Occupying the space where Introbar once stood, The Stamford Brasserie is a stylish new café decked out in the style of a classic French brasserie. Daylight pours in from floor-to-ceiling windows that look out onto the sidewalk, illuminating the industrial-chic interiors complete with marbled tabletops, retro mosaic tile accents on the floor and a sleek open kitchen.
Chef de cuisine Tryson Quek arrives with a steaming plate of gnocchi bathed in a dreamy Cep butter sauce. “With a lot of gnocchi, you’re getting one part flour and two parts potato, sometimes even one to one. Here, we make our gnocchi with three parts potato and one part flour, so it’s softer and fluffier,” he says. “It’s comfort food, just like how your mom might make it.”
The multi-concept restaurant boasts a bistro, a craft beer bar and a grab-and-go counter, but comfort food, well-made and nutritious, is at the heart of The Stamford Brasserie. Tryson has created a menu that is charmingly down-to-earth, inspired by his experiences working in the kitchens of Prego, JAAN and Anti:dote the last 14 years.
The 31-year-old first got his start cooking at 17 when he won a sponsorship to attend a local culinary school. “My very first attachment was at JAAN. It was really tough for a young boy and I remember getting bashed by potatoes and slapped with chives,” he says, laughing at the memory.
After his national service, Tryson returned to Fairmont Singapore and Swissôtel The Stamford and honed his culinary skills as a Research & Development Chef in the kitchens of some of the hotels' key restaurants.
After his national service, Tryson returned to Fairmont Singapore and Swissôtel The Stamford and honed his culinary skills as a Research & Development Chef in the kitchens of some of the hotels' key restaurants.
“That’s when I met my wife,” he says. Back then, his wife Bannie Kang was a waitress at the former City Space, a bar on the 70th floor of the hotel. “I didn’t even dare to look up from chopping vegetables and talk to her when she came around for ice.”
Now, Kang is an award-winning mixologist and head craftsman at Anti:dote, where Tryson still helms the kitchen. The husband-and-wife team serve up cocktails and tapas that are, well, a match made in heaven. “A lot of the items on the menu at The Stamford Brasserie are inspired by my wife as well,” Tryson says. “I used to hate beetroot but my wife is health conscious and loves it.”
He found a delicious way to rid beetroot of its earthy odour by pickling and cooking sweet local beetroot in orange juice, and incorporates it into a refreshing salad with kale, berries, avocado and a tart berry vinaigrette.
Now, Kang is an award-winning mixologist and head craftsman at Anti:dote, where Tryson still helms the kitchen. The husband-and-wife team serve up cocktails and tapas that are, well, a match made in heaven. “A lot of the items on the menu at The Stamford Brasserie are inspired by my wife as well,” Tryson says. “I used to hate beetroot but my wife is health conscious and loves it.”
He found a delicious way to rid beetroot of its earthy odour by pickling and cooking sweet local beetroot in orange juice, and incorporates it into a refreshing salad with kale, berries, avocado and a tart berry vinaigrette.
The chef’s personal touch extends to the selection of beers available at the bar. Complementing the outlet menu is also a specially curated collection of 22 craft beers from Singapore, Japan, Australia and Jamaica, among others, as well as six draught beers ranging from Guinness and Erdinger to the well-loved Singaporean Tiger and Archipelago Tok Gong. In the pipeline are plans for collaborations with craft beer breweries to create special beer-and-food pairing menus.
The Stamford Brasserie
Swissôtel The Stamford, 2 Stamford Road, Level 1
Tel: +65 6431 6156
