Saint Pierre
2 MICHELIN Stars, MICHELIN Guide Singapore 2021Price: 6-course Opulence menu at S$388++ (wine pairing at an additional S$248++; vegetarian and enfants option available)
Address: 1 Fullerton Road, #02-02B One Fullerton, Singapore 049213
A new six-course tasting menu at two-MICHELIN-starred Saint Pierre has been unveiled this year. Christened with the name Opulence, chef-owner Emmanuel Stroobant explains that the inspiration for the menu is drawn from being guided by the Zen Circle or Ensō, a hand-drawn symbol in Zen that represents enlightenment and the freeing of the mind to create without reservation.
“Having lived in Australia, Malaysia, and Singapore and travelled around the region for over 20 years, I have developed a honed sensitivity to Southeast Asia and East Asia’s rich indigenous ingredients, which I incorporate respectfully into my cuisine. Underpinning my signature style of modern French cuisine with an Asian accent is an ongoing pursuit to achieve balance, precision, and flavour,” says the Belgium-born, French-trained chef.
The Opulence menu unfolds with a trio of champagne snacks: Flemish-style white asparagus — a nod to Stroobant's favourite childhood dish growing up in Belgium, Vichyssoise tartlet, and smoked French asparagus with pickled sand carrot. The set of snacks is followed by an amuse-bouche of ginger-infused creamed cauliflower, tarragon jelly, Bafun uni, N25 Oscietra Caviar, ice plant, and Hanaho flowers presented in a caviar tin.
For the seafood course, guests can choose between a Manjimup marron, prepared with Amela tomato, carrot, and marron emulsion, lifted with a galangal consommé; or a Nagasaki sea bass served with Gensuke daikon that is filled with mushroom duxelles and a ginger-infused corn nage (a delicate stock).
The pièce de résistance of the Opulence menu features a pigeon from Anjou, served with a carrot purée, caramelised long shallot, and a special buah keluak (black nut) sauce. This dish is reflective of Stroobant's wife's, Edina Hong's, Peranakan heritage, with the buah keluak sauce being a recipe passed down from Hong's grandmother. The flesh from the black nut is first extracted and deglazed with oxtail consommé before it is reduced and finished with veal sauce. Make a booking at Saint Pierre here.
JAAN by Kirk Westaway
2 MICHELIN Stars, MICHELIN Guide Singapore 2021Price: 6-course menu at S$318++ per person (wine pairing starts at S$80++ for 3 glasses; vegetarian option available)
Address: Level 70, Swissôtel The Stamford, 2 Stamford Rd, Singapore 178882
Known for its Reinventing British gastronomic philosophy, the eponymous two-MICHELIN-starred restaurant atop MICHELIN-listed Swissôtel The Stamford unveils its spring offerings in a refreshed menu that is rooted in chef Kirk Westaway's cherished memories of the season.
“Spring is such an emotive season in the UK, when log fires, cold weather, and dark nights give way to daffodils, a crisp climate, and a bounty of produce. This menu celebrates the best of Spring, transforming humble ingredients with an elevated and delicate approach,” he shares.
Apart from menu signatures such as the British-inspired Snacks and Final Sweets, new dishes on the menu take centrestage such as the White Asparagus and Caviar, where plump and shiny white asparagus is gently braised in milk. Served cold, fine slices of white asparagus sit atop an asparagus custard and are finished with pearls of Kristal caviar and locally sourced flowers. A dish of Cornish Sea Bass and a roasted Scottish scallop are served on a bunch of organic spring greens and brought together with an herbaceous sauce made from sea bass, fresh parsley, chives, and chervil.
Sourced from the Rhug Estate, the Spring Lamb served at JAAN by Kirk Westaway is bred and reared on pastures sown with a selection of herbs and grasses, including chicory, red and white clover, cocksfoot, and timothy, which contribute to the meat's flavour and texture. In this dish, the loin of lamb is roasted and brushed with Dijon mustard and is coated with herbed crumbs. It is served with English green peas encased in an onion and finished off with fresh mint sourced from the hotel’s Aquaponics Farm and a mint sauce. Book a table at JAAN by Kirk Westaway here.
Art
1 MICHELIN Star, MICHELIN Guide Singapore 2021Price: 6-course menu at S$208++ per person; 8-course menu at S$258++ per person
Address: 1 St. Andrew's Road, 178957, Singapore
As described by our MICHELIN Guide inspectors, Art, the stylish restaurant above the National Gallery, not only commands sensational views, but also boasts exquisitely plated courses that are not only rooted in tradition, but are also invigorated by creativity, finesse, and inventive food combinations that always satisfy.
Executive chef Daniele Sperindio describes his latest episodic tasting menu as taking on a more mature perspective. A dish called Cameo alludes to a commercial brand of a panna cotta mix that was loved by Sperindio through the years. In this dish, the classic Italian dessert is reinvented into a savoury preparation, with the pudding infused with the flavours of braised cauliflower and accented with a cloak of smoked Oscietra caviar. In a dish called On the Shinkansen, guineafowl is prepared with liver custard and Kyoto bamboo, laced with a sour cherry sauce — representative of a flashback to Sperindio's days working in Japan at the discovery of amazing new products, along with his particular fondness for Kyoto bamboo shoots.
In Oro Colato, which translates to "liquid gold", ribbons of 32-yolk taglierini are infused with saffron from L'Aquila in central Italy, typically used in risottos, and is one of the first spices used and embraced by Sperindio as he embarked on his culinary journey. The dish is served in a saffron and spanner crab sauce, topped with a row of seasonal sea urchin, and laced with liquorice. According to Sperindio, this dish evokes a lot of nostalgia as it reminds him of his years starting out as a young chef, as well as growing up chewing liquorice sticks as some may do with sugar cane as a child.
The new menu's dessert called Crescendo is inspired by Sperindio's daughter's favourite snacks. It takes the form of a breakfast bowl with edible flakes shaped in miniature cutlery. Referencing Fruttolo, a fruit-flavoured yoghurt-cheese that’s a staple snack of many Italians, colours of the dessert cup are replaced by a confection crafted from stracciatella cheese, candied black olives, blood orange, and pistachio. Reserve a table at Art here.
28Wilkie
1 MICHELIN Star, MICHELIN Guide Singapore 2021Price: 5-course menu at S$228++ per person
Address: 28 Wilkie Road, Singapore 228051
Known as the city's first caviar bar, one-MICHELIN-starred 28Wilkie is praised by our MICHELIN Guide inspectors for its food, which embodies the kitchen team’s modern take on Italian cooking. The restaurant's refreshed spring menu features an array of snacks using ingredients such as yellowtail amberjack, squid, tagliatelle, and sakura ebi.
For the main course, guests can choose between a Kumamoto A4 Wagyu, served with burdock root, Brasato jus, and cauliflower for an additional cost of S$58; or a charcoal-grilled spring lamb saddle, crusted in parsley, and served with burdock root, ras el hanout (an Arabic spice mix), cauliflower, and broccolini, finished off with a sauce of apricot caramel.
To wrap up the meal, a dessert of bavarese (Bavarian cream) features Madagascar vanilla, greek yoghurt, fried pistachio, mint sponge, and a mara des bois (strawberry) ice cream. Book a table at 28Wilkie here.
Cloudstreet
1 MICHELIN Star, MICHELIN Guide Singapore 2021Price: 8-course menu at S$318++ per person (wine pairing option available at $218++ and a non-alcoholic pairing at $128++)
Address: 4 Amoy Street, Singapore 069903
The team at One-MICHELIN-starred Cloudstreet along Amoy street is excited to be back after a much-needed break, and with the restaurant's resumption in operations comes a refreshed menu by chef Rishi Naleendra and his team. One of the new dishes to look forward to comprises charred pearl oyster with tsuyu, and yuzu sorbet.
On the dessert side, pastry chef Maira Yeo — known for her signature desserts such as Celtuce, Yuzu, Green Chilli, Yoghurt and Celeriac Ice Cream, Pickled Guava, Fried Capers, Vanilla Rose — adds a new sweet treat to round off a meal at Cloudstreet: Soursop Sorbet, Juniper Berries, Jambu, Kaffir Lime.
Should guests fancy some wine to go with their meal, a wine pairing is available, as well as a non-alcoholic beverage pairing option. Make a reservation at Cloudstreet here.
Putien (Kitchener Road)
1 MICHELIN Star, MICHELIN Guide Singapore 2021Price: $43.80++ for two dishes
Address: 127 Kitchener Road, 208514, Singapore
It's that time of the year again when Putien's famed Duotou clams are in season. With the origin of its name from the Duotou Village of Putian, the one-MICHELIN-starred Fujian restaurant along Kitchener Road is serving nine Duotou clam dishes of different styles.
What makes these clams special is that they are caught in the black mud of the Duotou tidal flat, in the lower reaches of the Mulan River in Putian, where the seawater and fresh water meet with practically no sand. This yields to a bounty of razor clams that are plump and tender.
From now until mid-July, patrons of Putien (Kitchener Road) can enjoy two of the nine different Duotou clam dishes for a wallet-friendly price of $43.80++.
The nine styles of dishes using Duotou clams include the classic Salt-baked Duotou Clams, which come sizzling while preserving the clams' natural sweetness. It is studded with baubles of Szechuan Peppercorns on a bed of sea salt. A new take on the sought-after shellfish are the Spicy Fried Duotou Clams, which is a Sichuan-inspired dish. Here, the clams are toasted over high fire, with a touch of spice.
Another featured classic are the Steamed Duotou Clams with Minced Garlic, where the clams are steamed in aromatic garlic and drizzled with hot oil. Minced garlic is piled evenly on each clam’s meaty body, filling each bite with the fragrance of garlic. The Duotou Clams Baked in Fujian Old Wine is a traditional local cooking method where Fujian Old Wine and clams are added into a pot to steam. The old wine triggers the clams to release their natural sweetness, which result to a sweet-and-savoury dish.
Other Duotou clam dishes highlighted in the menu are the Red Mushroom Duotou Clam Soup, Putian Farmhouse Clam Soup, Salt and Pepper Duotou Clams, Scrambled Eggs with Duotou Clams, and Duotou Clams Steeped in Icy Lees. Don't miss out and enjoy this seasonal specialty at Putien (Kitchener Road) until mid-July. Book a table at Putien (Kitchener Road) here.
Sommer
1 MICHELIN Star, MICHELIN Guide Singapore 2021Price: Tasting menus range from S$218++ to S$268++ per person (wine pairing options available)
Address: 2 Marina Boulevard, Singapore 018987
At Sommer, chef Lewis Barker welcomes the brightness and vibrance of spring with a refreshed menu that celebrates the season of awakening.
Opening the meal is a dish of Loire Valley White Asparagus served with botan ebi, smoked mussel, and N25 Oscietra caviar, followed by Barker's version of a Morel Farci, prepared with langoustine, petit pois (small peas), jamon, wild garlic, and a Vin Jaune sauce.
The highlight takes the form of a roasted lobster served with a black truffle cannelloni and artichoke. The dish is finished table-side with a classic sauce Américaine made from the roasted lobster heads and refreshed with cognac just before serving. Make a booking at Sommer here.
Preludio
MICHELIN-recommend Restaurant MICHELIN Guide Singapore 2021Price: Tasting menus are priced from S$118++ to S$238++ per person
Address: 182 Cecil Street, Frasers Tower Level 3, Singapore 069657
Preludio is back with its new menu called Author's Cuisine, which is a reflection of chef Fernando Arévalo's autobiographical narrative, focusing on his Colombian-Italian heritage, South American roots, and culinary journeys across New York, Hong Kong, and Singapore.
The refreshed menu includes dishes that are personally familiar to Arévalo, with elevated flavours and ingredients. Ajiaco is an ode to Bogota, where Arévalo grew up in. It is a variation of the city's popular chicken and potato broth, and Arévalo does his rendition of it with Bresse chicken and three types of potatoes flavoured with the Latin American herb, guascas. It is served with sliced avocado, capers, and a crown of French Bresse chicken breast marinated in Japanese corn and butter.
Arévalo recalls one of his favourite homemade pastas: spaghetti in tomato base with beef rolls on the side. This is a dish rooted from family tradition in weekly pasta nights with his Italian mother and grandfather. Reimagined in Preludio, freshly made spaghetti is flanked by a parcel of Toriyama wagyu beef layered with homemade datterini tomato (date tomato) paste, fermented garlic, and parsley. Monikered “Mother Knows Best”, this is Arévalo's tribute to his single mother who raised him on her own.
Also on the menu is La Guajira, a dish of lobster topped with slivers of crispy patacones (fried plantain), served with thinly sliced hearts of palm, bathed in a sweet onion broth with a whisper of coconut milk. This is Arévalo's ode to the northern Colombian coastal desert of La Guajira, which was bountiful in palm-lined beaches. In this dish, he reminisces family road trips as a child where he came up close to the ocean for the first time. Book a table at Preludio here.
il Cielo
MICHELIN-recommend Restaurant MICHELIN Guide Singapore 2021Price: Mains start from S$28++
Address: Level 24, voco Orchard Singapore 581 Orchard Road, Singapore 238883
For guests in the mood for casual Italian food, il Cielo has recently launched a new menu featuring an array of appetisers, mains, desserts, and cocktails. Specialties include the Fritto Misto, a traditional Amalfi fried seafood assortment, which has calamari, prawn, soft shell crab, and whitebait, along with vegetables and served with a lemon aioli. Pasta and pizza options are also available such as a Granchio & Asparagi, a pasta dish of black ink angel hair, crab meat ragout, green asparagus, cherry tomato; and a Prosciutto Parma pizza that features fior di latte, mozzarella, 20-months Parma ham, arugula, and parmesan cheese.
As it is the season of spring, a white asparagus menu will be available until 31 May 2022, highlighting mains such as a Risotto al Tomino that features white asparagus and grilled Piedmont Tomino cheese; and a dish called Merluzzo that highlights an almond-crusted cod fillet served with white asparagus, gorgonzola, and mussels.
