Fish & Lamb Shoulder at Ummi

The friends took us out to mark the husband's birthday. Opted for UMMI because they know we would love the hummus and grilled items. We have always passed by but never went in because we hadn't rustled up a table of four to share the calories. Tonight was great. 

UMMI has quite an extensive menu. Opted for a few starters in the form of labneh, hummus with lentils (they have it with lamb and beef too), baba ganoush, fried eggplants with chickpeas, and hazelnut chickpea falafel. Added on a portion of batata harra (crispy potatoes tossed in garlic, chilli and coriander). These came with piping hot flatbread. It's delicious. We all eyed the lamb tartare (frakeh nayeh), but none of our stomachs felt adventurous tonight. That would have to wait till our next visit.  

Then we moved on to mains of a six-hour slow-cooked very tender lamb shoulder on minced lamb rice, a superbly delicious grilled sea bream and instead of half a chicken, we opted for the smaller and more manageable option in the form of shish tawook marinated with yoghurt and spices. Mains were fabulous. 

We got to dessert, yes. This table is full of dessert fiends. There was piping hot mint tea (which I skipped). Along came two plates. There were a kunefe, and I honestly couldn't recall what on earth the other dessert was; it might have been a rice pudding since there was the strongest flavor of rose syrup in it. You know how much I dislike rose-anything. The kunefe was GOOD — the pistachios crumbled atop were delicious, the rose syrup used was hidden by the sweet cheese, I'll take that.

Wang Wen (惘聞) at the Esplanade Annexe Studio

Beijing post-rock band Wang Wen (惘闻) had to postpone their show in Singapore in early March to 29 March. I was relieved that they made it to town. It was a 5pm show at the Esplanade Annexe Studio.

The band's charted their beginnings in Dalian in 1999, and while the line-up doesn't have their original drummer and the cellist, the band is still pretty much together actively making music and playing shows. I've been quite a fan of their music since years ago. I didn't make it to their November 2018 show in Singapore when they did a tour for 'Invisible City'/'看不见的城市' (2018). I'm glad to have watched them today.

Of course I didn't know all the songs they played. I had to reference the setlist against my videos and memories. Heh. 'Mail from the River'/ '河边的来信'('Invisible City'/‘看不见的城市’, 2018) and a very early ‘Posthouse’/'驿站' ('7 Objects in Another Infinite Space'/'另一个无限空间里的七个物件' 2007). They played 'Silenced Dalian'/'大连、勿语' ('Invisible City'/'看不见的城市' 2018) too. I thought that title is not quite apt in its translated English. The original Chinese more or less meant that the band feels so much about Dalian, their hometown, that they have no words for it. It doesn't refer to a city that has been silenced by... ... something political or governmental policies or a natural disaster or tragedy. 

They played a really long set today. Wow. The show lasted for two hours! With two songs as encore — 'Rain Watcher'/'观雨者' ('0.7' 2012) and 'Shut Up and Play'/'敢问路在何方' ('100,000 Whys'/'十万个为什么' 2020). 'Rain Watcher' is quite representative of the band's musical style — this track is also included in the band's 25th-anniversary live collection 'All Yesterday's Parties'/'昨日的聚会' (February 2024).

That was quite a sentimental show for me. Luckily I didn't bother to make any reservations for dinner and settled for something easy. Otherwise it would have been quite a bummer to have to miss the encore and rush to dinner. 

The Husband is 51

The husband turned 51. He spent his 50th milestone year doing loads of things he loves — playing music, making music, watching gigs and ermm sorting out his Sonos set-up at home and rearranging speakers, and new speakers and a soundbar. 

This year, he's into this program whereby Claude is his gym trainer. I took a look at the program and thought it okay. Claude's pretty detailed that way. No real risk of rhabdo as long as he doesn't go too heavy or stress the heart too much with crazy cardio. He also decided to get his medical check-up and blood tests in order. He's meant to do this annually but he has skipped it for two years in a row. So he ought to get it done.

On his birthday, he still wanted to take Choya out to play. So we went to East Coast for the Smol Girl to get a sprint in. Oh, sprinted she did! When we dropped that leash, she didn't just run around on the beach. She also ran out of our sight, rounded by Starbucks and bounded back, TWICE. Tsk tsk. She was so so thrilled!

Then Choya and I took him to Joo Chiat to get his birthday gift — a pair of weightlifting shoes (brought in by Strength Yard). He is squatting 120kg on his 85-kg frame. And his ankles don't have the mobility needed to squat lower, and his knees need some cushioning. He could still raise his heels with weight plates. But an additional pair of proper shoes for squats and deadlifts would be nice.

Then we took him to lunch at Asador. The restaurant is sizzling HOT. There are only two outdoor tables (with high chairs), and at this angle, they face the sun, so go at 1pm if you can. I had to wear my cap all the way since the sun's rays hit full on. The overhead awning doesn't block off the sun. There are no wall or ceiling fans, please bring your own. 

Asador's set lunch menu is always easy. There's the week day version, and today's weekend set menu had two appetizers of scallops with pesto and oysters. Of course the husband added on anchovies on toast. He loves anchovies and sardines. Next time we'll come back to have its beef tartare and other items. Asador's grilled items and flavors appeal to our tastebuds.

It was humid and warm, and we drove. So we couldn't do a bottle of wine. We simply did a glass each. A refreshing and light white. We both opted for the a main of grilled sea bream with orzo, clams and fried leeks. Then there was dessert. We only wanted one portion. It came in the form of a Basque cheesecake with quince ice-cream. I liked that ice-cream loads!