bar bar black sheep, can i have some more?

me and kathy met for dinner one day during the week. we were at the small plaza of shops across from botanic gardens and had meant to go to relish (on the second floor) which was closed when we arrived.  we could either wait or head down the street to holland village or dempsey... not being inclined to further deal with bus stops and taxis and traffic, we decided to go around the corner to bar bar black sheep for a drink to wait for it to open. ...but... then we just stayed there... because it was awesome!  seriously, the menu is a mixture of thai, indian and western.  and all your favourite options of each. and with the exception of japanese, thai, indian and western are my three most favourite food categories in the world!  my kind of place.  for sure.

i could not decide which way to go.  seriously.  how can one choose? i ordered a lime juice and spring rolls to decide.  and having the spring rolls.. which are always deep fried deliciousness, my resolve caved and i went for western, veggie burger.. with fries no less.  and a coca cola.  oh, the healthniess of it, i know.   kathy ordered a burger too (not veggie) and a white wine.. it was one of those days.

but here is the delightful thing.. when my veggie burger came, it was not one of those massive bun monstrosities that western restaurants serve. the burger was small, like a 1970's size bun, a small macdonald's burger size.  and it was perfect. on top of my burger was this gorgeous red pepper relish. now, i don't usually go for relish at all, but this was damn good. damn good.  i ate it all. fast.  and then i ate the fries.  and then i sighed.  damn.  good.

and... and.. the washrooms are connected!  just down the hall.  and they have this cool mantra (well i think its cool, but i can see how singaporeans wouldn't get it) they charge for water.  water is $1.00. cause its not just tap water but clean mineral water.  and they don't DON'T charge tax or service charge.  what? a restaurant that does not rip off its customers?  what an idea.

so... what can i say... damn, damn, bar bar black sheep. a black sheep you are not at all... you are fackin' awesome.  i just have one question: when can i go back?

Bar Bar Black Sheep
Cluny Court  501 Bukit Timah Road
6763 4757
www.bbbs.com.sg

p.s. good night.

it was frankie's birthday, so we decided to gather for an evening meal.. so we decided to go back to dempsey (yay!). frankie made reservations at ps cafe (yay! yay!)  i was quite happy, as you know i have enjoyed the brunches a la ps cafe.  and i was ok with a splurge for an evening meal.  its a new year, so lizzie and laura have gone on with their travels; the expat life in singapore is not for them. but kathy was there as well as isabella (again yay!)  i miss isabella as she lives half here and half in toronto.. she is damn funny.

we had a lovely time.  wine and chatting all round.  kathy has a posh new job at one of the more pretigious schools in singapore netting over 15000 a month. what?  i know... i do not have a great job...and i am sick of working in singapore for singaporeans that are really big bullies.  get this.... as 'civil servants' we are inundated with racial harmony propaganda, there is literally a 'racial harmony day' to remind everyone to be nice to each other.  but then, THEN for CNY, the singapore government gave all civil servant employees of chinese descent ONLY a 'festive bonus'.  yes, they got their pay a week earlier than everyone else because they were of chinese descent.  i am no expert, but that is rather, um, how shall i say this, damn racist!!  but no matter...i have great prospects!  right now i am in a bidding war with two different job offers.  one here in singapore, one in thailand. both international employers. thailand is the land of my dreams... and as much as i love my brunch girls and the hectic chaos that is singapore, my heart is really leaning towards blue waters, white sands and no chaos for awhile...

and back to the night... in which ps cafe, comes alive.  its lit inside making the trees outside look magical. still the large bunches of flowers.  still the awesome row of cakes at the front.  i ordered a moroccan stack of coucous.. which was divine!  so good, i stopped talking for about 20 minutes and just ate and savoured. and it was vegetarian.  and on the menu.  ahhhh..

then i ordered dessert.  of course i ordered dessert. but i think i ordered wrongly.  but how to choose? so many damn good choices.  i ordered pecan pie, but it was pecan chocolate pie and more like a brownie in a pie crust than the southern sugar overload of pecans and sugary toffee filling i was expecting.  no matter.  really, no matter. i was already so happy with my morroccan stack that nothing could dampen my mood.  not even the bill. (which wasn't that bad this time. i didn't have wine and i was prepared)

P.S. Cafe
Dempsey (you know where it is)
www.pscafe.com

living the dream at the green room

i was excited to go to the green room in bishan park.  id already tried canopy which was ok, but the green room specializes in raw food.  a vegan's dream!

the ambiance was spectacular.  i went (with a 'new' man friend.. ahem.) in the evening, so it wasn't too hot.  i love LOVE singapore at night.  the humidity lifts and it is truly spectacular.  a calm quiet blankets the city as construction stops and people begin to relax for the evening.  the green room is behind canopy in a jungle of greenery.

we opted to sit outside in lovely wooden lounge chairs.  there is a large bar/lounge area beside canopy which just looks like a place you could curl up with a glass of wine and chat to your friends or lovers all night. a truly hidden gem.

the food, was well, it was ok. it is raw vegetables, twisted, turned and spiced up, but in the end, still raw vegetables.  it was good, but i think since living in singapore, i have slacked in my vegan habits, as its hard to find so many options, so my palate has started to lean back towards the oils, sugars and breadish tastes of the non vegan.. so the raw stuff does tend to begin to taste bland.  if only i could go away to a resort, to hide out for a few weeks and eat only this food.  then THEN that would be divine!  and so would my body and soul be actually.  damn world, what are we doing to ourselves?  we could eat like this every day.  we could live like this.  grrrr.

so back to the restaurant; i ordered....

the rice paper samosa spiced herbs and vegetables wrapped in rice paper served with coconut chutney and then the nasi campur which is multi coloured rice with vegetables and tempeh, peanuts and tomato sambal.  my friend had the pumpkin and vegetable tower chopped vegetables with asian pesto between fresh slices of butternut pumpkin and the vietnamese rice flour pancakes.

and then we splurged on dessert. probably shouldn't have.  because for all its health appeal.. dessert without sugar is just hard to digest.  literally.
we tried the chocolate and goji berry fudge crunch and the spice island apple crunch.  the chocolate brownie was very dry and well bland. (duh.. no sugar).. but i have tasted very awesome vegan desserts.. but then i guess they are using raw sugar. but no, i've made lemon cake with no sugar just applesauce and mango juice for sweetener.. so huh.  the apple crunch was good.

anyways.. at the end of the night (lucky it was at the end) i saw a mouse scurry across the path.. and then he/she proceeded to chirp quite loudly.. i'm not sure who she/he was shouting at, but it was rather distressing to me.. who was wearing a long maxi dress.. and had to walk along the path to get the hell out of there.

guess mice are vegan too?  i never knew that.

so green room cafe.  not sure if i should mention i was starving afterwards and craving potato chips.  but i forced myself not to eat them.. and just go to sleep and i woke up refreshed and rejuvenated. huh.  i am giving it four stars... yes. if you are vegan and love raw food this is the bomb... wish it delivered and wasn't so damn pricey... well the prices are understandable.. . but.....well.. i just feel i have to support the green room because this is how i want to eat, this is how i feel good when i eat.. and i want to see more, more, MORE restaurants like this out there.

The Green Room Café
Bishan Park: 1382 Ang Mo Kio Ave 1
Singapore 569931
Tel: 6556 1533
http://www.greenroomcafe.com.sg