1-Twenty Six, East Coast Parkway

We managed to secure a seat during restaurant week at 1-Twenty Six on a weekday night. The place was rather empty when we arrived at around 7pm. We fell in love with the lovely ambience with seats facing the sea and a live band playing in the background. It was pretty awesome, if you ask me.

 



Indoor seating



Warmed bread basket



Taste of salmon

The Taste of Salmon trio comprised of Salmon tartare, homemade cured salmon and TWG tea confit salmon, accompanied with a petit salad. I loved the TWG salmon- its soft pink exterior was fork-tender and gentle on the palates, although its name raised a brow because we could not quite make out the TWG flavour.



 Salmon tartare

 

The salmon tartare was served in an accent piece nestled beneath a layer of foam, a refreshing change from the other two components. We enjoyed how the fish was tastefully presented in three different ways and it was definitely a delightful way to begin the meal.



Beef carpaccio

Beef carpaccio comprises of thinly sliced 200 day grain fed Black Angus beef tenderloin, honey mustard dressing, and argugula salad. The sight of the flesh red slices made me hesitate a little, but I have to say that it was a good satisfying salad with quality slices of meat that went well with the accompaniments.



Sea bream

The pan-seared sea bream fillet was served with cauliflower puree and porcini cream sauce. As much as I loved the rich velvet mushroom cream sauce, the fish was rather dry and hard. It is a pity because the sauce and the cauliflower puree was excellent.



Duck breast

 

The Magret duck breast, was roasted rare and served with crushed potatoes, baked polenta, ratatouille and red currant jus. We were rather impressed with the well-excution of the dish- the duck breast was nicely roasted revealing a handsomely browned exterior and a tender juicy rare centre. I thought red currant jus was quite a clever pairing to the red meat.



Coconut mousse, rhum jelly, pineapple rum sorbet

 

We tried both desserts available on the menu, the first was a trio of Coconut mousse and rhum jelly cake served with pineapple rum sorbet. I thought the cake was overly mushy and the flavours were almost non-existent. The pineapple rum sorbet, on the other hand, was quite refreshing.

 

Tiramisu

The Tiramisu presented itself in a rather deconstructed manner, but I enjoyed the crisp espresso croton and rich macadamia ice cream that provided the creamy Tiramisu with quite a lovely finish.

A charming place for dinner, we loved the place.

1-Twenty Six

902E East Coast Parkway

#01-26 Playground @ Big Splash

Tel: 66816464

Mad Nest, East Coast Road

Nested at a former Hong Kong style cafe along East Coast Road, Mad Nest was opened early May this year by a resturanteur who is also the owner of Mad Thai next door. The place stands as a casual bar, eatery and a retail art space, although the latter did not come across very strongly when we visited.

Arriving at Mad Nest in the late evening on a Thursday night, the newly-opened 160-seater restaurant along East Coast Road appeared rather quiety and empty.

Indoor and outdoor seats available

The art installation at the entrance of the cafe was interesting, albeit being confined only to a section of the entrance.

Resemblence of a Nest

Entrance of Mad Nest

The place provided a causal setting with mainly white furniture against the white walls.

There is a bar counter for the Japanese food, and another one for the drinks.

Art pieces

Matching coasters

Menu

The menu boasts an extensive offering of Japanese, Northern Indian and Italian fusion cuisine, together with a Brunch menu that is only available on weekends. It took us some time to plough through the menu before finally deciding to go with Northern Indian food.

Garlic Naan
$3

The Garlic Naan was passable, I found the naan a little too soggy and the fragrance of the garlic did not come across as strong as desired.

Half piece Tandoori Chicken
$10

The Tandoori chicken on the other hand, was a winner. The nicely marinated chicken was tender, succulent and moist and we loved the dish.

Fish Tikka Briyani
$10

The Fish Tikka Briyani was fragrant and complemented the heavily marinated Tandoori chicken with its relatively subtle and light flavours.

Kadai Fish
$13

This dish comprises of fish cubes cooked in garlic, ginger paste with onions, mushrooms, tomatoes, capsicum and spices. The fish was fresh and simiar to the fish in Fish Tikka Briyani, except that it is soaked in the rich conoction of spices. It was flavoursome and only slightly spicy.

A glimpse of other dishes on the menu:
Japanese selection: Volcano Maki ($16), Volcano Ramen ($12), Katsu Curry Rice ($12)
Northen Indian selection: Fish Masala ($13), Butter Chicken ($13)
Italian selection: Chilli Crab pasta ($24), Hae Mee Bique ($26), Aglio Olio ($16)
Brunch Menu: Smoked Salmon & Spinach Eggs Benedict ($16), Streaky Bacon, Chicken Sausage & Eggs on Toast ($18), Jamon Iberico Croque Monsieur ($16).

The service was excellent and attentive to our needs. This place is ideal for a quiet weekday dinner and I believe we will be back to try out the other items on the menu!

Mad Nest

378-380 East Coast Road