18th Month Anniversary: Oscar's - Oyster Wars

13th March 2009

Down the stretch we walked, keeping an eye out for justification of avoiding the above-ground lots; the customary Lamborghini and other manner of show-off cars. Yet strangely, the lots were free of any form of these trophies, and only packed to the brim with the more consumer-friendly picks.

Perhaps a reflection to the night's agenda, a simple and honest celebration that was planned without any hidden romantic agenda, but sprinkled with a touch of deliberate-ness to create a "blast from the past."

Dress in the exact same attire from a year back as an innuendo-riddled tribute to add to the commemoration of an annual-tradition that was just starting to take shape, we stepped into the Conrad's hotel lobby, only to be greeted by a hospitable hotel staff who was more than willing to show us to our destination.

Oscar's was a similar yet different dining experience as opposed to last year's Town Restaurant. Set in a more casual setting without too much grandiose, the thematic colours of yellow and black ran through both the decor of the indoor and outdoor dining areas, while the occasional mirror and wall-long paintings lined the walls for good measure.

But the decor was secondary when it came to buffets, as a buffet is only worth its weight in the food quality and variety it provides, and to quote a now-probably-defunct-restaurant's slogan, "the surprise is in the food." And Oscar's had one particular trick up its sleeve that had me smiling with glee for the entire night.

Starting off with the buffet staple of fresh seafood, I went for my usual assortment of fresh-off-the-ice spread of shelled-seafood with an excessively-indulgent dose of sashimi on the side thrown in for more than a good measure.

Not pictured: Too much Sashimi

With the passing of age (and maybe due to a penchant for fine-dining), my taste-buds over the years have grown to become more attuned to what I like to call the "essence" the food, tasting the dish with a minimalist approach with hardly any additional sauce or spices just to fully take in the taste of the meat. And seafood (western ones at least) is one area that I always try to exercise said approach towards the dishes.

Of course, my partner in crime, being the young-un that she is, is still very much into drowning her dishes with all sorts of gravy that she can get her hands on. But still, through the disagreement of the approach, we could still more or less agree that the prawns were the surprise tops in freshness over the crayfish, crab and lobster available. But of course to me, 3 different types of sashimi is in a league of its own.

Partners in Crime

Perhaps that's why when it came to the hot dishes, usually laden with all manner of gravy and sauces; she was a lot keener in the samples than my obligatory approach. Having said that though, the lamb shoulder, lemon chicken, Thai-style crayfish and the cheese pasta definitely left an impression on me.

Now, which Plate could be Mine?

Red (Spolier) Alert

But the real highlight of the night, for me at least, was the one-man-war that I was waging against the oysters' alliance. With a mind-blowing spread of oysters separated into their country and location of origin, I was hell-bent on becoming an oyster-connoisseur by the end of the night, punctuating each round of the buffet proper with a regenerating plate of oysters.

I tried roping in my dear partner into my war, but being the general non-fan that she was, she only presented a patronising effort, sampling only the French oysters and expressing her total abhorrence towards the Australian Coffin Bay ones.

Fortunately for me, I had allies in white on the other side of the counter, always ready and willing to shell the lucky few that I had hand-picked on-the-spot to ensure maximum freshness of the oysters, and give me a helping hand (and knife) in my journey of gaining the revered status of Oyster Connoisseur.

By the end of the night, I was ready to draw my conclusions, from the intense and immense samplings of the different types of oysters. Australian Oysters tend to be darker in color, somewhat smaller and bear the aftertaste of the oysters in the Chinese Oyster Omelettes. The French seem to have really salty seas, as both types of French Oysters came across as extremely salty, but their texture was smooth and slippery.

But the real winner of the night had to be the Canadian Oysters, with just the right amount of flavour, succulent and juicy flesh the slips easily into one's mouth and melts just as easily within it, the essence of the oysters just "explodes in your mouth"(ahem), and results in an eye-batting sense of orgasmic-euphoria (double-innuendo) after each piece. Apparently, the rest of the room seemed to agree with me, as the Canadian Oysters were all-out before the end of the night.

"Oyster Connoisseur" with his mighty fork, the "Oyster Bane"

Needless to say, the night ended with a cityscape's worth of desserts, always her favourite part. If there's one thing that I have to give it to her, is that her Sweet Tooth is definitely a lot more decayed than mine, always craving and always preparing space in my little tummy for the sweet finish.

Definitely in her Element

Through the ranks of creamy mousses, the fruity tarts and the fluffy and sweet cakes, the one particular outstanding dessert was the passionfruit ice-cream. Particularly proud of her artistic and professional-looking self-placed garnish, she cringed her face when she first tasted the Passionfruit ice-cream. Thinking that it was only her not being able to take sour, I scooped off a spoonful of said ice-cream and savoured it too, only to give the exact same reaction. It was stingingly sour, but yet oddly refreshing, amongst all the other sweet treats.

Her Pride and Glory

One Happy Chubby

As we stepped out of the restaurant, only to sit at the couch in the lobby, she walked away from me as I sat there, actively digesting my food. Approaching the piano, she was fiddling with her camera. A few moments later, she ran back to me, pointing at the blinking orange dot. Over the last one and a half years, many things have changed; the fun and the excitement of a budding relationship had been replaced with a comfortable, accommodating, supportive and more mature relationship.

Cool in Candlelight

As the camera flashed, I know that despite these changes, there are just some things that stay the same regardless - like the way she looks in that white dress, for example.