John’s Pizzeria – Sourdough Crust Pizza

14” NY Style Pizza - Pepperoni with Extra Mozzarella 

Earlier this year, we noticed John’s Pizzeria & Bakery (‘JP’) opened in Tanjong Katong area. This is JP’s second branch. The first branch is at Alexandra Road, opened in 2017. JP produces classic American Pizza using a sourdough base freshly made in-house daily.

John’s Pizzeria & Bakery - Tanjong Katong

Aside from freshly made sourdough base, JP also gives the assurance of NO preservatives, NO commercial yeast, naturally LOW in gluten and LOW GI. The sourdough base pizza comes in Deep Dish (Rectangular shape) and NY Style Pizza (Round). On top of that, JP also offered Gluten-Free Pizzas.

Ingredients for the pizza are source worldwide. JP’s 100% REAL pork pepperoni imported from the USA, Italian-seasoned sausages and creamy ricotta air-flown weekly from Australia.

When LD & I picked up our niece and nephew from school, they decided they want to get pizza for lunch. So, we ended up in JP. As it has passed the busy lunch hour, we can easily find a table indoor.

Cheesy Garlic Bread

We started our meal with Cheesy Garlic Bread ($10.90). Made with the same sourdough crust as the pizza. It is topped with Garlic, Oregano, Mozzarella Cheese, Parmesan Cheese and Extra Virgin Olive Oil. The result is chewy and cheesy garlic bread. The combo of mozzarella and parmesan cheese, making it taste more like garlic pizza instead, but delicious.

Stretching Cheesy Garlic Bread

Our nephew chooses his favourite pizza, Pepperoni ($29.90) with extra mozzarella. This 14” NY Style pizza did not disappoint and come loaded with cheese. If you are looking for the pulled cheese for the IG shot, this pizza delivered. All of us have fun stretching the cheese to the max.

14” NY Style Pizza - Pepperoni with Extra Mozzarella 

The cheese is soft, chewy, creamy and it can be stretch for quite long. The sourdough base gave the pizza the moist and chewy texture that can carry the extra cheese in the middle part, while the exterior crust is crunchy. The NY style tomato sauce is sweet and tangy, while the Pepperoni is pack with OINK OINK flavours.

Check out the extra cheese

Our niece asks for Hawaiian pizza ($31.90). While the ham, pineapple and mozzarella cheese are the common toppings for Hawaiian, JP tossed in some red onion here. It might seem a bit out of place, however, once you bit into the pizza, you realise that raw flavour of the red onion offset the richness in the pizza and add a touch of its unique sweetness to it.  Yummy.

14” NY Style Pizza - Hawaiian

14” NY Style Pizza - Hawaiian

Each pizza slices into 8 (eight) equal portion. I think the max I can eat is about 3 slices and we have ¾ of a pizza that we take away. The décor is of the restaurant is a combination of pizza joint and diners in the US. Service is friendly. Our garlic bread come in less than 10 minutes followed by the rest at regular interval.

Part of the Indoor Area

Overall, if you are looking for American Style Pizza with sourdough base, give John’s Pizzeria a try. The sourdough base is solid and the pizzas are delicious. Cheers!!

Food & Drinks: 7.5/10

Value: 7.25/10

Service: 6.75/10

Ambiance: 6.5/10

Budget per Person: $11 - $25

John’s Pizzeria & Bakery

226 Tanjong Katong Road

Singapore 437053

W: https://www.johnspizzasg.com/

F: https://www.facebook.com/johnspizzasg/

IG: @Johnspizzasg

OH: Daily 10.00 – 21.00

Menu and Online Order is available through the website

Bruno’s Pizzeria & Grill – Neighbourhood Italian Restaurant

Vesuvio Pizza

Bruno’s Bistrot / Pizzeria & Grill (‘Bruno’) restaurants begin its operations in 2010. Bruno’s restaurant initial focus is on serving Italian food. The restaurant has been operating under the radar, serving the neighbourhood crowd around their restaurants without much fanfare and publicity. In 2018, Bruno’s took over the corner establishment in Serangoon Road that used to be a popular bistrot and started their French Bistro.

Bruno's Pizzeria & Grill at Tanjong Katong

This review is solely on their establishment in Tanjong Katong.

We came in a group of six, so we decided to share some starter and pizza. Our meal started with a complimentary basket of bread, served with olive oil and balsamic vinaigrette. Nice chewy baguette, dipped in the traditional Italian way.

Complimentary Bread Basket

Burratina Cheese with rocket salad and Parma ham ($22). Smooth and creamy burrata drizzled with balsamic vinaigrette and olive oil. Instead of the usual sliced tomatoes, Bruno serves this dish with sliced cherry tomatoes, rocket salad and sundried tomatoes. I like the additional sun-dried tomatoes that introduce intense tangy flavour to this dish.

Burratina Cheese with rocket salad and Parma ham

Margherita Pizza ($16.90). A simple pizza that will test out the quality of the ingredients in a pizzeria. The crisp and chewy dough, topped with delicious tomato sauce, mozzarella cheese and basil. The version here definitely passes the test, though it can be better if they add an extra sprinkle of the mozzarella.

Margherita Pizza

Diavola Pizza ($19.90). Made for the meat lovers. Generous with salami and cut chillies as it covered most of the top part of the pizza. I find the salami is missing the smoky aroma and it is too tangy for my liking.

Diavola Pizza

Vesuvio Pizza ($19.90) - The toppings include mozzarella cheese, cherry tomatoes, shaved parmesan cheese and rocket salad. This pizza will suit vegetarian nicely.  The combination of mozzarella and shaved parmesan present a rich creamy and umami combo in this dish. The bitterness from the rocket salad cuts through the richness and pungentness from the cheeses, while the cherry tomatoes bursting with sweetness.

Vesuvio Pizza

For the mains, I ordered Spaghetti Bolognese ($19.90). A traditional spaghetti recipe served with beef ragu that is cooked over a long period. The pasta is cooked to al-dente making it easy to twirl and slurp. Meanwhile, the minced beef in the ragu has breakdown nicely and absorbs the flavour of the tomato and wine nicely. All the ingredients are bind nicely with the rustic shaved parmesan. Do take note that the pasta portion is huge and can easily satisfy two people.

Spaghetti Bolognese

LD ordered Seafood Risotto / Risotto Ai Frutti Di Mare ($26). LD’s favourite risotto. The arborio rice is cook till al-dente as it absorbs the stock and tomato sauce. The rice is plump, creamy and bursting with flavour in each bite, enhance further with the intense flavour of sundried tomatoes. The seafood is huge and generous in portion, however unfortunate on that day the mussels are stale. If not for the mussels, it is a great dish indeed.

Seafood Risotto / Risotto Ai Frutti Di Mare

The rest of the group ordered Linguine Aragosta ($25.50), Ragu Tortellini ($28) and Grilled Ribeye ($35). Since I did not try it, I will just show you the photo.

 Linguine Aragosta

Ragu Tortellini

Grilled Ribeye 

The décor of the restaurant reminisces of a traditional Italian restaurant. The traditional wooded chairs and checkers table cloths amplify the experience. Special offerings are written on the blackboard hanging on the walls of the restaurant. In summary, the restaurant is very cosy complemented by friendly service staff. Please note that if you are bringing a cake for a special occasion, there is a service charge for it.

Part of the Dining Area

Wall Decor

Overall, Bruno’s Pizzeria and Grill is like your neighbourhood Italian restaurant. The food is good but not super fantastic, however, the portions are extremely generous. A restaurant that you can return regularly with your family or order takeaway for a big feast. Saluti!! Cheers!!

Food & Drinks: 7.25/10

Value: 8.25/10

Service: 6.75/10

Ambiance: 7.25/10

Budget per Person: $26 - $50

Bruno’s Pizzeria & Grill

344 Tanjong Katong Road

Singapore 437113

T: +65 6440 4525

W: https://brunospizzeria.kitchen/

F: https://www.facebook.com/sgbrunos/

IG: @Brunospizzeria

OH: Daily 12.00 – 14.30; 18.00 – 22.30

Menu is available from their website.

[CLOSED] Garçons – Awesome Lunch Menu

French Duck Leg Confit

Garçons is a culinary creation of Chef Enoch Teo and Chef Immanuel Tee. Garçons offers economical French fare first conceive when the two chefs combine their two business after being competitors in the Katong neighbourhood. The bonds build during the stint at Restaurant Andre made them realised that two creative culinary minds are better than one.

Garçons

This is not my first experience at Garçons. I have previously tried their food at Pinnacle. This time around, we visited their outlet in Tanjong Katong, opposite the Canadian International School.

We started with soup and entrée.

Cream of Mushrooms ($12). Solid mushroom flavour but not the creamy version of the soup. In each slurp, you taste each lump of the chopped mushrooms. It served with crispy garlic bread on the side.

Cream of Mushrooms

Homemade Duck Rillette ($14). Homemade duck rillette is rich, moist and bursting with duck flavours. The portion of sliced French baguette is very generous, more than sufficient to spread the rillette. It is best eaten with the mini gherkins to balance the richness of the rillette.

Homemade Duck Rillette

Pan Fried Foie Gras ($19). Velvety and creamy foie gras served on toasted brioche. The external part of the foie gras is crisp, while the fruit jam fused the brioche and foie gras nicely.

Pan Fried Foie Gras

Truffle French Camembert ($19). Pungent and gooey melted camembert cheese, topped with truffle paste. The camembert can be eaten with the baguette, crispy potato and walnut.

Truffle French Camembert

For mains, I order French Duck Leg Confit ($22). The skin of the duck is crispy, while the flesh is moist and melt in your mouth. The mashed potatoes are smooth and creamy and the mustard brown sauce just completes the dish nicely. If you want to know how good a French bistro standard is, this dish can enable to judge the standard. In this case, Garçons passed with flying colours.

French Duck Leg Confit

Crispy 12 Hour Pork Belly ($22). Another signature dish at Garçons. Tender and succulent meat, topped with crispy pork crackling. It served with a smooth and creamy mashed potato.  The double mustard and honey balsamic glaze help to balance the richness from in the meat.

Crispy 12 Hour Pork Belly 

Angus Steak and Fries (250g, $30). Nicely grilled sirloin steak, cooked to medium-rare. It is tender and juicy with a touch of crispness externally. In typical French fair, the steak is basking in the savoury mushroom sauce where you can soak your French Fries with it.

Angus Steak and Fries

Fries

We only order one dessert as we are too full. Warm Apple Crumble ($12). Soft and moist crumble, with tangy and sour apple fillings. Though the combination of hot apple crumble and vanilla ice cream is great, but the base feels a bit too hot. Probably spends too much time in the microwave.

Warm Apple Crumble

Service is good, considering only over service staff during lunchtime. The décor is simple with a lot of natural lights calming in from the glass door and wall. Garçons also offer lunch set and dinner set, where it offers greater value from items on the ala carte menu.

Set Lunch Menu

Overall, Garçons served hearty and unpretentious French Cuisine at great value for money. The food is well-executed and delicious as well. Don’t miss out on their Duck Confit and Crispy 12 Hour Pork Belly. Cheers!!

Menu 1

Menu 2

Menu 3

Food & Drinks: 7.75/10

Value: 7.75/10

Service: 6.75/10

Ambiance: 7/10

Budget per Person: $11 - $25; $26 - $50.

Garcons

340 Tanjong Katong Road

Singapore 437111

T: +65 6909 2350

F: https://www.facebook.com/garcons.sg/

IG: @Garcons.sg

OH:

Mon – Fri: 11.00 – 14.30; 17.30 – 21.30

Sat & Sun: 11.00 – 21.30

Eng’s Char Siew Wantan Mee – 3rd Generation Business

Dry Wantan Mee - Big Version

I have followed Eng’s Wanton Mee from the day it was still operating in Dunman Food Centre. A Priest’s friend like it so much that he travels from the west to buy 10 packets at one go and keep it in the freezer and heat it 1 packet at a time.

Eng’s Char Siew Wantan Mee

After the much-publicised break off at their Tanjong Katong outlet, the dust finally settles. However, the competition remains fierce. The late Mr Ng children have found a suitable location (where Ng Ah Sio Bak Kut Teh branch in Tanjong Katong used to be) and open up Eng’s Char Siew Wantan Mee (“Eng CS”).

Menu

Menu

When you enter Eng CS, you feel that the set up of the shop almost the old shop. Even the order chit has the familiar feel to it.

Part of the Dining Area

LD and I both ordered the dry wantan mee. The big ($5.50) for me and small ($4.50) for her. The presentation remains the same, except for the colour of the plate. The portion is huge and the noodle is thick, cooked to QQ (al-dente), springy and bouncy. Although I did not put any chilli in mine, you can still taste the solid umami flavour bursting from the pork essence in the oil. The char siew is sweet and moist, although it uses lean meat.

Dry Wantan Mee - Big Version

The Noodle

LD generously squeeze the chilli sauce, according to her, it is still spicy as ever. The pork lard and cut green pickled chillies are self-service, so you can always have as much pork lard till your heart or stomach content.

Dry Wantan Mee - Big Version with Super Hot Chilli

Chilli Sauce, Cut Chilli and Pork Lard

This time around we order the Wantan Soup ($3) instead of the fried wantan. The clear broth has a familiar soup base like Hong Kong wanton mee, that uses dried prawn as the soup base. The wantan is firm, springy and juicy. Don’t expect any prawns inside, as the fillings are all pork.

Wantan Soup - Small

The wantan fillings

One thing for sure, the service here is very friendly and polite from the time you enter until the time you leave. When we make the payment, the lady at the counter also asks us, if everything is all right. I later found out that she is the daughter of the late Mr Ng.

Overall, we sure like Eng’s Char Siew Wanton Mee. The quality remains the same, yet the improvement in service make us feel welcome. The wantan mee is delicious and still carry the same flavour as the last time. We’ll definitely come back for more wantan mee and try new items on their menu. Cheers!!

Food & Drinks: 7.5/10 

Value: 8.25/10

Service: 7/10

Ambiance: 6.5/10

Budget per Person: S0 - $10, $11 - $25

Eng’s Char Siew Wantan Mee

248 Tanjong Katong Road

Singapore 437036

T: +65 8798 6088

F: https://www.facebook.com/ENGSCharSiewWantanMee

IG: @Engscharsiewwantanmee

OH: Daily 10.30 – 20.45

Closed on Alternate Monday (See their FB and IG page for details)

[CLOSED} Burp Kitchen & Bar – Gastropub & Live EPL [MEDIA INVITE]

Burp Kitchen & Bar @ Tanjong Katong

Burp Kitchen & Bar is the second outlet of Burp umbrella brand. I visited their first outlet in Bedok Reservoir and I still like for the wholesome meal that are served there. You can check out the review of the Bedok Reservoir outlet here.

For the Tanjong Katong outlet, the team up the ante on the entertainment factor here. Football lovers (like me), they are showing live EPL matches on wide projector. You can check out the Live matches they are showing on the FB page.

The view of the Bar and Projector screen