Nice Dinner to Celebrate my 61st - Frieda at Capitol Piazza.

From left, Fried Fish, Bread Pudding,Bratwurst and Assorted Sausages,Pork Knuckle,Grilled Prawn,Grilled Chicken. 

Guten Apetit ! as they say in Deutschland. 

Yesterday, our son Noel bought us dinner at Frieda Restaurant at Capitol Piazza. We ordered the meter long Shnitzel platter which is really value for money as it had the following meats, which are staples of German cuisine.

It was an early birthday dinner for me, and a lovely memory which my wife and I will treasure for years to come :

    Mains

1. Bratwurst, pork cheese and herb cheese sausages

2. Pork Knuckle (Deep Fried)

3. Fried Fish (Dory)

4. Grilled King Prawns 

5. Grilled Chicken 

6. Bread Pudding

Sides

1. Mashed potatoes

2. Salted and Plain Pretzel

3. Sourkraut

My rating 

Food

Pretty awesome meat platter with the pork knuckle done so well.     4.8  / 5

Grilled Prawns were really fresh and the bratwurst sausages were top.  

I had a glass of Merlot which was average. 

Should have tried their beers, which they have like 30 or so different kinds. 

Service

Attentive and friendly                                                                          4.5  /  5

Ambience 

Where we say, its like an open beer hall like in Munich Germany.     4.5 / 5

Pacing                                                                                                 3.5 / 5

We waited almost 30 minutes for the food to come, which was surprising that we were practically the last to arrive at around 8.15. 

The waiter gave us some blackbread to munch though it wasn't very tasty.

Price 

The meter long (in fact it looked like 1.2m) set was a steal at $108 +++ for 3 pax

We in fact even dar bao the half pork knuckle and the 

Total for the night (food and 1 glass wine)  : $ 148.  : 

Overall  : 4.375    (Above Average).

Would I go back there again ?  

Certainly. 

Its good with a very friendly vibe to it and the food is not too expensive and (albeit) a little salty, 

   

7 (+1) Rules of Life ; Funny Inspirational Quotes from the Internet which are true

With my friend Tom on 25th Nov 23

1. Let it Go. 

    Never ruin a good today by thinking about a bad yesterday.

2. Ignore them (Haters, Criticizers)

   Yes and No. Listen and Act on Good Wise Advice

   Don't listen to other people, live a life that's enpowering to you.

3. Give it Time

   Time heals everything.

   Be patient with yourself. Growth takes time and setbacks are natural part of  

   the  process.

   The lessons learnt from past mistakes become the guiding lights for the future.

4. Don't Compare

    The person you are trying to beat is the person you were yesterday.

5. Stay Calm

    You know that you don't have everyting figured out and in time you will get there.

6. It's on You

    Don't let others dictate what your life is. Give it your all. 

    Do what you are passionate about and give it your ALL.

7. Smile

    Be grateful for what you have and strive to get better with each        passing  day. 

8. Only you know if you are a true success or Not  (Bonus)

    Let others judge you. You can't help those other people. 

    But you can help yourself. 

    > Stay Positive

    > Be Resilient 

Asador - Joo Chiat Place - Good Spanish Food in Joo Chiat Place ; Pricey

Yesterday, my family had a sumptuous dinner at Asador which is located at  Joo Chiat Place (off Still Road). The streetside parking nearby is plentiful even for a weekend, and the restaurant occupies 2 shophouse units along Joo Chiat Place, which is just beside Everitt Road and Joo Chiat Road. All in all, there were more misses than hits, though I must say that the booking and the front of restaurant staff were excellent. Kudos to the team.  

We ordered the following and I put up the pictures which I felt were above average in flavour. 

Sourdough bread with smoked butter 

Excellent starter. The bread was piping hot just out of the oven and the butter was soft to the knife. Superb.     

9 / 10  

Salmorejo 

Salmorejo 

San Marzan tomatoes with preserved tuna and smoked burratina 

(cream cheese) 

The texture and the flavour were just nice and while the dish wasn't piping hot, it was the tuna with the burratina which were a nice complement to the San Marzan cherry tomatoes. Savoury but not sour nor spicy. It was perfect for using the sourdough bread to mop up the gravy. 

Very good.

8.5 / 10  

Costillar de Ternera

Costillar de Ternera  

Grilled Angus Beef Short Ribs 

This was done sous vide and then grilled. I felt the beef ribs to be too tender at first bite. There was a certain  softness to the texture gain which is unusual for beef. Hence again both my wife and son didn't take to this dish. The taste was rather sweet and again rather odd to our palette which normally associates Wagyu beef to a certain texture (more robust) and flavour (charred or smoky). 

Average 

7 / 10

Almejas 

Almejas

Japanese Clams with Basque Salsa Verde

This was a rather odd dish, there was an overpowering spicy flavour to the clam meat, the texture was good - not rubbery just right in terms of softness and chewiness. The Salsa Verde tasted very much like the Thai green curry gravy. I liked it though my wife and son didn't

Good 

7.5 / 10

Calamar 

Calamar 

Palamos squid with caramelised onions 

Another sous vide dish. The squid was too soft and not chewy enough. The caramalised onions gave off a too sweet for my liking flavour. In the end, I was eating the squid topped off with the Salsa Verde Thai style gravy.

Ordinary 

5 / 10 

We had a couple more dishes, one was the Huevos Rotos (frites) which was totally just carbo loading to fill the tummy. The other was the smoked Sazerac or eggplant which was very sweet and not worth writing home about.

Huevos Rotos 

Thick Cut Fries, Runny Egg and Chorizos 

(Street Food) 

Verdict ?

Good

Price 

Expensive  ($245 for 3 pax) 

Service 

Very Good  (very attentive) 

Location

Off the Beaten Track  (OK for central folks like us, even 20 minutes drive is far away!)

Visit Again ?

Not Likely - nothing exceptional to bring us all the way to Joo Chiat. 

• Asador Singapore
• 52 Joo Chiat Place
• S'pore 427775 

A Retirement Plan ?

With the Relief of Ramses II at Luxor in 2009 

 A smart friend once gave me this piece of advice. If it is getting so expensive to live comfortably in Singapore,perhaps it might be better to 

a) rent out one's apartment or HDB unit (after the 5 year MOP period) - that would eaily fetch S$3,000 upwards to perhaps $6,000 (if it is a 5 roomer Bishan unit)

b) Move the base of operations, if one is able to do so, with a nimble business such as IT cybersecurity, to a lower cost country (Malaysia or Thailand come to mind).

With the rental income of say $4,000 - that translates to a whopping RM 14,000 or Thai Baht 100,000.

He and his family can rent a very decent condominium in Malaysia fo RM 3,000 or THB 25,000 and thus leaving them with RM 11,000 or THB 75,000 for the other living expenses.

At the end of the day, he can easily save S$ 1000 to $1,500 per month for his retirement income.

That is, if he is still mobile and relatively healthy.

Great idea or just a Pipe dream ??