J's

When we first started the blog not too long ago (like 2 years ago lah!), we received a message inviting us to a newly Halal-certified restaurant located at Purvis Street. And that place was J's.

We were so busy with work and one thing always leads to another and we never did get to visit J's.
Every now and then we'd hear someone mention J's or we'd read about it somewhere online and we were sure we'd eventually be lucky enough to visit. And finally the day had come. And we didn't come down as invited guests mind you. We visited a normal diners to see if we would have the experience we had been hoping for almost 2 years in the making.

Boy oh boy did I hope this was a good meal!

Poppers ($17.00)

So we started off with something to whet our appetites and what better than some Jalapeño Poppers!
This is a classic appetizer and a great snack on its own actually. Jalapeño peppers are stuffed with mozzarella cheese, breaded and deep fried!

Served with a small salad and also some salsa and guacamole to go along.
And how does the inside look like?

Chef's Salad ($18.00)

Something else to start with is the Chef's Salad.
This is definitely one to share with a group because as you can see it's pretty.. errr... vast!

It has the usual mix of green leaves, tomatoes, onions, baby radishes (which were a nice touch), avocado and some pretty nice roasted chicken. Also coming along is a sesame dressing which you can choose to drizzle over or just simply leave it out depending on your tastes.

Have I mentioned this one is definitely for sharing?

Beef Fajitas ($33.00)

Mein Brudder went for the Beef Fajitas (you could also choose the chicken if you'd like) which is served up with onions, peppers on a sizzling hot plate.

The only other place we've had Fajitas is at Hard Rock Cafe when we visit across the Causeway and we hold that as the standard because, well, we don't have anything else to compare with. Well both are served on a hot plate and even though it comes with some peppers, I'd say that the Fajitas here look kinda messy to be honest.

 

The Fajitas of course some with some accompanying tortillas, guacamole, salsa, sour cream and cheese to tuck in and pack up before you gobble down.

But if you're a meat lover than this is it! Wish they'd have an option to have a mix of meats though.

Sirloin of Beef ($32.00)

Another choice for all you meat lovers is the Sirloin of Beef. 180gms of pure meat for you served with some garlic mashed potatoes and accompanying veggies.

The feedback on this is that it's pretty standard but a real pity that again we don't get the correct doneness that we asked for. Does the picture above look like medium-well to you? Quite disappointing considering the price you pay.

Catch of the Day ($27.00)

A departure from all the meat perhaps? Then you might want to try the Catch of the Day!
When we visited, it happened to be the seabass which was cooked perfectly.

My mum really seemed to enjoy this (and she's REALLY picky about her fish) so that means it must have been good right? They even try to dress up the plate quite creatively but I guess in the end the fish had better be nice and thankfully this time it seems like it was.

Braised Lamb Shank ($33.00)

I could have gone for the Adobo Chicken or the Paella but hey I'm the meat guy o I went for the Braised Lamb Shank because I have a soft spot for slow-cooked meats.

Pretty generous lamb shank rests on a bed of parmesan mashed potatoes and dressed up with some simple garnishes so you can enjoy the meat and the braised flavour that comes along. And as you can see the meat is pretty tender.

And there was absolutely no gamey 'lamby' taste. How can I confirm that? Mein Bruder hates lamb and mutton because of the smell/taste but even he took a few bites of this dish!

And since it was a celebration, we decided to finish off with some desserts because there some pretty interesting ones on the menu that we wouldn't mind trying.

Bocas Negras ($12.00)

This was a warm chocolate lava cake with "edible soil" (yes the menu actually says that), citrus espuma and  chocolate ice-cream. I guess this is one of those desserts where you get a little of everything. You get your dose of chocolate with some citrus tang and even the chance to try something innovative.

So what exactly is the "edible soil"?

"Edible Soil"

We were son intrigued that we literally asked the staff whether this was really soil?
Well, sorry to burst your bubble kiddos - it's a peanut-based crush mixture. Oh well. It's innovative I'll definitely give it that much!

And how was the lava cake?

Churros with Bananas & Mangoes ($12.00)

Well we saw Churros and you know we simply can't resist right?
And what's more - it's paired with Mascarpone!!

Okay so it's actually a Mascarpone sabayon mixture that's infused with a little coconut flavour (that we actually couldn't detect). Inside the jar, you'll find a delicious mix of salted caramel bananas and sweet fresh mangoes while some berries line the top of the mixture.

This was really the highlight of the dish to us. Maybe we love cheese and all the more when it's used in a dessert but this was simply a delight and (believe it or not) the best thing I had that evening.

Unfortunately the Churros themselves didn't fare so well...
I'm not sure if maybe it's because they were too thick or something but the insides were not really cooked through properly... Check out the picture below... That's just dough...

We also had some of the specialty drinks aka J's Signature Drinks that evening to wash our meal down. You could choose from their Sodas or even some soft drink but if a place has 'Siganture' drinks then you know you have to try them right?

Salty Lime ($8.00)

I was the hero and went for the Salty Lime which is fashioned like a margarita-styled beverage complete with salt around the rim so you get the 'salty' part whenever you take a sip. And boy oh boy was this drink living up to its name because the 'lime' was really sour too!

I guess this was something refreshing and helped to awaken my tastebuds but I'd recommend this only if you love sour things.

Lychee Cooler ($8.00)

My Darling Wife went with the safe choice known as the Lychee Cooler. Quite a safe bet.
Fruit punch gone fizzy and you have some lychees in there too.

It's so nice that Mein Bruder is already having a go in the picture LOL

Cuban Mint ($8.00)

And last but definitely not least was the Cuban Mint which turned out to be pretty much everyone's favourite that evening.

This one is style after the Mojito and has a fresh flavour with lime and some mint. It's not as sour as the Salty Lime so it's nice and easy on the palate but you'll have to accept the fact that it comes in a pretty small glass.

Adam's Verdict:
Poppers 3.5/5 -- Chef's Salad 3/5 -- Beef Fajitas 3/5 -- Catch of the Day 2.5/5
Braised Lamb Shank 3.5/5 -- Bocas Negras 2.5/5 -- Churros with Bananas & Mangoes 3.5/5

Maryah's Verdict:
Poppers 2.5/5 -- Chef's Salad 3/5 -- Sirloin of Beef 2/5 -- Bocas Negras 3/5
Churros with Bananas & Mangoes 2.5/5

Azlan's Verdict:
Poppers 2.5/5 -- Chef's Salad 4/5 -- Beef Fajitas 4/5 -- Sirloin of Beef 3/5 
Catch of the Day 4/5 -- Braised Lamb Shank 4/5 -- Bocas Negras 4/5
Churros with Bananas & Mangoes 2/5

Dad's Verdict:
Poppers 3/5 -- Chef's Salad 3.5/5 -- Sirloin of Beef 3/5 -- Catch of the Day 3/5
Braised Lamb Shank 4/5 -- Churros with Bananas & Mangoes 1/5

Mum's Verdict:
Poppers 3/5 -- Chef's Salad 4/5 -- Sirloin of Beef 3.5/5 -- Catch of the Day 4/5
Braised Lamb Shank 3.5/5 -- Churros with Bananas & Mangoes 2/5

Leslie's Verdict:
Chef's Salad 3.5/5 -- Beef Fajitas 3.5/5 -- Sirloin of Beef 2/5 -- Catch of the Day 4/5
Braised Lamb Shank 2/5 -- Bocas Negras 3.5/5 -- Churros with Bananas & Mangoes 3/5

One thing I notice about J's Restaurant is that it does not have a very wide selection of food. you could probably go through the whole menu in 2-3 visits but that is not necessarily a bad thing. Perhaps J's is taking the stance that they serve only a limited selection but these are dishes that they do extremely well.

And so they should especially since the dishes are priced on the higher side than most.
But you do get quality ingredients for the most part. Now, if only they could cook the steak the wat we asked... Hmmmm.... Well at least the staff were very nice.

J's Restaurant

7 Purvis Street #01-01

Tel: +65 6887 4787
www.dineatjs.com

Operating Hours:
Lunch
12.00pm to 2.00pm Mondays-Friday, Sundays
(No Lunch on Saturdays)

Dinner
6.30pm to 10.00pm Mondays - Thursdays
6.30pm to 10.30pm Fridays - Saturdays
6.30pm to 10.30pm Sundays

Le Steak

So Le Steak has been around for quite awhile but I guess we never got around to visiting. I mean, we've always been excited about visiting but I guess maybe the location kept making us put it off over and over again. I remember someone mentioning about visiting Le Steak when it first opened but only now am I getting the chance to visit with some friends.

Le Steak was opened by Chef Amri and the aim appears to be simple - a place where we can go to get some delicious steaks (among other things).

Le Steak offers Prime cuts of steak including USDA Prime Grade Sirloin, USDA Prime Grade Ribeye and also some very nice Australian Wagyu. They also have other dishes to offer including lamb, veal, chicken, pasta and even some burgers but I'll bet most people are here to enjoy the steak.

Surprisingly, I was drawn to order something else other than the steak that evening...

Braised Short Ribs ($33.00)

As always, I'm a sucker when it comes to something braised. Be it Lamb Shank (which they also have by the way) or in this case - Short Ribs.

Le Steak's Braised Short Rib rests on a bed of mashed potatoes and comes with a side of vegetables.
Just nice for you to scoop on some potatoes and veggies as you dig into the tender meat.
And just how tender exactly are we talking about here?

I'm not sure how long they braised the meat for but it was definitely really tender.
You could just peel back the meat with a fork!

The gravy itself is your typical tomato and spices mix. I didn't really find it very unique but it was definitely very flavourful and goes well with your meat and potatoes.

But we cannot survive on meat and potatoes alone now can we??
Well, technically we can but I ordered dessert nonetheless :P

Lemon Curd Tart ($4.90)

They have options like Waffles with Ice Cream, Creme Brulee and Chocolate Lava Cake but I simply could not resist the temptation of the Lemon Curd!!

It's basically a chocolate tart with lemon curd filling with a cream topping which they flambe. Finish that off with some strawberry syrup to give it a nice and sharp tart contrast.

Oooooooohh look at that lemon curd!
I actually really enjoyed my dessert (although I heard the Creme Brulee was really excellent) and I feel it's actually very very worth the price you pay.

This is definitely something to consider if you have a sweet tooth like me!

Adam's Verdict:
Braised Short Ribs 3/5 -- Lemon Curd Tart 4/5

So many more things to try on the Le Steak menu. STEAK STEAK STEAK!!
They even have fresh Oysters, Mussels and even Caviar on weekends!

But something that has caught my attention is a 200-day aged Angus Prime Rib. But that's like an 800gm-1kg serving so I think I might have to find some fellow carnivores before I order that!!

Le Steak

248 Jalan Kayu

Tel: 65563588
www.lesteak.com.sg

Operating Hours:
3.00pm til 11.00pm (Mondays to Fridays)
12.00pm til Midnight (Saturdays & PH Eve)
12.00pm til 11.00pm (Sundays and PH)