The much raved about beautiful view of the Marina Barrage from the rooftop will impress many, I guess. If seated at the right location, one can even see the iconic Supertrees of Gardens by the Bay. The interior is of minimalist style to let the skyline of the city runs the show. Since I appreciate nature more, I acknowledge that the place is absolutely great for dates, but I am not exactly bowled over by the setting of the restaurant. So let's go on to talk about the food instead.
It is quite a novelty that a service staff carries the wooden tray filled with bread and makes her rounds to the tables to serve the bread. And to top this off, instead of butter, powdered spices and olive oil are provided as dips for the bread. The taste is interesting, but the dips do not integrate well into the bread to create a harmony of texture and taste. The bread itself is not served warm. And it is kind of hard but not toasty to justify the dry texture. I am very fussy about my breads, so the bread here does not win me over.
Moving on, casting the bread aside, the other dishes get the thumbs up from me. Alaskan King Crab is love at first bite because the generous chunks of fresh, succulent crab meat are oh so sweet. And the creamy, slightly tangy dressing with finely chopped vegetables serves to accentuate that sweetness of the sea. The avocado slices are welcomed addition since I love the smooth balmy creaminess of this berry. The dressing also goes very well with the avocado since it adds a kick to the mild taste of avocado. Tomato petals, which looks like bacon, has very intense, full-bodied flavour. This appetizer is best enjoyed by savouring these ingredients separately since they all have distinctive tastes that can be combined but each is good enough to shine on their own; the avocado refreshes the palates, and the tomato petals give the oomph factor to complement the crab meat. This dish is a must-order.
Octopus Salad is truly a very unique salad since the cooked vegetables are used instead of the usual raw ones. The best part is it also tastes great. The broccolini, which is a hybrid of broccoli and kale, is every bit as juicy and crisp as raw vegetables, thus having that wonderful bite that many love in their salad. Fine preparation is needed to achieve this and retain that beautiful dark green colour of the vegetable. The other ingredients of the salad simulates the senses: citrus flavour of the artichoke adds zest to salad, and the romesco sauce of vivid orange colour introduces earthy tones to the taste. The cylindrical pieces of octopus are grilled to perfection—featuring the rich aroma of grilled seafood and being slightly chewy, but not overly so. If I have to nit-pick, my only grouse with this appetizer is that one of the octopus pieces is too thick, thus being too chewy to my liking.
Beetroot Gnocchi is one of those vegetarian main courses that is not only healthy, but also tastes delicious. The fresh and crunchy vegetables pairing with the pungent feta is a bold combination that works, due to the strong taste of feta adding a zing and accentuating the clean taste of the various vegetables. The pink-hued breakfast radish not only adds colour to the dish, this juicy, zesty, crunchy root vegetable incorporates a contrast in taste, for that extra excitement. And the vegetables also go very well with the mashed celeriac that coats them with a layer of subtle flavours of celery with nutty overtones. Beetroot gnocchi has that glorious shade of reddish purple and looks very appetizing, but it is far more subdued in terms of flavours. The sweet earthy taste adds dimension to this mains though I have to admit that the other ingredients steal the show instead. And I do find this dish to be slightly similar to the Octopus Salad due to the use of broccolini.
After trying these dishes with bold, clean and striking flavours, I do wonder if the dessert, Salted Vanilla Ice Cream, can match up to them. I find my answer where I take the first bite of the ice cream, served at the perfect temperature—cold enough to retain the shape yet higher than freezing point to allow the flavours to be released. It is sublime because of the intense milky taste. Either eat on its own or savour it with carrot cake sponge and walnut crumble, it is all good.
Petit fours served at the end of the meal is a nice touch, but given how exciting are the appetizers, mains and dessert to the senses, these cute little pieces of confectionery do not really make that much of an impression.
As for the service, the friendly staffs get all the basics right, and I can see that they really try hard. They can do better if there is an extra sharpness in the observation of surroundings and the handling of orders. Things are still pretty good when I arrive at the earliest timing, almost. But the staffs get real busy when the restaurant is full, yes, it is full on a weekday afternoon, so it is best to make reservation, and it may be difficult to get their attention. All in all, I still give the service here the thumbs up, especially when they bid farewell to me when I am leaving. To me, this tiny gesture leaves a nice ending note to the dining experience, it matters.
So will I come back? It goes without saying that for sure I am.
My Thoughts: Awesome!
Nearest car park: CapitaGreen's car park
Nearest MRT: Telok Ayer
138 Market Street
#40-01 CapitaGreen (Rooftop)
Contact No: 6635 8677
