Tag Archives: french

atas much?

yay! back to food blogging!

ya know.. it’s a bit of a chore at times to be honest.. taking picture of food in dimly lit conditions, trying your best to get that perfect, non-shaky shot, then post-processing images, trying to salvage the blemishes introduced due to taking photos at iso-400 (yeah my cam kinda sucks.. sponsor me please, canon?) and then having to write much about food whatsoever.

yet, some restaurants are simply meant to be reviewed — to me the motivation comes from eating food so inspiring, whimsically creative, complete and every dish a literal work of art both visually and taste-wise. and yes, jaan is one of them. but don’t expect this to come cheap.

let’s talk ambience. jaan is situated at the 70th floor of swissotel hotel, meaning it commands a really spectacular view of the city-hall-marina bay area that is really magickal and the sky dims and night approaches and you get to see all the beautifully lit buildings twinkling and being reflected by the esplanade bay waters. to be honest, this one of the things that every singaporean ought to feel somewhat proud of.. we have such a beautiful skyline and harborfront nowadays..

ok the interior of jaan is somewhat disappointing to be honest, because it looks like some plain ole’ dining hall with non-descript, sparse furnishings and deco. the statement piece i suppose are the interesting glass ceiling lights but to me they look kinda ugly, almost like some twisted scrap metal that was being suspended from the ceiling. hmm.

but who cares about decor when we come here for the food? let’s start the show.. we ordered the 5 course degustation menu for $148 (without wine and without the cheese supplement of $35).. seriously this place doesn’t come cheap, but good food is what you are paying for. the chef has generously littered the degustation menu with many free servings of pre-appetizers and pre-desserts as you can see from the picture at the top. they are intricate, really yummy stuff that was described kinda quickly and in that foreign accent-style that most european waiters adopt.. so errm.. i couldn’t really catch it. but its nice la.

ossiblue prawn ceviche – lime marinade, oscietra cream, pear and radish (along with rice cracker)

first course out of the gate and i’m really genuinely impressed. the prawns are tantalizing, but what is truly impressive is the thought that has gone into determining the combination of ingredients that goes on the plate and creates this harmonious and expertly balanced dish – the limey sourness and sliminess of the prawns counterbalances perfectly both the creamy savoriness of the oscietra cream and the crunchy texture of the pear strips and rice cracker. the pear and radish also lent that vegetal note to the dish, really creating a smorgasbord of flavors that complemented each other perfectly. i craved for more.

55′ smoked organic egg – with Jerusalem artichoke, chanterelles, iberico de bellota and porcini crumb

OMG. this was like taking a humble soft boiled egg and elevating it into taste heaven what with the perfect pairing of ingredients at the side and with perfect execution. our waiter kindly informed us that the egg had been smoked at 62 degrees for 55 minutes, hence the name. whatever the rationale, the egg was perfectly done and smelled and tasted amazing. i especially loved the crunchy savoriness of the dried chanterelles (a type of mushroom), the iberico ham strips and the procini crumbs. omg.. yet another perfect blend of ingredients. this was really the highlight of the meal.

trondheim bay hand dived scallop (rosemary smoked), with reinette apple cider, boudin noir and burnet

hmm.. the first dish i didn’t particular complete embrace. the scallop (which the waiter informed us came directly from trondheim bay, norway) smelled heavenly, having been infused with the smoky flavor from the rosemary and was once again divinely executed to be just the right amount of chewiness. what turned me slightly off was the use of boudin nour dollops (essentially sauce made from pig blood) because the blood taste was overwhelming and just not appealing to me. but i suppose i can appreciate the thought behind mixing these flavors – giving a meaty savoriness to a fresh seafood, and perhaps boudin noir fans would be ecstatic over the dish.

saddle of salt marsh welsh lamb – done three ways, with bitter caramel, violet artichokes, quinoa, preserved lemon and fresh anchovies

something i found kinda amusing was the fact that despite having the menu right next to us, we still couldn’t exactly decipher how each ingredient was incorporated into the dish. this is cheem stuff man. the waiter explained that the lamb was done 3 ways for 3 different portions (which i sadly cannot remember the names of). i absolutely loved the long strip of meat though, because it had the most delicious crispy layer of skin coupled with a juicy slab of meat below. very well executed once again. the other ingredients (quiona, artichoke sauce and preserved lemon droplets) formed the sauce to couple with the three different cuts, each presenting a delicious and different combination of flavors that was really appealing.

“victoria” pineapple – roasted spiced pineapple, coconut blanc-manger and exotic sorbet

took some points off the service because we asked what “exotic sorbet” meant but the waiter didn’t know, said he would check back and didn’t return with an answer. hmmz. but anyways we deduced it to be having a decent proportion of passionfruit. this dessert was really interesting, creative and satisfied the sweeth tooth on multiple levels – the blanc-manger at the base satisfied the sweet-vanilla creaminess, the caramelized spiced pineapple satisfied the sugary, chunky fruit craving and the sorbet satisfied the refreshing, cooling icy craving. its like the ultimate dessert! haha.

complimentary petit fours

hmm all in all, a really satisfying meal that was nothing short of creative, perfectly executed and magnificently balanced. this restaurant deserves its hype as no. 39th ranking in s.pellegrino world’s 50-best restaurants list 2010. chef julien royer is a great addition to the restaurant and is poised to take the restaurant to greater heights i say. good stuff, worth it for that once-in-a-lifetime experience, that date, that anniversary or something. watch the cost though [spent $200 per pax in the end, and that was with the 25% discount for Amex thats gonna expire after january] . =) 8.75/10

jaan | 2 Stamford Road, 70F Swissotel The Stamford | fine dining, french, expensive

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absinthe

September 29, 2011

Fine Dining ($70 above), French, Tanjong Pagar | CBD

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friday night reverie.

so after my disappointment in not being able to secure a table at absinthe during restaurant week, i decided to just screw it and head down there with my folks on our own account and try to food. apparently there was this OUB chef’s creation promotion with a 4 course dinner going for $64 per pax. it’s not exactly cheap, but its within an acceptable range depending on the food i suppose.

so absinthe is located along a kinda shabby portion of chinatown, along bukit pasoh street that has seen an injection of new life with swankified restaurants and refurbished hotels taking over old shophouses and sharing the same road with authentic chinese clan houses. this mix of traditional and noveau riche style is really quite something, and its obviously successful, judging by the many beautiful sleek cars parked by the roadside and just the general crowd within the restuarants. absinthe is right at the corner, and with an unpretentious storefront, it is easy to miss it.

once you step into the restaurant, you feel like you have walked into say a mid/high end east village french restaurant – the furnishings aren’t opulent nor as polished as that of say St Pierre, but there is a definite sense of luxury and french flair within. likewise, the service of the maitre de is topnotch, though my sis did complain that she couldn’t understand his french accent. lol. interestingly, patrons are given a glimpse into the bustling of the restaurant via a long horizontal window that well.. kinda diminished the illusion of transporting you away from singapore.. ah well.. i spied chef francois mermilliod bustling round the kitchen and he actually came out to serve patrons and recommend dishes in a warm, friendly and humble manner. i think that was really a cool gesture for someone of his stature. good job. ok let’s get to the food:-

our appetizer was this crab cake within a toasted brioche-like pastry paired with some garden greens, thai sweet sauce and melon candy at the side (see picture above). the crab cake was every bit the refreshing and went really well with the sweet sauce and garden greens to create this refreshing feel on your palette. i noticed that the pastry that contained the ingredients was shaped like that of a crab, which added a creative and playful nuance to the dish. however, methinks it was slightly difficult to break apart and made for not a very easy eating experience with me trying to taste all the flavors together. but overall, besides that mild inconvenience, the dish was fresh, tasty and a perfect way to start of the meal.

french onion soup with toasted bread covered with cheese

lol. i shall not pretend i know the cheese, but the combination of dipping the bread into the warm soup to let the cheese just slightly melt and soak up the onion soup was a stroke of genius and tasted really good. wished there was more such bread =(. found the soup otherwise nicely balanced but hmm.. somewhat not exactly out of this world. methinks soups always taste better was slurped down on a cold winter’s day.

beef cheeks with mashed potato and long beans.

the highlight of the night. the beef cheeks were absolutely tender and melted in your mouth upon eating. but what really made it work was the mixing of the beef cheek with pommery mustard (you must get this mustard when they ask which mustard you want) and a dollop of mashed potato. the mix of flavors is really heavenly, with the meatiness blending with the smooth mashed potato and the tangy, unique flavor of the pommery mustard. i googled pommery mustard and found a website hailing it to be truly a historic gem in the culinary world and otherwise known as moutarde de meaux. someone who is making a trip to france, please buy it for me! i savored this dish for a full half an hour or so, having every portion slowly invigorate my tastebuds. =) we paired this with a 2010 canet vallete antonyme saint-chinian, a red wine that reminded me somewhat of beaujolais as it was fruity, smooth and easy to drink.

caramelized apples paired with hazlenut pastry, vanilla creme and apple creme

to be honest, i didn’t get the name of the dessert when the maitre de tried to explain it to me. he explained it was a traditional french dessert that resembled that of the mille feuille but with the creme substituted with apple-creme. hmm, judging by what actually came out, i guess i heard wrongly as well. lol. what i got was a caramelized apple slices paired with vanilla creme (bottom tier) and apple creme (top tier) separated by a hard hazlenut (i think) pastry. its.. interesting, but i think it lacked the oomph i expect with french desserts. the creme layers were really good but i didn’t get the combination of the flavors. hmm it was a pity.

overall, a nice french restaurant with a few culinary tricks up its proverbial sleeves. we noted that the restaurant was completely packed on a friday night with everyone pretty much dressed to the nines which must say something about its appeal. i found the ambience to be pleasant, service was really good, and the food to be overall pretty good. of course.. with what we paid.. hmm, i conclude that this place will work wonders if you are willing to splurge on it, because the inherent creativity of the chef can be found within the dishes. so head there if you have the cash and want some innovative culinary journey eh? 7.5/10

and sadly i didn’t ask whether they served absinthe. though i spied a few bottles on display. hee

absinthe | 48 Bukit Pasoh Road | french, fine dining, creative, contemporary

st pierre

September 3, 2011

Clarke Quay | Robertson Quay, Fine Dining ($70 above), French

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unabashedly french.

last monday is what people would call a bridge workday — an unfortunate work day stuck between the weekend and a public holiday. so the common notion would be to take leave and enjoy a mega long weekend. so take the leave i did, and i used the off day to bring my parents for an executive lunch at st pierre, since dinner options would have been scarily exorbitant.

st pierre is tucked away along magazine road, in a quite little corner where you don’t just chance upon the place. you have to know the establishment exists and actually go hunt for it. but i guess with celebrity chef emmanuel stroobant at the helm, its worthwhile to hunt for the restaurant. mind you, i hunted for this restaurant because i had gone for the more pared down, cheaper version of chef stroobant’s creations at picotin and thoroughly enjoyed myself and hence i wanted more stroobant. lol.

so the interior exudes a sense of classy, understated luxuriance. there’s an air of sophistication and quiet atas-ness that can intimidate casual eaters initially, but you are put to ease immediately by the maitre d’. speaking of service, i must really commend the maitre d’ for a class act, being able to put everyone at ease and remove any sense of pretentiousness that one would assume would be attached to a classy restaurant like this. you see, my dad was kinda not familiar with the dishes and their names but the maitre d’ instantly saw my dad’s troubles and deftly handled the situation, warmly explaining what the lunch menu entailed and introducing us the best picks from the menu without a sense of haughtiness and without losing any bit of professionalism. that’s singapore service at its best imo. ok lets get to the food.

the first amuse bouche was a smoked salmon concoction (see picture above). this was a nice refreshing start, the salt grains blending well with the salmon and tomatoes. i couldn’t catch the full breakdown of the ingredients sadly, because after the maitre d’ left, the ensuing waitress wasn’t too good at explaining the dishes in detail. =(

we were next served our bread and i must say, one thing i absolutely adore about french food is how the weave in design and aesthetic within food, be it in the presentation, the colors involved with the food and even how food is described in french restaurants. every dish feels like a visual art experience both literally and metaphorically. i mean, where else would you see bread being presented in such an interesting manner? and it was delicious bread i must say — we had milk bread on the top panel along with sourdough and a yoghurt bread at the side paired with salted butter and hazlenut butter (which my dad loved). each piece was warm and smelt heavenly, and the dabs of butter lent a complementary savory touch to the bread. yummy.

amuse bouche #2 – lobster carpaccio with zucchini. again, i’m kinda annoyed because i couldn’t fully understand what the ingredients were thanks to the mumbling of the waitress. the lobster carpaccio was fresh, refreshing and delicious, the salty seafood flavor blending well with the zucchini.

appetizer – classic foie gras – pan fried foie gras with caramelized green apples and old port sauce. HEAVENLY. the best foie gras i had tasted in a long long while that truly melted in your mouth thanks to the warm sauce poured atop of the foie gras (that i assume melted the foie gras slightly). really complex, intense flavors. between this rendition of the foie gras and kinki’s foie gras and salmon sushi, i’m seriously starting to become a fanboy of foie gras.

another classic from the restaurant, the cabillaud au miso, miso braised black cod with bacon pancakes, pan fried endives and parmesan emlusion. when i saw this in the menu i instantly gravitated toward the bacon pancakes which sounded so good. when this was served, i was awed by the size of the black cod – almost completely justifying the price of the entire meal instantly. the cod was perfectly done, flakes falling off cleanly and tasting fresh and wonderful. but what really sold the dish to me was the combination of the bacon and the cod – wow, i wouldn’t have thought of such a combination but this really worked. somehow the salty flavor of the bacon juxtaposed perfectly with the nuanced, more balanced flavor of the cod, and enhanced the flavor of the cod, giving additional complexity to the dish. amazing stuff.

ahh desserts – chocolate cake, grandma stroobant’s flourless belgian chocolate with raspberries and orange zest confit. ya’know, i get immensely jealous when i see grandman’s blah blah.. on menus because i wish my family had a long heritage of amazing chefs or something with many treasured recipes to pass down. lol.. wouldn’t it be amazing to head home and smell this baking in the oven? the chocolate was just the right amount of richness and complexity. yum.

petit fours (french translation of “small oven”, usually small confections served at the end of a meal) – for this we had passionfruit macaroon, some sort of meringue and.. sigh.. i can’t really remember because the passionfruit macaroon dominated my taste buds memory. haha.. the macaroon was delicious and light, not as creamy as Canele’s renditions or as intense a flavor as La Duree, but somehow it felt just right in terms of the lightness and how it tied the entire meal together.

all in all, a beautiful gastronomic experience. i think only in french food would you call a meal beautiful, and this is one such case. the damage to your wallet? well, for set lunches, dessert+main course goes at 32, appetizer+main course goes at 42, with a supplement of 8 if you order the foie gras (do it), and the entire trio goes at 52. methinks its really pretty value for money considering the food you eat. its not those stingy bite sized portions, but sumptuous and yet nuanced dishes that excite your palete and bring you on a gastronomical roller-coaster ride. come here once for the real deal. 8.75/10

st pierre the restaurant | 3 Magazine Road Singapore 059570 | french, fine dining, desserts, contemporary

hediard cafe-boutique

August 21, 2011

Brunch, French, Mid - Range ($15 - $30), Orchard Road

bistro petit salut

July 10, 2011

French, Holland Village, Pricey ($30 - $70)

5 Comments

nice warm bread to soothe the weary soul.

i googled petit salut and found out that the meaning was small welcome? hmm.. wierd. anyways, bistro petit salut is supposedly the cheaper version (bistro-style) of the high and mighty au petit salut, now situated a stone throw’s away from dempsey. its like.. if you can’t afford au petit salut but still want to claim to have gone to some petit salut, head down to chip bee gardens near holland village for the “cheaper” experience.

anyways, restaurants in chip bee gardens are all pretty atas, but try to dress down their decorations and ambience to make it more mentally accessible to the masses, what with their simple deck chairs and wooden tables set for alfresco dining, bistro-style ambience that doesn’t attempt to create much of an otherworldly experience. still, by virtue of its location, you get the sense of a hidden find, where you can chillax in the shade watching the world go by amidst the baking hot sun. sounds pretty good to me. lets get to the food. for lunch, there’s typically two choices – the $25 set meal that’s available in the menu and a $38 special set menu that scribbled on the boards. seeing words like black truffle, wagyu beef and ‘blanc manger‘ i opted for the latter, whilst my friend opted for the former. (which was kinda annoying for me because it became a point of comparison, especially since i felt that his appetizer and dessert was more worth it. -_-)

asparagus salad with summer black truffle vinaigrette

this appetizer left me really quite confused honestly, because i couldn’t figure out where/what the black truffle was and neither could i suss out the taste of what i assumed was the black truffle, because the leafy, asparagus taste dominated the dish. to its credit, the dish felt refreshing and light and you could see the effort gone into shredding the asparagus till it looked like celery bits but in my opinion, i don’t get the dish. the flavors whilst refreshing, were nothing exciting or new and i couldn’t understand the combination of truffle and asparagus. =( maybe i am quite noob at this food tasting stuff. haha

grilled wagyu rump steak served with shallots and garlic confit with french fries

now after that not-too-satisfying appetizer, i was craving for some good main course. upon seeing the dish, i quickly realised i had ordered the classic entrecote with pomme frittes dish (essentially, steak that is cut into strips and doused with generous gravy and paired with shoe-string french fries) , but using asian ingredients (wagyu beef). the flavor of the steak was delicious and interestingly complex — by this i mean the flavors evolved in your mouth, usually starting with an “attack” phase when you first taste the dish, then an “evolution” followed by an “aftertaste”. to me, tasting food is akin to tasting wine and hence u see such similar process.

the disappointing part however where the french fries, which were slightly lacking in flavor though nice and crunchy. i mean, i’ve tasted much better fries so this was surprisingly lackluster. furthermore, the fries didn’t exactly pair well with the beef, hence feeling more like an afterthought carbs component to the meal. that makes me sad, because i believe everything on a plate happens for a reason. =(

home made pineapple “blanc manger” roasted almond pudding with fresh mint coulis

so i googled “blanc manger” and turned up with a reference of blancmange, a sweet dessert commonly made with milk or cream and sugar thickened with gelatin, cornstarch and often flavored with almonds. honestly, this sounds just like panna cotta. and tastes very similar to it besides the roasted almond flavor. yet again, the flavors of the dessert was complex, with hints of milk, ground almond (like your typical almond-tea chinese dessert). it was refreshing, and balanced well with the pineapple. that being said, the fact that the dessert resembled panna cotta and that it didn’t seem too difficult to make made me a little annoyed, considering my friend’s strawberry shortcake looked much better than this. lol. maybe again i dunno the goods.

all in all, an interesting but not exactly completely satisfying experience. to me, it felt like this wasn’t exactly authentic french but more like contemporary french with asian influences. it was a hit and miss to me, but definitely the food here was of some standard. 6.5/10

bistro petit salut | 44 Jalan Merah Saga, #01-54 Chip Bee Gardens | french, bistro, desserts

bistro du vin

June 16, 2011

French, Orchard Road, Pricey ($30 - $70)

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le creuset style dining.

i’ve always liked the le creuset pots and pans, with their colorful hues and deep warm tones really elevating the visual impact of the food served. plus, it reallys brings about a french influence to the presentation, so its too bad it’s so darn expensive. lol.

anyways, tuesday this week was pig out night it seems, as the motley bunch of us headed down to bistro du vin, part of the les amis group, for a sumptuous dinner. semi-tucked away on the back end of the side of shaw center, bistro du vin almost seems like the poor cousin next to fine establishments like le strada and les amis, and that’s saying alot. bistro du vin feels authentically french, with fuss-free simple bistro decorations bathed in warm lighting. you see the typical french posters, flimsy-looking wooden chairs and the signature red and white checkered napkins and it does feel like you have been transported somewhere to another world. (of cos, without the cold, it just doesnt cut it as much. lol) let’s get to the food.

saucisson and iberico ham – $26

yummy! it’s not as overwhelmingly salty as italian parma ham, but every bit as savoury and tasty. iberico ham, of cos originates from spain and comes from pigs that are fed from only acorns during the last few periods of their lives. talk about being fattened up for the slaughter! …ok, kinda not a good imagery for dining, but boy, the taste of the ham is really something, and paired with freshly baked baguette pieces, this was pretty divine.

sauteed mushrooms – $4

sauteed butter mushrooms with chunks of bacon! feels like something a jolly french mom would serve to her famished kids after a day of hard work.

duck leg confit, served with puy lentils stewed with bacon – $26

delicious stuff. the duck leg is fantastic, crispy on the outside but juicy and imbued with all the duck flavors within. and mind you, i didn’t know what puy lentils where, they just looked and tasted like sauerkraut. i was so eager to eat the duck i forgot to pair the sauerkraut and bacon together with the duck to try the combination of flavors, but overall, i think even the french should approve of this rendition of their classic dish. (well, i saw french-looking people eating this)

strawberry mascarpone, meringue and vanilla ice cream ($14)

mind you, after such fantastic dishes, i was expecting the dessert to be out of this world, considering that the french are also known for their sweet stuff. but hmm, i wasn’t too impressed with this offering – somehow the flavors of the mascarpone and vanilla were too similar that they kind of clashed whereas the meringue bits and the strawberries were just kinda there. there wasn’t a harmony in flavors in my opinion.

all in all, a yummy, sufficiently authentic french restaurant that is worth a visit, or say, for the celebration of sorts. but yeah, it does take a toll on your wallet, so be warned. 7.5/10

Bistro Du Vin | 1 scotts road, #02-12 | french, fine dining

cotton bleu

May 27, 2011

French, Pricey ($30 - $70), Upper Thomson | Novena

2 Comments

confused identity.

mind you, i put the picture cos it like it. and also because i’m kinda wondering whether this plant is a flower or just some variant of a leaf. it’s like.. u rarely see green colored flowers, so this is kinda cute. and yeah i took this along the roadside at vancouver. anyways, to the food review.

cotton bleu sits silently and unpretentiously along the bustling upper thomson road with a simple, pleasant and somewhat non-descript facade that kinda makes the restaurant fade away amidst the other shophouses. kinda noticed it whilst walking past a few times along the way to thomson plaza, figured it was serving french food (well… i don’t get the cotton bleu reference considering they don’t even serve cordon bleu) and well, saw pleasantly high reviews on hungrygowhere so i decided to go try it with my parents, my sis and my niece (oh no..).

so the decor inside is simple but tasteful. the atmosphere is kinda set up to look more high-end and i guess the lack of physical depth in the restaurant and the fact that it was directly facing a pretty noisy main road made it difficult for the restaurant to create a other-world kinda experience. and its a half-and-half in terms of ambience. and in all honesty, i made the cardinal mistake of choosing this restaurant for this particular meal because my niece kayla was along for the meal. and well, fine-dining and babies do not go well together. it’s like.. you cringe when she starts hitting the table, when she misbehaves and starts spitting her food, when she starts ripping the paper covering the tablecloth. and well, a part of me doesn’t blame her, because our food did take quite a while to come, which might have been acceptable had it been a nice, intended, fine dining experience, but not when you are bringing a baby whose attention span on any single item is like 1 minute. ah well, so u have been forewarned, this review might have been made under a somewhat frazzled mental frame, but well, i think i readjusted my scorings somewhat after calming down post-meal.

a comment about the service. it’s not exactly bad — the servers are pleasant and friendly, and do recommend dishes upon your request and the likes. yet, two points irritated me. one was that it was really difficult to get their attention when one needed anything — the servers kept talking amongst themselves at the bar which kinda meant they didn’t really notice u flagging at them for umpteen times. the second and related point is that, the amount of service and attention paid on our table (perhaps) was meagre at best. we had been warned that we needed to wait for 15 minutes because they were installing a new fridge in their kitchen – fine by us, but when our wait took up to 40 minutes and nothing had been served, i kinda expected the servers to at least walk toward us and well.. update us on the situation, assuage our concerns or at least fill up our water. and they also made a really annoying gesture (to me at least) by serving up appetizers for another table that had visibly came later than our table, and by then our wait had stretched till at least 55 minutes. i mean, i know fine dining necessitates a certain measure of waiting but.. i think this wasn’t too acceptable. no apologies were made regarding the wait and despite our table evidently looking hungry and kinda frazzled trying to pacify the baby, no attempts was made to well.. read the situation and perhaps hasten the food. ok.. lets head to the food.

skewered scallops on a bed of greens – $14

delicious. the scallops had just the right amount of chewiness and tenderness and let a refreshing taste in the mouth. the sauce used was balanced and savory, drenching the bed of greens and enhancing their flavors as well. and at this price point, this was pretty value for money.

lamb shank with pommes au gratin (potatoes) and kidney beans – $26

their signature dish and rightly so. my sis ordered this, and well just the portion of lamb that she offered me was delicious, juicy and melted in my mouth. i wanna try this next time. (though i kinda don’t like kidney beans.. hmm)

filet mignon with seasonal vegetable and pomme frittes – $32

this was my dish. and imho, maybe i don’t eat enough steak or something, but i wasn’t that impressed with the steak. furthermore, the seasoned vegetables was meant merely as a side dish and did not complement the flavors of the meat at all. the pomme frittes were stellar though, deliciously crunchy without any hint of starchiness which perfectly complemented the filet mignon, where the meatiness of the filet mignon added additional nuance to the flavor of the fries. i have always read of steak and pomme frittes being a classic french combination — and today i know why. so overall, this dish was well, decent – the steak was just as i ordered it – medium rare, juicy but pretty much not that impressive, the black pepper sauce accompanying it was good and it was the fries that really stole the show.

now, i wish i had taken a picture of the dessert — cheesecake with raspberry sauce, which was recommended by the server, because its quite worth the mention. it was good stuff – not too jelak and what impressed me was the addition of the raspberry sauce which surprisingly was an amazing combination with the cheesecake, adding a level of flavor complexity to the simple dessert. this being said, whilst it was not too heavy, haha.. i think estelle’s own version of the mascarpone cheesecake really takes the cake (no pun intended) for having a truly light and frothy feel.. estelle, you really should start selling your cakes!

so overall, a decent, tasty, french dinner with some pleasant surprises that fits within the price range of around $30 – 40 per pax (in fact, all things considered, it was actually quite decent for money since there was also a 15% discount for all standard chartered cardmembers.) i would definitely want to come back here for another go, but this time round with much more time at hand, and perhaps no baby. =) the service however, should be improved to really make this place a gem find along upper thomson road. 7/10

Cotton Bleu | 205 Upper Thomson Road S574345 | french

picotin

May 22, 2011

Bukit Timah, French, Pricey ($30 - $70)

1 Comment

horsey french Saturday afternoon.

Picotin, tucked nicely away amidst the verdant surroundings of turf club/eng neo avenue, is a french-inspired (loosely horse-theme) bistro, bar and epicerie. and boy, its a pretty chill place with a great ambience imho. you can choose to sit indoors for a comparatively quieter, more chillax environment next to the pizza oven stove, or to sit outside and enjoy a more communal feel. (we choose indoors cos it was raining cats and dogs that day and outdoors wasn’t too appealing)

chill times.

anyways, design-wise, Picotin uses dark, masculine hues to match the horse theme (i suppose) and has a certain rustic elegant charm to it. this is complemented with a gratuitous use of large blackboards chalked with specials of the day that complement the decor well, as well as other simplistic touches such as bottles of empty wine bottles stacked on shelves near the ceiling. ambience wise, this place really transports you to another world far from singapore. let’s get to the food.

palourdes a la mariniere – steam clams, white wine, aromatic vegetables, fresh parsley, $15

one major gripe i have with some restaurants is their refusal to tell patrons what exactly went into the dish, aside from saying “grilled chicken” or the likes. its annoying because i would like to somewhat know and have a certain mental preparation of the flavors I can somewhat expect and well get a sense of anticipation happiness instead of a sense of anxiety. i like that picotin gives a general sense of what went into the dish, but hmm.. perhaps a little in depth description might be tad better? (like what sort of aromatic vegetables?) haha.. it also enhances the food profile imho. anyways, this dish was really delicious – subtle but yet tasty and the wine wasn’t any bit the overpowering and nicely balanced the flavors from the clams. the residual wine sauce made for a great pairing with bread (ahhh) until my friend simon reminded me how much butter/fats was in that sauce. -_-. killjoy. but yeah, great stuff. i was impressed. *a tiny gripe? some of our clams were closed shut. =(

steak de thon, salade nicoise – seared tuna with nicoise salad – $29

mind you, here’s where yet again i wish they told me that salade nicoise is a mixed salad with lettuce, tomato, half boiled tomatoes, green beans, half boiled eggs, topped with tuna and olives and garnished with anchovies. (sorry lah i’m noob, i don’t really go research what goes into what salad) anyways, i don’t like anchovies in general after a too-close encounter with too many anchovies in my pizza in italy, so i was kinda gingerly trying to avoid them. that being said, the flavors within the dish were sublime – the seared tuna was perfectly done (medium) and tasted great, and surprisingly went well with the vinagrette infused salad. i was also impressed that instead of just merely plopping down some plainly cut tomatoes and boiled eggs, these were substituted for more-thoughtful versions of sundried tomatoes and perfectly done soft-boiled eggs that reminded me of the japanese classic – onsen tamago (literally translates to water-bath egg). yummy, and well, acceptably priced I would say.

my friend ordered the beef bourguignon which seemed like a sentimental favorite at the restaurant. and upon a slight sampling, i was impressed – the beef was tender and melted in your mouth, with a strong yet not-overpowering flavor of the red wine. delicious. i’ll be back for that, and perhaps for the steak frittes as well. 8/10

picotin | 100 Turf Club Road, Singapore 287992 | french, contemporary, wines

le bistrot du sommelier

April 7, 2011

Bugis | Little India, French, Pricey ($30 - $70)

4 Comments

Le Bistrot du Sommelier, 46 Prinsep Street, #01-01

[ duck tartine foie gras with fig jam, $23]

Prinsep Street! I spent much of my nerdy youth round the Prinsep Street area, first for the endless games of dota with army pals and other friends then for the occasional board games fiesta at mind cafe, followed by a swing by the rochor beancurd stall, right next to sewers, rats and garbage dumps. =) this place brings back memories.

Anyways, tucked in a pretty nondescript corner lies Le Bistrot du Sommelier, a really unpretentious french restaurant that really does have a love affair for wine, to the extent that the menu and serving boards are all made from planks of wood used as crates of wine previously. cool stuff. and it was pretty darn authentic, i mean, the waitress (owner?) spoke in a distinctively european-accented english whilst describing the specials to us – which included some veal head and tongue (!?), fresh oysters and others. interesting..

anyways, we chose the foie gras + fig jam + baguette for our appetizer, which honestly is a combo that can’t go wrong. the soft-faint sweetness of the baguette with the savory taste of the foie gras topped with the awesome sweetness of the fig jam makes for a mouthwatering, delicious and nuanced-flavored dish. amazing stuff.

[Vacherin with Bacon+ Onion + white wine, $58]

this was a cheese fondue mixed with bacon and onion along with generous portions of baguette, which sounded like a winner on its own right – i mean, i tried a similar variant of cheese fondue with white wine in vancouver once with my sis and it was epic. sadly in this case, the “fondue” wasn’t kept warm and hence it became a race against time to finish all that cheese before it solidified into chunks. and that was alot of cheese, expensive nonetheless (i mean.. 58 bucks for cheese!?!). so it was more a miss than a hit, hmm.. if only it was heated in some water bath or something throughout the duration.

[Welsh lamb, $68 for 2]

now this was a winner. the lamb was perfectly grilled and infused with a refreshing herby mix of mint and rosemary that tasted awesome. the potato-gratin-ish thing was good as well. the lamb sauce was so good we were using the remaining baguettes so soak the goodness up =) [i noticed that they used an ornellaia, bolgheri wine board for this dish, which happens to the one of the better supertuscan wines from italy.. these people know their wines eh..]

[profiteroles, $12]

methinks it was the overconsumption of baguette, or that the race against the cheese was finally taking an effect, but we were pretty stuffed when it came to dessert. the profiteroles ought to have been shared (we had order 3 desserts for 3 people) because it was pretty gigantic and tasted pretty good, what with the mix of good ole’ chocolate, choux bread and vanilla ice cream. methinks it’s slightly a bit too jelak and the flavors not as nuanced as other french desserts per say.. but maybe i was just a little too full. or maybe i just dont really prefer profiteroles (the best i had was in paris)

overall, a quaint location, kinda acceptably-priced honestly (besides the cheese). we didn’t try the wine which i guess was kinda a waste but then.. all the wines start at 60 bucks and above.. so.. hmm. good, authentic french food but the ambience was kinda well.. i dunno.. it wasn’t exclusive enough or french-countryside style enough and well.. felt for some moments like we were at a non-air conditioned cafeteria of sorts.. overall? 7.5/10

[photos taken with ian's eos 550d camera. i am so jealous. i didnt even need to post-process these pictures. -_-]

revisiting la petite

January 30, 2011

French, Mid - Range ($15 - $30), Upper Thomson | Novena

—the endangered sartorialist

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revisiting la petite