Setting
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| Facade of Saint Pierre @ Quayside Isle |
After being cooped-up in the tired-looking Central Mall for 13 years, Saint Pierre – by Chef In Black TV star, Emmanuel Stroobant, and his wife Edina Hong – uproots to the uppity confines of the water-fronting Quayside Isle in Sentosa Cove.
With a capacity of 100 seats (including a 12-seat private dining room and a 6-seat counter by the kitchen), Saint Pierre’s new roost stacked atop Sole Pomodoro is double the size of its old perch. And it’s also double the fun.
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| Interior of Saint Pierre @ Quayside Isle |
In place of wood paneled walls, thick carpets and chandeliers, Saint Pierre at Quayside Isle takes on Nordic cool with light wood flooring, trendy red standing lamps and Atomi’s Hiroshima designer chairs in a stunning day-lit space completely surrounded by glass (well, all the better to take-in the views of the luxury yacht by the water). If you’re planning to come for dinner, arrive at 6.30pm to get a glimpse of sunset.
What to expect
While Saint Pierre has shed its cloak of fine dining, Stroobant’s Japanese-inflected modern French cuisine continues to be beautifully haute but never haughty as evinced by the wallet-friendly prices of the tasting menus that have – thankfully – not kept pace with the city’s skyrocketing inflation.
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| Emmanuel Stroobant in the kitchen at Saint Pierre @ Quayside Isle |
Case in point: Stroobant’s 10-course omakase tasting menu featuring a smattering of off-menu/seasonal items joined by tasting portions of a handful of a la carte dishes – all at a cost of S$148++ per head.
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| Lobster bisque |
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| Yuzu-scented Japanese King prawn tartare crowned with uni |
From the a la carte, roasted Canadian lobster arrives basking in a shallow pool of savoury bisque perfumed with grilled zucchini and momotaro tomato; while the disc of yuzu-scented Japanese King prawn tartare beckons with a crown of velvety raw sea urchin. There’s also an exquisite dish of chilli togarashi-dusted hamachi gently seared a la plancha, served with avocado, seaweed crumble and eggplant puree.
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| Flemish-style white asparagus topped with mimosa salad |
Off-menu items also feature in the omakase. Flemish-style white asparagus arrives topped with grated yolk mimosa salad alongside a petite spoonful of Oscietra caviar. A slice of perfectly pan-seared turbot fillet with shell-on scallop also gets our thumbs up although the accompanying oodles of squid ‘pasta’ is marred by a mango salsa cream that cloys rather than refreshes.
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| Foie gras terrine – a Stroobant classic from the 5-course classic menu |
Those who wish to re-acquaint themselves with Stroobant’s long time classics – like his renowned foie gras terrine and miso black cod – will do well to opt for the 5-course classic menu (S$128++) instead.
If our sampling of Stroobant’s affordably-priced tasting menu at Quayside Isle is any gauge, Saint Pierre merits a packed house. At S$148++ per head, you get the full monty served to you by French staffers plus the views and possibly a glimpse of the Chef in Black if head chef, Daniel Grobnik, is away.
There are reasons aplenty to lap it up. Don’t you think?
Saint Pierre | 31 Ocean Way, #01-15 Quayside Isle | Tel: 65-6438 0887 | www.saintpierre.com.sg
Rating: 24/30
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You may also like: Best French restaurants in Singapore.
© Evelyn Chen 2013
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