Thursday, December 18, 2014

Oceans of Seafood at PasarBella - Oceans of Freshness

Oceans of Seafood has the some of the freshest seafood in Singapore. Period. With that said, there is little reason to read this and simply dash down to the old Turf Club area along Bukit Timah Road this very minute.

Nestled at the entrance to PasarBella, it occupies the largest eatery area there and the place is filled with sights of some of the freshest seafood you can see here.

The seafood selection is air flown twice weekly from US, Japan, UK, Australia and New Zealand.

It is this aspect that ensures that the food here is kept in tip top mint condition. And it shows. When we were there for a tasting, a boston lobster literally leapt from its shelf onto the floor! Yup, alive and very much kicking.

Oceans of Freshness

Clams, crabs, prawns, mussels, oysters. You name it, they have it. And all beautifully presented to the diners. You can elect to just buy the seafood home to cook for yourself, or you can get the well trained staff to cook them on the spot for no extra charge for the months of December 2014 and January 2015.

The styles include both classic Japanese and home styled American comfort food. So expect lots of sashimi and burgers (with a slight twist) to adorn the cooking menu here.

Also, for the duration of this month, there will be a weekly Saturday blue fin tuna cutting ceremony held in the late afternoon. And blue fin tune is really a treat if you can get them.

Blue Fin Tuna

We had the privilege to sample the otoro cut of the blue fin tuna, which is essentially the fatty tummy part of the giant fish.

It was sensational. Dabbed with just a dash of soy and wasabi, the natural sweet flavours of the fish was intoxicating and undeniable. The texture was even more telling with its succulent, moist and almost muscular bite. Amazing.

Fresh Oysters

When the oysters landed on our table, I was totally flabbergasted. Huge, elongated shells filled with brightly coloured flesh of oyster meat, it was a sight to behold.

The oysters were just too good to explain here. A natural taste of the ocean was fully evident and when drizzled with the tiniest hint of tobasco sauce, the beautiful sweet notes of the oyster fragrance filled up every corner of my mouth and begged me for more than just a single indulgence.

Boston Lobster

The almost intimidating looking boston crab had a simple presentation, cooked to a Ferrari red colour and served with two sauces of garlic butter and a dark miso.

The lobster was cooked just about right, and almost slightly overdone. Nevertheless, one cannot deny how good it tasted. And the garlic butter was a revelation. Butter and crustacean is an unbeatable combination, and adding the garlic just enhanced it further. The miso dip had a smoky caramel taste to it, and was good too.

Negitoro Chirasi

The rice bowls were interesting too. Using some of the leftover parts of the blue fin tuna to make some form of tuna tartare, you really need to mix well with the marvellous Hokkaido rice and the pickled ginger to get the full effect.

The rice from Hokkaido, as always, proved to be so good that you can literally eat it on its own without any additional condiments. But coupled with the chopped/minced texture of the blue fin tuna, and a creamy oozy egg on top, and the sweet acidity of the pickled ginger, it turned out to be almost exhilarating as a whole.

There are also some other interesting concoctions on display here, including a slightly underwhelming tuna burger which I did not take to it too well. The sushi selection are quite nicely done, as are the maki rolls. All the other dishes here are competent but not exactly spectacular when compared to the earlier dishes.

But seriously, it is the freshness of the produce that is the main attraction here. With seafood so fresh, it does not need a supreme chef to make it any better.

This is the place to go during this festive season for fresh seafood. Yes, it has heaps of freshness. Oceans of it.

Oceans of Seafood
PasarBella @ The Grandstand Bukit Timah Singapore
200 Turf Club Road #02-06

No comments:

Post a Comment