Stuff to eat. Mostly around St. Louis.

Spencer 7/23/15 Spencer 7/23/15

Shinji by Kanesaka

A stark white colonial complex stands in the center of Singapore's downtown, surrounded by modern monoliths and heavily trafficked roads. The Raffles Hotel, built in 1887, is one of the world's finest and remains the gold standard for Singapore - if you're visiting and looking to spend $700+ a night, look here, not the Marina Bay Sands. Raffles also seems to be the inspiration for every Singaporean hotel that came after it: construct a beautiful building with fantastically modern accommodations, then fill the empty spaces with high-end stores, fine dining, and lush landscaping. Walking into the lobby is a bit like the first time you see The Grand Budapest Hotel's interior; you get transported to another time and another place. And if you're not a guest, like me, you get transported back outside.

Gold Elevator at The Raffles Hotel Singapore

Courtyard at The Raffles Hotel Singapore

Gift Shop at The Raffles Hotel Singapore

Ice Cream Cart at The Raffles Hotel Singapore

I'm hesitant to recommend this, but if you visit Singapore, go to The Long Bar the hotel. The Long Bar is most definitely a tourist trap - the people you see in there are more than likely the same people who will be dining at the Clarke Quay Hooter's that night - but it has a very cool Malaysian plantation design to it. This is the place where the sickly sweet Singapore Sling was invented, but that doesn't make it any better. I'd rather stop in for a beer or bourbon than get a $30 cocktail that tastes like hummingbird food.

Directory at The Raffles Hotel Singapore

Choosing where to spend my limited meals in Singapore is a challenge; this is a city with 10 fine-dining establishments on the Asia's 50 Best Restaurants list, plus an insurmountable number of wonderful local restaurants and hawker stands. I've agonized over menus, my mind a barrage of haute cuisine and fine ingredients.

Shinji by Kanesaka at The Raffles Hotel Singapore

The first of my splurge meals was at Shinji by Kanesaka at Raffles. Shinji is the Singapore outpost of Shinji Kanesaka's 2-Michelin starred Tokyo restaurant. Kanesaka's executive chef is Koichiro Oshino; I was lucky enough to have him as my chef during my meal there.

A little too confident in my ability to cope with the Singapore heat, I arrived at Shinji drenched in sweat, dehydrated, and possibly suffering from a little heat stroke. Walking through the lattice door into the restaurant - which is just a small room with a bar wrapping around the 3 sushi chefs - felt like something out of a movie. As the door slid closed behind me, the oppressive heat, the bustle of the city, the stark white walls of the colonial hotel, dissipated. Within 5 minutes I was transferred from 2015 Singapore to early-1900's luxury to a cozy Tokyo restaurant.

I sat between Oshino-san and another sushi chef, watching them prepare for service as I cooled down. I originally intended to get the Tsuki lunch set (12 pieces, $125), but I ended up going with the Hana (9 pieces, $75) due to my internal organs shutting down.

Daikon and Seaweed at Shinji by Kanesaka

The meal began in near total silence, as other diners had not yet arrived. Oshino-san welcomed me, asked me if there was anything I didn't eat (no), and we began. I was given a bowl of thinly sliced daikon (radish) dressed with a ginger sauce and seaweed in a light sesame sauce. A simple starter and palate cleanser.

My descriptions for the sushi itself will be minimal. Shinji's focus is on balance, harmony, and honoring the ingredients. We didn't speak much during the meal; it was more like watching a movie or play than anything else. For many of the dishes, it's simply a piece of fish dabbed with soy.

Something that sets apart a great sushi place from the average is the rice. This cannot be emphasized enough. The slight vinegar flavor, the perfect temperature and texture; it was the best sushi rice I can remember eating anywhere. The more obvious difference is the quality of fish, all of which is picked by Kanesaka himself at the Tsukiji fish market in Tokyo, then shipped to Singapore.

The first piece of sushi was Suzuki (sea bass), followed by Ika (squid). The squid was cut so thinly you could see the dab of wasabi through it. When editing the photos, I had to lower the white level of the squid - it was so white, it nearly disappeared over the plate and rice.

The most beautiful piece of the meal goes to the Chu-toro (medium fatty tuna), though the otoro (fatty tuna), the most highly-sought after piece of tuna, trumped it in flavor. It melts in your mouth like butter.

Kuruma ebi (Japanese Tiger prawn) made a striking appearance on the plate, but was my least favorite piece. I couldn't discern anything particularly special about it; I would have greatly preferred uni. The negitoro (tuna with spring onion), on the other hand, may have been the bite of the night. The fatty tuna was chopped and tossed with thin slices of onion, creating a balance of soft and crisp, fatty and sharp.

Continuing with the tuna theme was marinated maguro (tuna), a ruby cut of fish that had been marinated in soy.

Anago (saltwater eel), compared to unagi, is fishier, the texture more fragile and flakey. I would have preferred uni. I'm really sad I didn't get uni. After the anago came Aji (horse mackerel) and Suimono (clear soup). My body was still cooling down at this point, so I didn't eat much of the hot soup

My last piece of sushi was tekka maki, a simple tuna roll. It was served with pickles and, without question, the best tamago (egg) I've ever had. Unlike the more traditional tightly folded tamago, this was an egg custard that had been set. One of the goals I'm setting for myself is figuring out how to recreate it; it had enough sweetness and creaminess that it would be paired with a dessert.

The meal closed with a dessert that, like the sushi, appeared simple, but packed a wallop. The pumpkin pudding was incredible. The pudding itself was a mix of vanilla and pumpkin, topped with toasted pumpkin seeds and a sweet pumpkin sauce. At the base was pureed pumpkin.

The meal was sushi at its purest, but this was one of those that I'll remember more for the experience than the food. There's no doubt the sushi is world class, it's just that I want more complexity when I eat. That's why I love Niche, Sidney Street Cafe, and Publico back in St. Louis; I like to get a plate that makes me wonder "how did they do that?" or "how did they think of that?" For me to fully enjoy Shinji by Kanesaka and to fantasize about going back would require me to do the $250 omakase, I think. Still, I'm glad I went.

This restaurant has moved.

Shinji By Kanesaka

#02-20 Raffles Hotel

1 Beach Road

Singapore 189673

+65 6338 6131

Spencer 6/22/15 Spencer 6/22/15

Chris Bailey's Thieves in the Night

If I were a man of wealth and fame, I would bestow the honor of being my personal chef onto Chris Bailey. You may recall when he came to St. Louis in late 2014 as the harbinger of Dinner Lab. His modern interpretations of East Asian cuisine resonated with me deeply - I remember thinking to myself that this is the kind of food I want to eat everyday. The flavors were bold, the plating was elegant, and the creativity kept things interesting throughout the meal. What stood out the most to me was this sense that through the food, I was gaining an understanding of Chris' personality. There was a clear, singular vision to the meal that left me wanting more. Chris and I kept in touch after his Dinner Lab and when he asked me about returning to St. Louis a few months ago, I pointed him in the direction of Hammer & Hand's Silk Rodeo series. Conversations were had, decisions were made, and Chris Bailey made his grand return to St. Louis to present his "Thieves In The Night" dinner.

Not to put St. Louis down, but I was surprised that Chris wanted to come back here. The guy splits his time between Hawaii and Portland, Oregon. Why come back to St. Louis?

I spent so little time in the Midwest in general—I grew up in Hawaii and lived in Portland, Oregon—that it was refreshing to be in a city like St. Louis. And I’ve had really great conversations with industry folks here. It’s great to see that shared passion to keep pushing food and drink into the national conversation. There were so many places I had yet to experience that I knew I wanted to come back to St Louis at least once before I returned to Hawaii to focus on the next phase of my career.

I asked Chris what the best thing he'd eaten in St. Louis had been, even though I knew the answer.

Fork and Stix’s khao soi. Hands down. I have yet to try Imo’s pizza; I feel like I’m missing out on a cultural experience.

Seating at Chris Bailey's Hammer & Hand Dinner

Tables at Chris Bailey's Hammer & Hand Dinner

Menu at Chris Bailey's Hammer & Hand Dinner

Rather than do the usual style of write up, I've asked Chris to breakdown the inspiration for each of his courses. Chris obliged, partially because he's a nice guy, and partially because I told him if he didn't, I'd tell everyone he was a garbage chef serving up garbage food. I'm like the Tony Soprano of food bloggers.

First Course: Wakame cured snapper | miso/strawberries | shaved bottarga

Every gathering we hosted in Hawaii had a sashimi tray. No questions asked. It was the centerpiece to the table, the first thing you’d notice walking in. I wanted to start this meal in similar fashion, offering something simple that said: “Welcome. Now get ready to eat.”

Second Course: Chilled broccolini | smoked yogurt | ikura | licorice root ponzu | everything bagel seasoning

Pairing vegetables with unexpected flavors is something I’ve long been fond of. Broccolini was a fun canvas to work with. I steeped ponzu with licorice root to extract those great anise-y flavors. The broccolini was then topped with dollops of smoked yogurt with cardamom, and a mix of seeds, onion and garlic flake for crunch. Then salmon roe to finish; I absolutely love that oceanic burst. It’s the kind of dish you need to swirl together until it’s an ugly mess for maximum effect.

Chef Chris Bailey's Broccolini and Ikura

Third Course: Shrimp fat curry | puff | whipped coconut milk

I love including a curry course in my menus. My mother often ate her curries with petai (stinky) beans, whole prawns and a fat piece of frybread she’d pick up from Honolulu’s Chinatown that morning.

This version was as much homage to that dish as it was a nod to the Dinner Lab I did in St. Louis last September, which featured a milder version of this dish. Here I fried the curry paste with oil infused with shrimp shells. The shrimp meat was poached in clarified butter then tossed into the curry with fresh beans. There was a hunk of fried puff pastry to sop up all the sauce.

Fourth Course: Pork jowl | chicken fat rice | jaew sauce | cilantro/peanut

I wanted a dish that was unabashedly meat: rich, unctuous and rustic. For the September Dinner Lab we served a whole trout stuffed with pork sausage dressed with Golden Mountain sauce. Similar line of thinking here: pork jowls were marinated in fermented black bean and onion paste and cooked sous vide for 24 hours. We seared off slabs of it and served it with tamarind-heavy sauce, a cilantro and peanut relish and shared bowl of chicken fat rice. Definitely not light fare.

Dessert: Khanom mor gang | bird chile ice cream | white peach

I’ve been on a parfait kick lately. I’ve seen them around Tokyo and Hawaii. There’s a great place in Seattle called Trove that has a walk-up counter serving them. There’s something satisfying about digging through the different strata, getting different flavors and textures with every spoonful.

The base of the dish is coconut custard thickened with mung bean. Atop that was an anise sable crumble followed by macerated white peach. It’s finished with a pandan and Thai chile ice cream for a lingering heat. It’s basically Thailand in a cup.

Editor's Note: This is the 2nd best dessert I had this year. Or maybe the 1st. Time will tell.

While there were elements I liked more than others (the pork jowl was far too fatty for me), the meal reaffirmed my belief that Chris is a master of curries and desserts. His curries manage to have this extra umph - this deep flavor you can't place. The desserts he's made sound simple - an ice cream sandwich and a parfait - but he's balancing a lot of unique flavors at once. Mung bean, bird's eye chiles, and white peaches? Black sesame, coconut kaya jam, candied cilantro? That's some Chopped level shit. Let's hope he makes his way back to St. Louis again.

Hammer and Hand Imports

2714 Lafayette Ave

St. Louis, MO 63104

(314) 932-1313

Spencer 2/19/15 Spencer 2/19/15

Mai Lee

Here we are with another edition of Whiskey & Soba goes to Mai Lee, St. Louis' best Vietnamese restaurant, and tries stuff he's never had before.

Things kicked off with a top secret off the menu item: salt and pepper frog legs. Owner Qui Tran knows my affinity for all things with their salt and pepper dipping sauce - you must try the S&P calamari, soft shell crab, and/or shrimp - so when he asked if we'd be down for S&P frog legs, the answer was a resounding yes. Don't fear the frog legs. They taste just like chicken. If I blindfolded you like we were in 50 Shades of Grey and fed you bites of chicken and frog, you'd never know the difference.

Forget about the French-influenced Vietnamese dishes - give me more of these Jewish-Vietnamese dishes! This is a Southeast Asian latke. The #50 Banh Tom Chien is made of shredded sweet potato is wrapped around shrimp then deep fried. Like most Southeast Asian fried dishes, it comes with lettuce to wrap around it. That way you can pretend it's not bad for you!

I always poll Twitter before I head to Mai Lee since everyone has different favorites. One of the more intriguing recommendations was for #145 Dau Hu Sot Ca, a vegetable and tofu stir fry served in a tomato sauce. Tomato sauce? Vietnamese restaurant? I was hesitant about ordering this, but Qui assured me it was good and, as usual, he was right. This is killer. I've never had another Asian dish with a similar sauce.

You've seen this off the menu special in previous Mai Lee posts: it's the seafood charred rice. Get it.

#121 Tom Rang Muoi is a dish that would be perfect after a long night of drinking. Shrimp are stir fried with butter, garlic, onions, and scrambled eggs. It may sound strange and may not be the prettiest dish, but it is addictive.

A friend and Mai Lee expert insisted (in the same way Tony Soprano "insisted") that I try the often overlooked Chinese menu, so I picked General Tso's Chicken. This was the last plate to arrive at the table but that didn't stop it from being swallowed up instantly. The quality is much higher than your typical American Chinese restaurant, which is to be expected, and it has these monster slices of ginger in it. I come from a long line of ginger fiends, so that definitely gave this dish some bonus points.

Mai Lee. It's the best.

Mai Lee

8396 Musick Memorial Dr

St. Louis, MO 63144

314.645.2835