Huat Ah! CNY @ St Regis (Yan Ting)

Yí Gè Féng Hé Rè Lì Dè.. ok just kidding! I wouldn’t have gotten far anyway..

As Chinese New year is around the corner, I had the privilege of being invited to a media preview tasting session where I didn't just get to taste great food, but meet awesome people too :D

Was it #Waaahhh? Let’s find out!

Prosperity ‘Yu Sheng’ with Norwegian Salmon & Abalone An interesting twist to usher in the Year of the Monkey included a wider selection of fruits ranging from marinated papaya, sweet honeydew, luscious peach, juicy pomelo, refreshing snow pear & even dried orange peel Post many 4 letter chi yu’s & some “huat ah’s!” later, it was very well mixed (I think we had so much fun lo-hei-ing that some of it even ended up in people’s tea cups! Mm.. Yu-Sheng infused tea..) I like how after there was a pleasant hint of sweetness which lingered on my palate as i'm not a fan of the normal savoury & slighty tangy aftertaste Waaahhh Factor: Waaah

Buddha Jumps Over the Wall This was a personal favourite. Almost thought it was Pun Choy at first sight! Traditionally done in a soup style, it had been transformed into a braised delight. The techniques utilized & heart put into this dish definitely did justice to these ingredients You could tell that best friends Abalone, Sea cucumber, Fish maw, Oysters & Dried scallops had spent sometime together to produce such a hearty reduction. Went down very smoothly~ Waaahhh Factor: Waaahh ​

Braised Pig’s Trotters with Fermented Bean Curd The fermented bean curd added a tinge of warmth to the melt in your mouth fat which didn't leave that fatty & slightly gamey aftertaste which made it very pleasant. Being very tender, it was an effortless eat although i'm no master with chopsticks! Ate the braised “xiao bai cai” (baby cabbage) at the end of the dish just so I could trick myself into feeling that the dish was healthy :D

Waaahhh Factor: Waaahh ​

Fried Prawns with Golden Garlic All that glitters is not gold.. Upon being served, the fragrance was also golden! A nice mix of crispy & crunchy garlic caressed the springy & succulent prawns Only downside to this dish was that you couldn’t eat the fragrance that came along with it.. Waaahhh Factor: Waaahh

Crispy Roasted Chicken Tastes as good, or if I might say, even better than it looks! Decorated with golden rice crispies (they use real gold), it made the dish really pweedy (yes you tried to pronounce it). Love that the skin was crispy without being too oily! Having really low self esteem.. This dish literally increased my self-worth Waaahhh Factor: Waaah

Wok-fried Glutinous Rice with Wind-dried Sausages The wind from the sausages came alive as this dish nearly blew me off my seat!! The “dragons breath”(not burnt ends!) did not leave a single grain untouched Shredded egg & chives, which topped the dish, gave a good contrast of texture in between bites Waaahhh Factor: Waaahh ​

Fragrant Homemade Almond Tea with Crispy Glutinous Rice Cake I finally conquered my fears! Have to admit that at first, I was slightly taken aback as I have a phobia of desserts which utilize almond powder particularly The Ba Kwa looking glutinous rice cake “nian gao” was crisped on both sides to perfection. It was an awesomely textured mochi & that hint of red-date aftertaste at the end made it literally so much sweeter :P Waaahhh Factor: Waaa (still not a fan of almond powder!) Concluding thoughts: Reunion meals are usually shared by friends & family & this one was no different. Despite not knowing anyone before the tasting session, I'm sure after the amount of laughter (& food) we had, filled not just our tummies, but hearts :) Thankfully there were only 7 courses, or else they would've been able to serve up the 8th: Suckling Pig (yours truly) Impeccable service, well cooked food & awesome company, what more could one ask for? (maybe some Bubble Tea? #Teehee)

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Where Sia: · The St. Regis Singapore ·Level 1U · 29 Tanglin Road, Singapore 247911 · How to Contact Them Sia: · http://www.yantingrestaurant.com · Phone: +65.6506.6887 · Email: yanting@stregis.com ·