Dining Solo

 

It’s just one of those days… I found myself rushing to complete and submit my visa application at the Canadian High Commission, and before I knew it, it was lunch time and I hadn’t made any plans.  I suppose most people would simply just head back home, but I was in the middle of a bustling central business district, surrounded by people happily chattering on their way to lunch.  I thought, heck, I should be going out to a nice meal, on a nice sunny day like today, visa application sorted and all.

Except none of the people I rang could get away at the last minute.  One had a lunch meeting, another was finishing a deadline, another had kids staying home for the Thanksgiving break, and well, the last one was all the way in New Zealand!  I was this close to feeling like a big, sorry loser, when I decided taking my brother’s advice of eating out on my own was probably the lesser “loser” proposition. 

To my surprise, I had the most enjoyable lunch experience on my own.  I found myself at one of my favorite places in Singapore – Dempsey.  My favorite restaurant, Tippling Club, is there, and we’ve celebrated many a happy occasion inside that temple of food.  The day spa I go to is there as well.  Two of my favorite butchers/delicatessens are there, and there’s a good range of restaurants to choose from, should we decide to take people out for a meal, from Jim Thompson (Thai), Longbeach Seafood/Jumbo Seafood Restaurant (chili crabs), House (bistro-style food), Au Petit Salut (French), Margarita’s (Mexican), Prime Society (meat haven) and PS Cafe (cafe with killer desserts).  But today I found myself checking out one of the newer restaurants – Pamplemousse.

A small, elegant restaurant situated in the quieter corner of Dempsey (Block 7), Pamplemousse proudly displays its ingredient inspirations on its giant chalkboard, eliciting an excited smile from me as I wonder if truly, the chefs have tried to create dishes that marry distinct world flavours together.  And were they happy unions or …?

I decided to try their prix fixe lunch menu (at$32++ for three courses).  To test the kitchen, I ordered the frisée salad with lardons and a poached egg enveloped with a crispy crumb crust.  Maybe it’s my head cold, but I found the lardons a little on the bland side, making me wish for a little bit of salt. The  frisée itself looked a little yellow (or I only got the yellow bits on my plate), but still held a good crunch.  I could see the mustard seeds from the dressing, but could not taste them.  The winner is the crumbed egg, perfectly cooked, and the liquid amber yolk was a beautiful addition to the salad.

For the main course, I ordered the Uni Tagliolini, a decadent pasta dish that I would definitely keep going back for.  The creamy “crustacean sauce” was rich without being cloying, and the fresh sea urchin was delicious without any fishy taste or smell.  The surprise was the pork gratons used as a garnish – at first bite I thought I had bitten on some sand, but they provided a good counterpoint to the richness of the dish.  The pasta was perfectly cooked as well, and I would not hesitate to order a dinner portion of this dish for next time.

Lastly, the dessert.  I am a pushover when it comes to panna cotta, and I was very intrigued with the description for this number: red bean jelly, lotus cream, “mooncake” crumble, pandan frozen yoghurt (fresh strawberry slices were used for garnish).  The panna cotta itself was absolutely delicious and I thought it should have stood on its own without the other embellishments.  It was firm but luscious, and the red bean taste was a good surprise.  The pandan yoghurt was a little overpowering for the delicate flavor and texture of the panna cotta itself.  Good on its own, and with the fresh, tart strawberry, and maybe even with the mooncake crumble (which also provided a nice contrast to the velvety panna cotta), but together with the panna cotta, well… it was like your drunk uncle showing up at your ladies’ tea party.

All told, the experience was worthwhile.  The service was impeccable, the setting absolutely lovely, and I actually dug the music.  I could see myself coming back with a few friends and finishing a few bottles of wine to complete a fine meal.  Today, I had to settle for a Pearl of the Orient tea (TWG?), which is what a spontaneous, decadent lunch deserves.

Will I eat out on my own again?  I think most definitely, yes!  But maybe next time I’ll bring a bit of “work” to do so I will feel less guilty about this sudden indulgence.  Oh, speaking of guilt, I actually walked next door to a Pilates studio to sign up for a trial class next week.  After a lunch like that, and with my new-found affection to dining solo, well, working off those calories will help ease my conscience.

Til the next food expedition!

Proud Moments

 

Parenting is never easy.  As a woman, it starts with the nine months of gestation.  You worry about what you are feeding your child through all those weird cravings.  You listen to the “right” kind of music to help stimulate his brain development.  You take walks in the hope the rocking motion will lull him to sleep and make it stop kicking you so hard.

Then you give birth, and all those books and blogs about sleepless nights, endless diaper changes, spit-ups, mastitis, well, they’re all true.  Don’t even get me started with your own personal issues that include weight gain and confidence loss.  Those are real enough, but that’s not the point of this story.

As your child, or in my case, two children grow up, parenting affords you more sleep.  In my case, that was when my youngest turned five and he started sleeping through the night in his own bed.  That meant nine years of sleepwalking excuses are out the window, and I don’t have to walk and look like a zombie during the day.  Getting enough sleep (for the most part) makes you think that parenting does get easier.

Every skill your child learns, like feeding himself, wiping his own bottom, dressing up on his own, preparing his own school bag, setting the table, googling his homework assignment and mercilessly kicking you to the ground in the latest Halo game, well, they all gift you with a sense of pride and amazement – pride that the little man has acquired yet another step closer to independence, and amazement that you were instrumental in some way in his achievement, be it only limited to buying the darned Xbox and controllers.

Our eldest has been a constant source of pride and concern, love and worry, wonder and puzzlement.  He is such an enigma to me, and his unique persona has always challenged the way I show my love as a parent.  He is such a kind-hearted, generous and forgiving boy that we lovingly tease him as the “Dalai Lama.”  A creative thinker with a vivid imagination, his classwork over the years had been pockmarked with meetings with teachers and specialists who remark on his distractibility and genius, and his seeming inability to finish work on time.  I don’t think I can venture a guess as to how many sleepless nights I spent worrying and shedding a tear or two for my son, whom I’ve now cocooned into this image of fragility.  And oh, the self-doubt as a mother! 

My youngest is almost the polar opposite of his brother. He is competitive, prone to melodramatic outbursts (unfortunately, like his mother), outgoing and quite mature for his age. At seven, he acts like a moody teenager, self-conscious yet assertive at the same time. He is a wonderful mix of intelligence, roughness and sweetness, but don't ever tell him he's cute. I worry about totally different things with this young man. He seems so self-assured sometimes it's easy to overlook that he is still a child.

After eleven and a half years, I’ve finally reached a place where I can pull back in respect and watch my eldest son transform himself into a young man, philosophies, quirks, humour, style, tastes coming into his own.  And his little brother is not far behind. It’s always been clear to me that our primary job as parents is stewardship that leads to responsible self-determination (that sounds like it came from a brochure!).  If we teach our kids correctly, then we would’ve equipped them with life skills, a beliefs and value system and hopefully, a world view that makes them live their lives as responsible, caring citizens of the planet.  It sounds like a tall order, but we have 18 years to do it, and fingers crossed they keep coming back to visit.

Proud and prouder moments as a parent are and always will be too numerous, but the real gems to me are those moments when I see my kids shine as their own, as individuals separate from me and my ideas of who I think they are or should be.  It’s when a clever quip comes out of my younger son’s mouth, or when my oldest, who’s normally quite reserved, cracks a funny joke or a witty remark.  It’s when I see my eldest tiptoe into the little one’s room to plant a goodnight kiss on the head and a pat on the back.  It’s when I hear them tell stories about their day that ends with a criticism or an opinion.  It’s when I catch them looking out for each other without being told, when they volunteer to help without being asked, and when they ask me about my day (like, you’re interested in someone else?).

I don’t know if I’ll ever reach the point where I am actually proud of myself as a mother, but dang!  I get sooo happy and full of love for these kids just too many times I feel so lucky!  Jake and Dylan, if you ever get to read this, know that Mom loves you and always will no matter what, and that your Dad and I are soooooo proud of you for just being yourselves!  Thanks for being such great kids! I look forward to your teenage years ;P