That said, the bulk of the good restaurants here – or anywhere else for that matter – range from decent to pretty good. Spectacular finds are hard to come by – I can count on one hand the number of truly spectacular meals in all my years of ‘professional eating’ both here and abroad.
But I’ve recently discovered (or re-discovered) three nice restaurants right here at home which may not fall under ‘spectacular’ but certainly hits the higher end of ’pretty darn good’ in my books. So here goes.
Pontini at the Grand Copthorne Waterfront Hotel. I suspect it’s a ‘forgotten’ restaurant, not quite smack in the middle of most of our radar screens,...and in fact it had fallen off for me over the last year or so because of its ‘hit-and-miss’ cooking (read between the lines, darling…I’m not naming names here but…) until they recently acquired a new chef.
Quite a curiosity I must say – what’s a German doing cooking Italian? What were we in for? Sauerkraut with mozzarella?....But no, I was proven wrong! Must flagellate myself for such unholy narrow-mindedness!
392 Havelock Road
Tel: 65-6233 1133
Jade at The Fullerton Hotel. I raved about its seven-course duck menu ($58++) when we first started this blogazine. I like its fine dining environment, the tinkling china flatware, the pampering service, elegant, creative food, and excellent value – the entire meal easily costs the same as one high-end main course in superluxe places like Les Amis.
So what’s happening here again? Five more ‘themed menus’ rolled out after the success of the duck menu starting from $48++ to $68++, available for lunch and dinner. The five menus are: Oriental Wellness focusing on Chinese herbs and spices; Fruits of the Harvest themed around fruits; Aromatic Delights, an olfactory menu using lots of fragrant ingredients; Symphony of Spices highlighting chillies and other fiery flavours, and the self explanatory Mushroom Medley.
By the way, I’m pleased as pie to report that they have taken off the ridiculous pricing of $7 per person for Chinese tea...which makes for plenty expensive hot water! The $28++ dim sum is still ongoing, too, but be prepared for some changes to the menu…They’re booked up until May for the weekends, I am told.
1 Fullerton Square
Tel: 65-6877 8188
The chef himself, Jean Charles Dubois, scampered out like a friendly puppy to say hello, and truly that made a big difference for me, as well as for others who had eaten there and said the same thing. (In fact, he and the manager personally saw every guest out like they were best friends…which was a really charming touch. Talk about clever PR!) Through the meal, the manager stopped by to ask if things were okay, offered to advise on wine matches, always friendly – not condescending like some can be – but never imposing.
And the food? Really, really…err…really good. We had the kurobuta pork cheek and duck liver terrine ($28) and Burgundy snails ($24) for starters, roasted venison saddle with cherry, cauliflower smoothie, gratin dauphinois and civet sauce ($38) and pan seared sea bream with warm celeriac remoulade, lemon confit and creamy caper sauce ($35) for mains, all from the Winter Menu, and dessert was a traditional warm chocolate fondant with caramelised banana ice cream ($16). The meats were all tender, moist and luscious, the vegetables were full flavoured and the textures always hit a perfect balance. The wines were well priced too – which is why I say, the pricing is very clever. Not cheap, but very good value for what you are getting. Closed on Mondays, dinner-only on Saturday and no corkage on Sundays. It’s currently one of my favourites. GO.
7 Magazine Road
#01-03 Central Mall
Tel: 65-6438 1823
1 comments:
Yes, love the French Kitchen too. Incredibly good food, thoughtfully cooked, very good service, decent prices, in a casual setting.
Like your review too
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