Sometimes when you revisit a restaurant you get disappointed, the food doesn't taste the same, the chef hasn't reinvented himself, it is the same old menu, and nothing is really better. Chef Andre does not fall into this trap. My second visit to Restaurant Andre was even better than the first one. The food was fresh, invigorating, exciting. The service lead by Stepan Marhoul was impeccable as always, the wine pairings was whimsical but spot on. Th restaurant had improved on every level. I believe Andre Chiang is Singapore's and maybe Asia's best chef, and next year it should be ranked even higher on the Top50 list of best restaurants in the world. To support this claim - here are the pictures of what we had.
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Les Amis, the French translation of ‘The Friends’, is located in the heart of the Orchard Road shopping district in Singapore. Chef Sebastien Lepinoy uses classical French technique with Asian aesthetics when he cooks. He incorporate elements of what he has seen and tasted during his stay in Asia into his menus so that it will complement the local climate and palates.And in some of the courses we had you can really taste these influences. Sometimes it is amazing, and sometimes it somewhat misses the mark. But more about that later. When visiting Les Amis we tried the 7 course tasting menu. It has a nice variety of courses and any menu that kicks off with caviar is a winner in my book. The first course is a delectable angel hair pasta with oscietra caviar and it is wonderful. The saltiness of the caviar works really well with the lightness of the pasta. A great start to the menu. The second course is even better. The brilliance in combining seared foie gras with french river eel is fantastic. Smoky eel, soft and silky foie gras and then some sesame seeds and oil with some miso and you have a perfect combination. This is so good, and clearly the highlight of the evening. The third course is a disappointment. In theory the combination of truffles and jelly chicken broth sounds exciting but this was bland. The fourth course however, was another winner. The Black Truffle is back and it is back with a vengeance. Instead of losing itself with the chicken jelly, it compliments a fantastic mushroom tart. The mushrooms are cooked to perfection and it is a wonderful combination with several layers and a lot of depth flavor wise. The wine list has been a recipient of the Wine Spectator’s Grand Award, one of only 3 Grand Award winners in Asia since 1996. And it is well deserved, the wines that we order went very well with the food. The next course was a turbot, with a traditional choron sauce. The fish was cooked perfectly and the choron sauce complimented the fish in a good way. A solid dish, not spectacular but very good. Before moving to the dessert, the menu ended with a grilled tenderloin, dry aged. The beef was tender, juicy and cooked medium rare. The star in this course was the white asparagus though, cooked really well, soft and with a little crunch. I am not sure how I feel about the asparagus being the star in a beef course, but the asparagus deserves the credit. The final course was the dessert and it was somewhat underwhelming. Ice cream and cherries, it wasn't bad, it just wasn't the exclamation point you want when you eat at a great restaurant. Overall, the food and experience was a pleasant one, which is what one should expect from such a reputable place. The staff was fast and very attentive, we were able to get through the menu in 90 minutes which was perfect for us that day. Given the price tag though and its ranking on the Pellegrino list, expectations was higher and I would say that the place didn't wow me consistently. It is solid french food, executed very well, but besides the Foie Gras with the River Eel, nothing else blew me away. We ended the dinner with a double espresso and a a lovely piece of chocolate. I enjoyed the dinner thoroughly but I still feel somewhat disappointed. The menu needed another showstopper course to be really great.
Derived from the ancient Sanskrit word for ‘bowl’, Jaan is an intimate, 40-seat restaurant dedicated to showcasing the finest in Artisanal French cuisine in Singapore. Jaan is located on the 70th floor of Swissotel TheStamford in Singapore and it has breathtaking views of the city. But you shouldnt come to Jaan for the views, you should come for the food. The wonderful menu by Chef de Cuisine Julien Royer is built around a strong passion to showcase the freshest ingredients through french beautiful dishes. You have several menu choices to decide between but if you truly want to enjoy the cuisine you should go with the artisanal menu, a 10 course degustation menu, with some of Chef Royer most impressive dishes. The dinner starts with a wonderful collection of Amuse Bouches to get your taste buds warmed up. The Beetroot Macarons and the Mushroom tea were spectacular standouts. The Macarons are simply stunning - and you just wish you had a few more. The service at Jaan was impeccable during our visit and they have a very nice wine selection as well. When asked for some nice wine pairings, our waiter brought out some very nice choices that really supported the food. The next course were very good. We had an oyster that combined with some fennel and Iberico ham really hit the mark. Iberico ham and oysters are a perfect combination where the saltiness of the ham extends the taste of the oysters. After the oyster, the menu delivered a very tasty wild langoustine, fresh and sweet, wit some complimenting peas and mints. We also had Jaan's garden - a wonderful combination of summer vegetables and herbs. The next course was a masterpiece dish. The 55' Rosemary Smoked Organic Egg makes a very dramatic entry with some liquid nitrogen and an egg shell nestled in an egg carton. They are cooked for precisely 55 minutes for a flawless poached egg. Some salty chorizo, potato and buckwheat and you have a standout combination that is probably my favorite egg dish so far ever. That is how good it is!! After this sensational dish, the following dish felt somewhat bland in comparison. A nice scallop with a wonderful miso caramel. There was nothing really wrong with this dish, it probably just suffered from following the great egg dish. I loved the ending of the savory portion of the meal, A great monk fish and a perfectly hay roasted pigeon. It is very easy to overcook pigeon which will make it dry but the kitchen produce this bird just at the right level of medium-rare. The dinner then moved over to the sweet part, great desserts where the Choconuts Tart stood out as a clear favorite. Different tastes and textures of Chocolate and Nuts - whats not to love!! The meal ended with a wonderful trio of petite fours, all exquisite and very flavorful. The coconut marshmallow was the best of the three. Jaan is a great restaurant, the service is fantastic, the food is wonderful and the views are breath taking. In 2014 it was ranked nr 100 on Pellegrinos list of the best restaurants in the world and they definitely deserve the accolades. Well done, I am looking forward to returning.
Critically acclaimed Taiwanese chef André Chiang has enjoyed a meteoric rise to the top since opening his Mediterranean-fusion Restaurant André in Singapore in 2010. He is currently ranked number 38 on Pellegrino's list of the best restaurants in the world. We had the fortune to visit his restaurant and enjoy an amazing dinner. Chef Chiang has a very specific perspective when it comes to cooking that he calls Octaphilosophy. He describes it this way: "The hypothesis of eight characteristics that attempt to discover through cuisine; the nature and significance of ordinary and scientific beliefs while investigating the simplicity of concepts by means of rational argument concerning their presumptions, implications, and interrelationships. The pure and unique hues of nature’s gifts from the land together with scientific research are juxtaposed alongside with the intuitions of the South, where primal aromas and texture evoke the endless trail of memories." Arriving at André, you immediately feel that you are in for something special. The restaurant is at the edge of Chinatown in one of a row of beautifully restored colonial shop houses. Outside the restaurant there is a small olive tree, that Chef Chiang had brought in from the south of France as a reminder of where he started his cooking. The restaurant itself is elegant and modern with quirky little designs everywhere. When we visited the restaurant Chef Chiang served a tasting menu consisting of11 courses. We started with some fun Amuse Bouches. It is great way to start the menu, the flavors are rich, especially the earthiness of the Porcini Crispy but the Lobster Sandwich is also delicate and very good. The problems with snacks like these, is that you just want more of them. After the Amuse Bouches, the menu kick off with an amazing course, Seafood on arrival. The point of this course is to emphasize the seafood, and to do this without the use of any seasoning. The plate consists of mussels, abalone, sweet prawn, some wild herbs, kelp and legumes. It is an excellent course. We move forward with an oyster course and a wonderful braised aubergine. I have never been a real fan of aubergine but this one was really good, paired with cockscomb and duck tongues. The oyster course is another home run. The apple foam is a semi-solid disc sheltering the tartar, with Granny Smith apple matchsticks, olive oil spherification and oscietra caviar. Surrounding the dish are seaweed and an emulsion of oyster juices. Chef Chiang doesn't use any seasoning or salt in this course either, instead let the saltiness of the seaweed and the caviar be the seasoning. The next two courses is Chiang’s personal tribute to the South of France, where his formative years were spent under the tutelage of Jacques and Laurent Pourcel. A wonderful Sea Urchin risotto, where the umami flavor really comes through and a very nice Homard Bleu, a blue European lobster cooked to perfection. The next two courses was mixed bag, first we were served a some artichokes which compared to all the other amazing courses served throughout the dinner fell a little flat. Good flavors but nothing special. After that, we were served my favorite course of that night. It was actually so good, i immediately order another one. Kudos to the waiting staff that was able to quickly accommodate this request. Chiang invented this dish back in the 90s, and it has been on his menus ever since in some shape or form. It is a delicate foie gras jelly topped with a perigord truffle coulis, Think of it as a decadent creme brulee, but 50 times better. the foie gras jelly is wam and the truffle has to be Perigord according to the chef. Simply wonderful, I will go back to this restaurant every single time I am in Singapore just for this course. We finish the savory part of the menu with a Tri-tip. Very flavorful and a nice pairing with garlic, berries and beets. An excellent way to move into dessert. Service here is professional and knowledgeable, Maître d’ Stepan Marhoul, sommelier Ken Hasegawa and co-owner Pam (Mrs André), was running the floor. Mr Marhoul especially, was extremely service-oriented, he showed me the kitchen and made sure that we got a cab after our dinner. He waited outside for 8 minutes to make sure that we got one. Very impressive. The sweet parts of the dinner was equally impressive. A nice variety of courses, with interesting flavor combinations and presented in inventive ways. Restaurant Andre is expensive but this is a genuine global player in the finest dining stakes and the experience was worth every cent. Chef Andre is a great chef and he is supported by a wonderful staff. I highly recommend a visit to this restaurant for a special night out.
The wonderful restaurant Waku Ghin in Singapore, translates to "arise silver, offers a 10 course Japanese inspired degustation menu. The restaurant is located in the iconic Marina Bay Sands complex, and offers a very unique dining experience. Waku Ghin with Celebrity Chef Tetsuya Wakudais was ranked number 68 on Pellegrino's list in 2013. The experience of Waku Ghin starts the moment you walk through the glass doors and are greeted by the friendly and attentive staff. To the left is an impressive sake bar and caviar lounge, perfect for pre-dinner drinks. I tried the Gummibear Martini which was surprisingly tasty. The restaurant seats only 25 people at a time, offering 2 sittings each evening. Guests are seated in private Teppanyaki rooms. You will have a personal Teppenyaki chef throughout the dinner who will introduce and cook every course right in from of you on the cooking surface. The 10 course degustation menu is tailored to your individual taste on the evening, and the chef takes the time to discuss the menu with you. The food is mostly seafood and the chef will show the actual produce in a basket before the cooking starts. A wonderful display of the seafood emphasize how fresh it is. The chef then proceeds to expertly prepare for us each dish, one at a time, carefully explaining the dish as he goes along. I personally love the personal interaction with the chef, and revel in the opportunity to watch the expert preparation up close and personal. It really makes eating at Waku Ghin a different experience. Each dish is perfectly presented and looks as much a piece of art, as a plate of food. Fresh seafood perfectly cooked. One of the early courses was Waku Ghin's signature course, Marinated Botan Shrimp with Uni and Osetra caviar. It is without a doubt, one of the best things I have ever had in my life. The freshness and sweetness of the shrimp merged perfectly together with the saltiness of the caviar and the umami from the sea urchin. Simply brilliant and the presentation made it even better. Eating at Waku Ghin is not cheap but this course made it worth the investment. They also serve a wonderful lobster that is cooked to perfection with a flavor of rosemary. Also a great dish. Waku Ghin finishes off the main part of the menu with two excellent meat courses. My favorite was the Wagyu beef - It was actually so good that I had to order another serving. It put a dent in the wallet but it was so worth it. Once we are finished with the degustation menu, we are escorted to a separate room to retire for our dessert. The room offers spectacular views of the Singapore skyline and the nightly fountain show. The desserts were good but not spectacular. I would recommend anyone to eat at Waku Ghin. It is expensive and you have to like seafood. But if you do, the food is top notch, comprising ingredients that are at the very top of their category and treated minimally at the teppan counter. The private chef - one to every 2 diners - does a show and tell for his dishes before preparing it, whether searing a piece of wagyu or cooking the abalone to the perfect texture. The customized teppan plate is truly the star - having your food cooked before your eyes does much to wet the appetite. It is a great experience, and I can't hardly wait until I get to fly back to Singapore and get to feast on that shrimp, caviar, and uni feast of greatness.
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