years of visits to Singapore has taught me, is that they are in the business of exceeding expectations. Just their airport is better than Disneyland!

The final part of my fun outing with the ladies was a dinner at my friends new restaurant, Julien Bompard at Ascott Raffles Place. Chef Julien had just soft-opened his second restaurant so it was the perfect place to have a dinner with such special company. I was extremely honored to have written the foreword for the Chef's cookbook and he is a very special close friend. If I only had more talent and a time machine to make me younger I would study under him but odds are he would fire me in a matter of hours.

So now with all the ladies present, we sat down to a series of treats from the Chef. For him, this was a great chance to show off to the ladies what his new place was all about. Part of the many roles the ladies and gentleman of the Pacific Floor do is to recommend and book dining reservations. Julien's original place is high-end classic french, with killer views, one of the best wine cellars in Singapore, and super-sexy private rooms that if you don't at least get a goodnight kiss for if not more, then clearly nothing will help you. His new place is less formal but still sexy and cool. I love his chef's counter, a french version of the sushi-counter concept, where he cooks tapas for you in front of your eyes on state of the art induction cooking surfaces while you look into the open kitchen behind where your mains and dessert are being done under the very able leadership of Chef-de-cuisine Jason. In the second picture Chef Julien is on the left and Chef Jason in the middle.

To give you some idea of the food I have included some pictures. Sorry they can't all be shots of the ladies, but fear not, one more yet to come. So the first picture isn't very clear but I had to include it. The Chef was coming out and informing the ladies about each course being served. Chef Julien has a very charming but thick French accent. So when he told the ladies he was serving a signature dish, a trilogy of duck, I was sure they would love it. After a couple of minutes of noting that none of the girls had touched their plate and Connie looked like she was going to cry, I found out they had misheard the Chef and thought they were being served a trilogy of DOG! After clearing up this misunderstanding the dish was then enjoyed by all. The second picture shows some of the chef's signature tapas and the third picture shows one of the new Spanish inspired dishes for his new place, a seafood paella. The food, wine, and service was fantastic as usual.

So sadly all good things come to an end. WTF! Damn laws of the universe. Unfortunately the evening came to a close and you can enjoy the final shots of me and my lovely co-dinners. Notice my cherry or tomato like face. The ladies figured out how to make me blush on command. One of them was very good at it, I leave it to you to figure out who made me blush so much on this shot. All I can say, each of the ladies partners are truly lucky. They are as funny, smart, and interesting as they are beautiful. I'm truly honored to be their hotel friend and will treasure the chance I got to share some personal time with them. Sadly some will be moving on to their next challenges, and with time maybe more will depart. But I hope in today's globally connected world to stay in touch with all.

I'm also so proud of the Chef's latest venture. I have no doubt, that like his prior restaurant, he will do extremely well. If you find yourself in Singapore make sure you dine here or at Le Saint Julien. Feel free to drop my name, but somehow I think a photo of the ladies will get your better favors with the kitchen staff as they were all smitten with them.

Sadly, this trip has come to an end. I do have a shorter visit coming up in December, which will be my only other trip this year, I know pull out your tiny violin. Until then expect the blog to not be very interesting, as I live on the set of Desperate Housewives without the murders or sexual tension. So mainly will be talking about what I last cooked or my workout plans. Wow, were is my Pulitzer. But I may do some video so you can all see the white-hot boredom of a town I live in and try and make this blog a bit more interesting without the excitement of travel.

So hope you have enjoyed the wrap up of my last trip. For me, I will be fighting the urge to drive to the airport right now and get the hell out of here. Instead I will watch the closing ceremony of the Olympics to help fight off my never-ending wanderlust. Until next time, may you all enjoy getting nibbled, spun, & fed as much as I did.

 

Laments and Latitude

I will have to keep this update short as in Tokyo, Japan on layover and the priority is making my connection and enjoying robotic-poured beer and machine made sushi. Someone wake me when the work out the kinks in the robo-girlfriend.

So as normal with end of all trips, even ones that get extended, I descend in a mix of post-past location depression and hard earned travel focus.

As normal running on no sleep, have a cold virus that makes me sound tranny like, still have the larger flight to come and sure US customs will once again greet me home with the sound of a snappying rubber glove.

But that's what cold sake was invented for. Clearly Japan knew it was the cure all throat and depression mender.

Assuming I'm awake tonight, lucid, and by then rice wine free I look forward to updating you with pics of where I had my toes nibbled, watched the sunset from a glass cabin of a modern marvel, and fined dined with seven beautiful woman - all in one day.

Wow if I didn't know how much my blog sucks, even I would be excited to read this. So assuming no renditions and several showers once home, hope to fill you all in soon. Until then domo agrigoto Mr. Roboto.

National Day Singapore - Aug 9th 2008

Here are some highlights from Singapore`s 2008 National Day.

The tale of the ghost fish sushi ...

So tonight I wanted sushi something bad. You think after yesterday I would instead be heading to the gym only to emerge for medical checks should the staff force me, but somehow woke to a better mood.

But then I got stuck talking with a fellow hotel guest in an un-planned discussion of the current American political scene. Yep, bad idea that one. But at least this guy has seen more than a ranch in Texas!

So I arrive on the not too late side for sushi in Singapore but during the hungry ghost month and mere days from the Olympics and national day I came for a dinner of one, truly, minus all the past ghost fish that must have gripes with me and my serious sushi past.

You can say safely the entire country of Singapore is nearing ghost status. Expiates run for vacation, locals save up for the big holiday weekend, and the in-betweens hide in their hotel rooms ready to leave in the next 48hrs So ended up having sushi on fast forward, due again to my own errors.

The plan was to have time to walk you through an omakase experience @ Shiraishi, my now well established favorite sushi place and last request meal.

Wednesday is almost always the key day to get the most fresh fish and other rare products, with Saturday maybe being the next best here in Singapore. Normally those days or the days between are prime time. Even then Singapore is a rare country whereby Monday and Tuesday still out-do the best west-or-east coasts places on their off days.

So I was quite shocked to see it so dead. But then again, so is every other part of Singapore right now. Silly me, had I been on-time, I could have gorged my tummy and wallet with a near monopoly of choices.

So my plan to really show you it all for tonight is off but I still ate very well as always there. So no tiny violins for me, will leave those for the prior blog entry. Instead I will show you one classic shot of Shiraishi's staffs work, I took with decent lighting and a real camera plus tonights sashimi as well as some wonderful abalone with thin wasabi shoots. Note the drink in the sashimi shot is warm shochu with chili, shiso leaf, and hojiso. A rare thing not seen often outside of certain parts of Japan. Highly recommend it.

I have some other pics in which the food is so worthy to show, but yet, my lame phone camera, lack of time, and general lack of skills in all other ways has let you all down.

I promise next Wednesday to ensure you will see every bite including the return of fresh nama sake which is served near frozen. See, well worth the wait. Hopefully until then no ghost fish visits any time soon...

Why I hate breakfast, morning people, and my thin skin (figuratively & in reality)

Okay if you check the above picture, this is how my morning began. For friends of mine you might be confused why I would be up for breakfast at all.

It starts with the hotel trying to entice me into this breakfast thing, as its included with my room and I usually show up one out of every forty-five days. Considering my other eating patterns I'm all but a complete mystery to them.

So they asked if I ever tried the Japanese breakfast, which I had not at this hotel but of course had consumed at many Japanese owned and even on occasion some western ones, mostly ending in disaster when not in Japan. Normally most western guests would die if served the combo of rice, soup, fish, pickles, natto (fermented soy beans), and other Japanese treats normally served in quite small sized compartments of a bento box. For me such a breakfast concept is the only way to trick me into the morning light without bursting into flames like the proper vampire I am.

So I foolishly agree to try it the next day, as the breakfast auntie must prep for it special. Never cross anyone who cooks your food or pours your drinks, trust history on this one. So this seals my fate that I must rise after truly the worst night of sleep while I've been here. Trust me, there have been some rough nights So with bloodshot eyes, questionable hair styling, and no real wish to even eat I push myself up.

As you can see from the above picture what awaits is a Chinese version of a Japanese breakfast. Instead of bento style, a giant bowl of rice and equally large sized miso-soup are joined by what taste like cod that has been fried in coconut oil and butter. Aside of it is fish cake sliced which normally has a bland taste to it, but swear is made of gelled palm oil. Finally is the tamago, which is a sweet Japanese omelet, again packed with sugar, most likely corn syrup & lots of oil too. This is the true McTamago. All that said, very delicious for what it is and visiting Japanese love this south-east Asian take for sure.

So I politely and as fully as possible clean my plate as much as I can. According to one of the staff who is very chopstick like in figure, she can eat 5x the amount of me per meal! So didn't meet the acceptable mark of eating but did my best.

Okay I workout 3hrs after, no lie, and still feel like I'm made of lead. To spite this, I treat myself to my usual pretzel afternoon snack, which note is made everyday fresh and is not very fattening.

Even before my first bite of pretzel I get told I should lay off my favorite snack as starting to look fat! First of all, I'm down 2lbs / 1.2kg since arriving, body fat is the same to spite all the food & drinks for a MONTH plus. But come back for happy hour and one of the girls asks if I enjoyed my breakfast cause my belly is looking bloated! No clue if joking or not but not good timing. Then I actually decided the I needed some air and the front girl says to me if I'm sick as my face looks unwell, puffy & blotchy!

What the hell is wrong with Singapore! Don't they understand the placebo like effect of this constant scrutiny, especially when its actually wrong! WTF! I already have been knocking on the door to my deep dark place this visit, but this is the bullet-train way to get me there. I will make Ledger's amazing last performance as the Joker look sunny and light-hearted in comparison.

F@#K, see how nothing good comes from breakfast! Now if you combine breakfast with a late rise, a lazy afternoon finish, & heavy drinking preferably bloody marys or fine champagne, and then you get the brilliantly named brunch! After which you don't give a damn what others think. Even more brillant!

So now thanks to the falsely advertised most important meal of the day I sit evidently bloated in a way that science can't measure and mirrors don't seem to show, but somehow it clearly occurred just today in the early hours.

Granted the red and blotchy part is true. The Singapore sun and water seems to slowly turn my face and neck into a color that resembles the inside of one of those cherry candies your grandmother would always seem to have a box of. Beyond Irish, English, and many other DNA fragments that ensure I can turn red on command my skin is very sensitive. So hotel sheets, different water, and just looking at me wrong also seems to give me that you forgot to sunblock only to your face and neck look.

Yeah! So hence why I'm thin skinned in all ways. Both in soul and surface area.

So tomorrow and for many more tomorrows until I have left this mortal coil I'm once again retired from breakfast. I will use my free time to develop a line of T-shirts printed in all the top ethnic languages here in Singapore that says if I wanted your opinion, I will ask for it and by the way your looking a bit plum & blotchy! Think it could be a bigger fad than pork floss, bubble tea, or even doughnuts here!

A new start for a good friend and my tummy...

My friend as noted in prior entries has opened a new restaurant, Julien Bompard's at Ascott Raffles Place. This is his second one, aside from his cheese store, which opened last visit. My timing has been lucky to be here for each opening.

So after a few days of soft opening, I went for a visit. Here are my photos of the meal.

1. A shot of the chef cooking at the chef's counter from my seat. The concept is to make it less like a chefs table and more like a sushi counter where the chef personally cooks up mid-meal tapas right in front of you.

2. Next shot shows the kitchen staff at work. The kitchen uses induction cooking, so very amazed how cool and small it can be.

3. Okay starting dish is an Osso Bucco stuffed ravioli. I have cooked a similar dish I created for an event but it was Osso Bucco stuffed lasagna. I put the concept of the gremolata on the top, learned better to put the citrus hit inside.

4. In this picture is one of three of the tapas which is a signature of the new place and cooked by the chef in front of you as mentioned above.

What you see here is artichokes with roasted tomatoes, then fresh water shrimp, and finally some langostines, small like lobsters. All beyond fresh, prepped, and cooked in front of your eyes.

Notice the bread which is all fresh baked, and served with French butter, French olive oil and balsamic vinegar, and pepper Pimiente d'Esplette.

5. Next up are razor clams which are cooked in shell straight on the cooktop. It will still have a tiny bit of grit, but the flavor with be so much more enhanced when cooked rustic style.

6. After that is a fresh sardine cooked off with Dijon mustard. All again done right in front by the chef including the deboning done via his ceramic knife. As with a sushi counter its really nice being able to share in the creation of your food.

7. Finally for the main, had a new Spanish inspired Paella dish the chef added just for the new place. His original restaurant is classic french only, but he has more room to experiment in the new menu. It's baked with all the classic ingredients and then plated table side. Really well done as with all the dishes of the evening.

The meal started with some rose champagne and then enjoyed a glass of New Zealand sauvignon blanc and a nice French red St. Emillion with the later part of the meal.

After the meal no dessert instead did some martini testing in his new bar. But will leave those notes for another day when I remember them.

Echoes and Oysters of the Past

Tonight was yet another night of spending a bit in the now and past. Anyone who reads my blog or who cuts me open during an autopsy will find me mainly made of sushi. I probably would better resemble an American maki roll rather than a proper piece of edo Japanese sushi sadly due to having to consume less quality sushi in the US or Asia.

Tonight I had a light meal in Shiraishi. To me in Singapore, there is no equal for the true expression of the art of Japanese sushi. There is one peer, but they dabble a bit too far sometimes to the fusion side, and your better to try their much more classic yakatori restaurant. Don't get me wrong, they would be a close 2nd, but sometimes the past still offers the future.

I have often engaged in the discussion of people's last meal choices, and in fact in the local paper that is often a question asked to executives and chefs alike.

For me it's simple. Before I shuffle off this mortal coil and entropy recycles me for my high-amount of fish protein and general lack of other value, I would choose my last meal to be at Shiraishi.

On another day, I will take a picture by picture tour, but for now I share with you a couple of snaps from tonight. Note, I shot these shots late so not to make too many people creeped out to why I'm taking shots of them makan (eating).

The one thing that comes to mind was when I brought my "brothers", will protect their identity for this story purpose. One hated fish in all forms. Yep, a perfect place for him. But the other seemed to be truly open for the experience. Given his ethnic past, he comes from people who eat raw or cured fish so how can this be so different for him.

Well I picked what I thought was the most safe and well taken raw seafoods, the oyster. He took it down like a champion, I was so proud, minus the standard problem of eating the wassabi as avocado problem, but he took that standard 1st timer mistake in brave form.

The only problem was the oyster he had taken took the express elevator inside of him to the basement and beyond, breaking all speed records, no stopping at the lingerie or house wares floors if you get my drift.

So my poor brother made what could be called a mix of samba, martial arts moves, and the electric boogalooing to the little boys room where he arranged for a burial at sea for our crustacean friend.

Let's just say everytime I sit and enjoy a meal there, I will never forget this special moment which has supplied laughs all these years. Hope I have made you smile as well. Night and may all your seafood adventures end at least happy if not at least samba free.