Restaurant André | Singapore | Aug ’11 | “first shoots”

Address: 41 Bukit Pasoh Rd, Singapore 089855

Phone: +65 6534 8880

One from the memory vaults, this review is largely historical, and concerns the 2011 menu of Restaurant André. (For a more updated review, check out my Aug ’13 double-header review.) The restaurant is one of the first serious French restaurants that I remember going to, my previous fine-dining experience having been focused on the Chinese restaurants in Singapore. So this visit marks one of my first forays into Western fine-dining. This was a highly ambitious meal, and the review is reconstructed from the tasting notes I took on my iPhone on that night.

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Amuse-bouches

Onion Chips (sweet)

Chicken Marsala Skin (wafer thin)

Fish roll

Vanilla Popcorn

FIsh and Chips in Chocolate Garlic Soil

This was the best version of the chocolate garlic soil I have had in my 3 visits (first time’s the charm). The fish and surrounding potato chips were perfectly salted, and ingeniously constructed, and contrasted well with the chocolate and garlic flavours. There’s a video on Youtube demonstrating the preparation technique for these amuses.

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Mains

“Pure” – 8 Tomatoes, Tomato Puree, Tomato Pineapple, Tomato Licorice (4.75/5)

A very pretty dish, the “licorice tomato” (which I can’t find any Google hits for) had a complex flavour. I believe that this had perhaps the most interesting-tasting tomatoes I had yet encountered.

“Salt” – Oyster Seaweed and Sea Grapes + Granny Smith Foam (5/5)

The sea grapes (a form of seaweed) had an interesting, caviar-like texture, which was draped on top of a succulent oyster.

Artisan: Aubergine terrine with caviar sandwiching finely chopped cockscomb. Fried slivers of burdock root. (4.75/5)

Very similar to the Artisan dish on my 3rd visit (the caviar was replaced by excellent fried ducks’ tongues).

“South” (left) Flounder over Tomato, Cucumber Basil Sorbet, White Peach Slices (3.75/5)

“South” (right) Risotto base, Mackerel, Clams, Pamplona Prawn, Blue Crab Foam (4.75/5)

I found the risotto very good and with exceedingly good seafood, but the coral plate (left plate) left me cold. This trend of liking the pasta (risotto or capellini) plate much better than the coral plate carried through my 2nd and 3rd visits).

“Texture” – Squid and Rice (5/5)

This is an extremely cunning dish. While one might expect that squid would be the one coloured black from its ink, and the bits of white lower on the plate the rice – the opposite is true. The white bits lower on the plate, are actually finely diced squid cunningly disguised as risotto, and the black bit is a rice cracker, with no colouring and taking its colour completely from careful charring. Peas were under the rice. Full marks for toying with my expectations.

“Unique” – Artichoke, white wine butter foam, baby barracuda, with Beurre Blanc. (4.25/5)

This was quite similar to the barigoule I had on my second visit to Andre 2 years later. The combination worked decently well, but was not mind-blowing taste wise.

“Memory” – Warm Foie Gras Cream with Black Truffle Jelly (5/5)

“Terroir” – Braised French Pigeon with Garlic Soil, Braised Mustard seeds. Potato, pea, mind, tarragon, dehydrated olives (4.5/5)

An excellently cooked pigeon.

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Dessert

Snacks

Bernard Antony’s Cheese plate

Wild strawberries + marshmallows with ice (4/5)

Dessert: Burnt Butter Ice cream, Chocolate Sphere, Chocolate Sponge, Chocolate Chip

I’m sure this tasted good, but this diner unfortunately suffers from the embarrassing malaise that I’ve had chocolate dessert in almost every way you can make chocolate. Pudding, mousse, lava cake, torte, tart, sponge, soil… I’ve had them all and my palate is 90% jaded when it comes to chocolate. So I confess, I don’t really remember the tastes of 99% of chocolate desserts, other than the meta-data that they were probably very good. Doesn’t help that I’m blogging about this meal 2 years after. Sorry!

Honey-hazelnut Madeleine

Capsicum-Passionfruit Marshmallow

White Chocolate Popcorn with Surprise (Pop Rocks)

Fig with citrus skin

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One of the advantage of these memory lane trips is that you really know what you remember 2 years out. So here’s what I remember:

Memory: Fish-and-chips in Chocolate Garlic Soil (amuse), Oyster with Sea Grapes (Salt), Squid and Rice (Texture), Popcorn with Pop rocks (Mignardises), 8 Tomatoes (Pure)

It’s quite impressive that at this time, Andre was only about a year old, but many of the signature dishes had already taken form, and many of the dishes we had in 2013 had clear genealogy from their 2011 incarnations. Where Andre has improved significantly is in its desserts. Whereas in 2011 we were served a good but unmemorable chocolate dessert, in 2013 we were served such flights of fancy as the Crystal Snickers, hugely memorable and tasty. This may be down to the influence of Makito Hiratsuka, the current chef patissier of Restaurant Andre.

Verdict: 18/20

Burnt Ends | Singapore | Aug ’13 | “850 degrees Celsius”

Address: 20 Teck Lim Road Singapore 088391

Number: 6224 3933

Cooking with fats is not the only way to maximize flavor. The Japanese intensify flavor by aging, cooking over a wood-burning fire, or using a pure umami-rich dashi broth. – Adam Goldberg, A Life Worth Eating

Building on Pynt’s pop-up BBQ concept – Burnt Enz – at East London in the summer of 2012, the Singapore incarnation  (aptly named Burnt Ends) puts the spotlight on what Pynt described as a “4 tonne double cavity wood-burning machine” – a custom-built brick kiln with 2 cavities (each capable of a different temperature setting) where apple and almond wood fuels the fire that tips 700+ degree Celsius in temperature. – Bibikgourmand.

Burnt Ends is a one-of-a-kind barbecue place in Singapore, offering the most sophisticated barbecuing facilities on this island. With great ventilation (I sat less than 5m from a 850 centigrade oven and barely felt any warmth), this small establishment is always packed. There are only 17 seats at the bar, 6-8 seats at a banquet table, and another 6 seats at a countertop stool. It is run by a Perth native, David Pynt, who was a former sous-chef at Asador Extebarri, ranked by San Pellegrino as one of the World’s 50 Best restaurants.

Chinatown (and more specifically the Bukit Pasoh) now plays host to a range of high-concept eateries. This is in large part due to Loh Lik Peng, the New Majestic Hotel owner, who has invested and partnered with leading chefs such as Andre Chiang, Jason Atherton, and now David Pynt – to set up places such as Restaurant Andre, Esquina and Keong Saik snacks, among others. To think that 5 years ago, Chinatown had none of these places! No wonder they say a restaurant is the quickest way to gentrify an area.

Burnt Ends also now does lunch from 1130 to 2, and they have a banquet table (minimum 100/person spend). Reservations can be made for the first seatings at 6-630pm.

Whopping fish (for the banquet table)

Warmed Oysters (4.5/5)

Oysters, served on a bed of salt, in a citrusy marinade. Slightly warmed for a minute, great “amuse-bouche”.

Smoked Quail Eggs (4.25/5)

Strong taste of smoke in the whites of these quail eggs. These are perceived as Burnt Ends “signature dish”, so they prepare many of these at a time. They came a bit cold, with runny yolk, and salt sprinkled on them. Decent but not amazing.

Squid, Sweetcorn and Paprika (4.75/5)

Nice fresh semi-translucent squid. A paprika I wanted to finish off the plate, with slightly roasted kernels of corn that were still juicy. The charred spring onion had a delicious sweet interior. (Restaurant Andre works with similar ingredients in similar ways, a roasted corn kernel in Artisan #1 (figure A), and charred leek (figure B))

Figure A

Figure B

Now, back to Burnt Ends!

St Marcellin and Toast (4.75/5)

St Marcellin has been one of my favorite cheeses ever since I tried it in a Lyon bouchon. My ideal St Marcellin is runny, mild but funky in taste, and only a little spicy from the mold. This St Marcellin (sourced from the Culina distributor) had the right amount of spiciness, and it was roasted and finished in the oven. The smokiness on the cheese rind went well with the toast.

If you go to Lyon, you’ll find Saint Marcellin pretty much everywhere. It’s the best-known cheese from that region, and the user friendly-sized disks are inevitably piled high at each and every cheese shop you step in to. Locals bake them at home and slide the warm disks onto salads, and I’ve not been to a restaurant in that city that didn’t have Saint Marcellin on the menu doing double-duty as the cheese or the dessert course. Or both. At the outdoor market stands, you can see how popular they are withles Lyonnais. And if you don’t believe me, their presence is so pervasive that I once bought a ticket on the bus in Lyon and instead of change, the driver handed me a ripe Saint Marcellin instead. – David Lebovitz.

Veal Tongue, Mustard and Beer Pickles (5/5)

I wanted to get the most skill-ful barbecue dishes that was in that restaurant, so I asked the front of house: “what’s your most complex dish?” I was directed to the veal tongue. Roasted and soaked for 6 hours to tenderise, and then roasted, this veal tongue had the texture of soft sponge. It was accompanied by a delectable salad of pickles and veggies with mustard sauce.

Banana and Caramel (4/5)

Very sweet caramel ice cream with a well-roasted banana.

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Burnt Ends is an unique addition to the Singapore dining scene. Judging by the packed house, it’ll be here for some time yet! The barbecue was skillful, and I enjoyed it very much.

Verdict: 16/20

Memory: Veal Tongue, St Marcellin and Toast.

Restaurant André | Singapore | 31/07/13 and 10/08/13 | “octaphilosophy”

• Address: 41 Bukit Pasoh Rd, Singapore 089855
• Phone: +65 6534 8880
•  Price (after tax + tip, excl. drinks): $350
• Courses: (11-12 main/18-19 total) 3 amuse / 1 bread / 8 main / 3-4 desserts / 3 mignardises
• Price/Main Course: $29-32
• Rating: 16/20 or 19.5/20
• Value: 1/5 or 2/5
• Dining Time: 200 minutes
• Time/Course (total): 11 minutes
• Chef: Andre Chiang (ex. Pierre Gagnaire, L’Atelier de Joel Robuchon, L’Astrance, La Maison Troisgros, Le Jardin des Sens)
• Style: Avant-garde French

This was my 2nd and 3rd time at Andre. My 1st time at Andre in 2011 was when I really discovered the fine dining scene in general. I was very eager to revisit the scene of a dinner that made a big impression on me, for its creativity and whimsy. There has also been a subtle shift in his philosophy. When I went in 2011, Chef Andre said he did not believe in molecularising food, and forcing produce into predefined pigeonholes. While Andre is all about letting the produce speak for itself, Andre seems to have co-opted some molecular tricks in his cooking, judging by my two meals in 2013.

Restaurant Andre gets a box of ingredients every morning, with the ingredients sourcers given only the instruction to get what is freshest in the market. Chef Andre and his team then decide what meal to serve based on the ingredients in the mystery box, but always structured according to the Octaphilosophy – “Pure Salt Artisan South Texture Unique Memory Terroir”. Therefore dining at Andre is like jazz, the kitchen will always hit the 8 notes of octaphilosophy, but what specific form it takes may only be finalised at the last minute. What this means is that Andre can be hit or miss. My meal on Wednesday was very good, but somehow seemed a bit tired, as if the same dishes were being served by the kitchen for a while now. And indeed the same menu has been served for a while now: check out Julian Teoh’s meal from October 2012, which is exactly the same except for Main #8 Terroir, where he was served rabbit. Julian Teoh, BTW, is a very fine writer and food blogger. The same menu (again, except Main #8 Terroir) was given a mixed review in April 2013 by a couple of Singapore food bloggers.

(Caveat: Evelyn Chen of Bibikgourmand seem to have had a different Summer 2012 menu.)

So the same menu was served to me on Wednesday. While I thought it was technically excellent cooking, I wanted to see a different side of the kitchen. For my second 2013 outing at Andre, I expressed my desire to see the kitchen change it up. What followed was a whirlwind of creativity, one of the best meals I have ever had. The same food had an ineffable pizazz, a vibrant creativity that captures the magic of Andre’s octaphilosophy. As a diner who indulges in meals to experience the creativity of chefs, the second dinner was simply stunning.

Chef Andre always has a post-prandial chat with his diners. Apparently the restaurant has no recipe bank at all, no database of dishes. It’s all in Andre’s memory, or in the memory of his sous-chef who’s been with him for 10 years. Since Andre doesn’t have a recipe, he draws pictures, and the staff will try to figure out from the drawings how to create the dish.

Chef Andre’s favorite restaurants on his nights out are: Burnt Ends (chef Andre’s other restaurant), inspired by Extebarri in San Sebastian, also in the World’s Top 50 restaurant list. The two restaurants close on different days. [Andre closes Monday; Burnt Ends closes Sunday]; Teppei, an izakaya. Few can get in right now, since it’s fully-booked until the end of the year. The chef at Teppei does an omakase menu for $40, $60, $80; and Red Star, an old Chinese dim sum place, which looks like it comes from the 70s. (also one of the few remaining places in Singapore for paper wrapped chicken)

I was really impressed with was Andre’s book collection, starring such tomes from Herve This (father of molecular gastronomy), and international chefs such as Charlie Trotter‘s. In his spare time, Andre confesses not to reading much cooking books, preferring to read books on design, or doing pottery (he makes over half of the restaurants Andre dishes, and has designed an extremely chic coffee cup, which you can see on Julian Teoh’s post)

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Octaphilosophy Menu 31/07/2013

1. Lobster Sandwich
2. Chicken Masala
3. Potato Bravas
4. “Fish and Chips”
5. Porcini Crispy
6. Pure: Seafood on Arrival/Wild Herbs/Kelp Coulis (Dehydrated Olives)
7. Salt: “Undersea forest” (salt without salt) Gillardeau Oyster/ Sea Corals/ Granny Smith Apple Mousse/ Caviar
8. Artisan: Mais/ Salsify/ Sesame Salt/ Smoked Eggplant
9. South: Heirloom Tomato/ Tomate – Ananas / Sea Urchin Risotto
10. Texture: Homard Bleu/ “Airy” Gnocchi/ St Jacques Creme Anglaise
11. Unique: Barigoule Artichokes/ Granny Smith Apple Kisu/ Olives/ Tomato Confit
12. Memory: Warm Foie Gras Jelly with Perigord Black Truffle Coulis
13. Terroir: Canard de Challan/ Braised Mustard Seeds/ Charcoaled Baby Leeks.
14. Pre-dessert #1: (to refresh) Apple/ Fennel/ Cucumber Sorbet/ Eucalyptus
15. Pre-dessert #2: Wild Berry Shaved Ice/ Honey/ Fig
16. Dessert: Snickers 2013
17. Mignardises: “Popcorn” Chocolate
18. Amarena Cherry Madeleine
19. Strawberry Sangria Chupa Chups
20. Coffee Licorice Marshmallow
21. French Earl Grey Crystalline

1. Lobster Sandwich
2. Chicken Masala
3. Potato Bravas
4. “Fish and Chips”
5. Porcini Crispy

Main #1 Pure: Seafood on Arrival/Wild Herbs/Kelp Coulis (5/5)

Clockwise from 6 o’clock: Homard Bleu Lobster, cucumber hat, abalone (?) + pickled onion (?), red cabbage puree (?),

cucumber core cylinder, the rest of the amaebi prawn + Japanese chive, smoked rock fish??? + herb???, smoked mussel

Centre: Kelp coulis with hay-smoked bouchot mussel

A great combination of textures. Andre’s wife Pam told us that we should discover our own version of the dish by mixing the ingredients together at our own whimsy. Great pure flavors.

Main #2 Salt: “Undersea forest” (salt without salt) Gillardeau Oyster/ Sea Corals/ Granny Smith Apple Mousse/ Caviar  (4.5/5)

A very pretty dish, reminiscent of an undersea forest. The theme was getting the natural salty flavors of the sea, without using actual salt. Oyster, seaweed, and green apples has been a mainstay of Andre’s cooking of Salt since the beginning of the restaurant.

(The Summer 2011 Salt dish I had was “Black Label Oyster, Seaweed, Sea Grapes, Granny Smith Foam”)

What I felt this Salt dish lacked was that the foam did not mix strongly with the oyster tartare; my hypothesis is that the green apple foam goes down the throat much faster than the oyster tartare, which is slowly chewed, so the ingredients didn’t a chance to mix.

As one might expect, the eye-candy decorations don’t taste very strongly, and the seaweed foams also didn’t get to interact much.

Main #3 Artisan: Mais/ Salsify/ Sesame Salt/ Smoked Corn (4.5/5)

Smoked corn, which tasted like a fairly sweet but ordinary young corn, was placed before us. At the side, corn cream and deep fried gobo, which is Japanese for burdock root. The right side was spectacular in taste, featuring individually roasted and crinkly brown, salty, ears of corn. The left was a boiled corn. And beforehand, Pam let us taste the sweetness of the corn leaf, which was as sweet as sugarcane.

(If they feed that to grass-fed cows, I can only imagine the delightful results. According to Mark Schatzker’s book on steak, grass-fed steak is delicious proportional to the amount of sugar in the grass).

Main #4 South: Heirloom Tomato/ Tomate – Ananas / Sea Urchin Risotto (4.75/5)

The risotto was well-prepared, and (the vinegared rice + green oil “caviar” + the raw uni + smoked fruits de la mer) that made up the risotto gave it the appearance of deconstructed sushi. The sorbet of sour plum (the coral plate of South) was paired with a bitter pear (which made things interesting) and tart cutting tomatoes (which I didn’t quite like).

Main #5 Texture: Homard Bleu/ “Airy” Gnocchi/ St Jacques Creme Anglaise (5/5)

For me, the first 5/5 cooked dish of the night. St Jacques Creme Anglaise, which is a “creme anglaise” made from scallop and olive oil, was paired with one-ingredient potato gnocchi, 100% made of potato (no flour, no egg), with blue lobster lightly roasted, that had a great crunchiness. Technically excellent cooking. The gnocchi melting in the mouth and was on the verge of disintegration. This was superb.

How did chef cook his 1-ingredient gnocchi?

Main #6 Unique: Barigoule Artichokes/ Granny Smith Apple Kisu/ Olives/ Tomato Confit (4.75/5)

Technically excellent crisped Kisu (a Japanese fish) rolls, in an extra-acidic wine sauce. This is a barigoule, “a traditional Provençal dish of artichokes braised with onions, garlic and carrots in a seasoned broth of wine and water”. The Japanese needlefish was seared on the outside, and then stuffed with its own tartare.

Main #7 Memory: Warm Foie Gras Jelly with Perigord Black Truffle Coulis (5/5)

Andre manages to make the foie gras jelly with a skin on top, which a wooden spoon gently pierces. Very rustic, and incredible dish. Julian Teoh has a great paragraph on this dish –

“Chiang invented this dish back in the 1990s with the Pourcels, and it has been on his menus ever since in some shape or form (see the foie gras photo above).  I had it many times at Jaan and loved it always.  The gelée seems warmer than from what I recall of the Jaan version, and the coulis seemed more runny and there’s more of it; presumably the old thicker version was meant to envelope the morels.  This version is lighter and more pared back and, I think, works better as part of a multi-course tasting as a result.  Truffles are from Perigord, Marhoul tells me, and is a very rare (perhaps the only?) exception to Chiang’s obsession with seasonality.  As a signature dish, it needs to be on the menu all year, so during the off-season (like now), they are made from frozen specimens.”

Main #8 Terroir: Canard de Challans/ Braised Mustard Seeds/ Charcoaled Baby Leeks. (5/5)

A marvelous crisp croquette with a meaty interior, accompanying the famous (and perfectly roasted Challans duck). Leek ash added an interesting burnt sweetness to the dish. Presented in the traditional Andre yin-yang style, the jus from the meat completing the shape of mousse below.

Pre-dessert #1: (to refresh) Apple/ Fennel/ Cucumber Sorbet/ Eucalyptus

A refreshing dessert. Pam told us that eucalyptus represented the spa, but I’m pretty sure she was joking.

Pre-dessert #2: Wild Berry Shaved Ice/ Honey/ Fig

Another refreshing dessert. This was my first indication that chef Andre had picked up some molecular techniques between 2011 and 2013. Perhaps this is down to Japanese chef pâtissier Makito Hiratsuka who has worked at the avant-garde El Bulli, and El Celler de Can Roca. 

For comparison, the pre-dessert in 2011 was Wild Strawberries with Marshmallow in Ice.

Dessert: Snickers 2013 (4.5/5)

While a very good dessert and rendition of the Snickers taste, this 2013 edition of Snickers has the soil-syndrome, where the soil-texture can sometimes make eating a spoonful of Snickers seem like anonymous sweetness. The kitchen has a much more powerful rendition of this dish called “Crystal Snickers” (see next meal).

1. Mignardises: “Popcorn” Chocolate
2. Amarena Cherry Madeleine
3. Strawberry Sangria Chupa Chups
4. Coffee Licorice Marshmallow (not pictured, but will be shown in next meal)
5. French Earl Grey Crystalline

A lovely bunch of mignardises to end the meal. The white chocolate sangria chupa chups are very, very good.

A technically excellent meal. There are about seven main variables to a restaurant Andre meal (the six Octaphilosophy elements besides Pure, which depends on the seasonal incredients, and Memory, which is always foie gras chawanmushi, plus dessert). In those seven main variables, I felt that two (Texture: one-ingredient gnocchi with blue lobster, and Terroir: Challans duck) really hit the heights.

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Octaphilosophy Menu 10/08/2013

1. Popcorn & Vanilla
2. Lobster Sandwich
3. Potato Bravas
4. “Fish and Chips”
5. Porcini Crispy
6. Pure: Seafood on Arrival/Wild Herbs/Kelp Coulis
7. Salt: “Conch” (salt without salt) Oyster Ice Cream/ Granny Smith Apple Espuma/ Seaweed Salad/ Sea Coral
8. Artisan: Braised Aubergine/ Cockscomb/ Crispy Duck Tongues
9. Texture: Kelp risotto/ Seafood on Arrival/ Swiss Chard Crispy
10. South: Smoked basil cappellini with bottarga/ Warm Toro Vinaigrette/ Toasted Baby Eel Persillade
11. Unique: Potato Salad/ Scallop Ravioli/ Sea Urchin/ Truffle Apple Chiffonade
12. Memory: Warm Foie Gras Jelly with Perigord Black Truffle Coulis
13. Terroir: Pork Belly cooked in Butter/ Spelt/ Apricot Ragout/ Broccoli Mousse.
14. Pre-dessert #1: “Ispahan” Lychee Nata de Coco Jelly/ Rose Espuma/ Freeze-dried raspberries
15. Pre-dessert #2: (to refresh) Apple/ Fennel/ Cucumber Sorbet/ Lychee Shots
16. Pre-dessert #3: (what you see is what you get) Melon Soup/ Muscat Grapes/ Bitter Almond
17. Dessert: Crystal Snickers
18. Mignardises: “Popcorn” Chocolate
19. Amarena Cherry Madeleine
20. Strawberry Sangria Chupa Chups
21. Coffee Licorice Marshmallow
22. French Earl Grey Crystalline

1. Popcorn & Vanilla
2. Lobster Sandwich
3. Potato Bravas
4. “Fish and Chips”
5. Porcini Crispy

I felt similarly about this as a week earlier. I appreciated the still-crunchy texture of the lobster roll (literal roll), and I was pleasantly surprised to find that the amaebi prawn head (all crisped up and ready to go) served well as a spoon for Chef’s delicious chocolate garlic soil (5/5).

Main #1 “Pure” – Seafood on Arrival/Wild Herbs/Kelp Coulis (5/5)

Clockwise from 6 o’clock: Homard Bleu Lobster, cucumber hat, abalone (?) + pickled onion (?), red cabbage puree (?),

cucumber core cylinder, the rest of the amaebi prawn + Japanese chive, smoked rock fish??? + herb???, smoked mussel

Centre: Kelp coulis with hay-smoked bouchot mussel

Pure is Andre’s unseasoned and uncooked dish. The textures went perfectly with each other, and the quenelle of cream in the centre was great.

Main #2 “Salt” – “Conch” (salt without salt) Oyster Ice Cream/ Granny Smith Apple Espuma/ Seaweed Salad/ Sea Coral (5/5)

This is one of Restaurant Andre’s great dishes. It was introduced by Stepan Marhoul, restaurant Andre’s manager. Oyster ice cream, which has to be made with the flesh of firmer oysters and not the creamier ones, was perfectly cold and tasted of the cold, salty sea. Underneath the oyster ice cream, which had a firm texture, was a small oyster. Green apple, which seems to be one of the kitchen’s favorite ingredients, is here a foam, set beside the ice cream. Served on an oyster shell in a bed of coral salt. A very tricky and technically perfect dish.

Comparison: It had one major advantage over the oyster tartare version of Salt (“Salt A”) on my previous meal. I felt that since  the foam and the ice cream (“Salt B”) were of similar textures, they mixed better together and had the flavor combination that the kitchen was aiming for. With the oyster tartare, the foam did not taste as strongly, and my hypothesis is that it was because the green apple foam goes down the throat much faster than the oyster tartare, which is slowly chewed, so the ingredients didn’t a chance to mix flavours too much.

Main #3 “Artisan” – Braised Aubergine/ Cockscomb/ Crispy Duck Tongues (5/5)

An eggplant terrine which my knife went through like melted butter, and yet preserved structural right-angled integrity, with crisp roasted duck tongues that had internal taste of foie gras, and a crisp roasted texture that formed a salty, fatty skin around melt-in-the-mouth tongues, sandwiching chopped cockscomb. Impressive cooking technique for the eggplant, and the duck tongues. I loved this dish.

On the right: Deep fried burdock root on a smoked eggplant root. A great accompaniment.

Where does Chef Andre get these duck tongues?

Main #4 “Texture” – Kelp risotto/ Seafood on Arrival/ Swiss Chard Crispy (5/5)

Dehydrated sea kelp, risotto at a right and hearty warm-hot temperature. Citrus coulis?. Seared seabass and dehydrated kelp. An inviting dish which I’ll confess to wolfing down.

Main #5 “South” –  Smoked basil cappellini with bottarga/ Warm Toro Vinaigrette/ Toasted Baby Eel Persillade 

(5/5 for cappellini)

Andre consistently takes a two-dish approach to South, representing Acidity, Colour and Generosity. I’ve talked about the coral plate, so I’ll mention that the smoked basil capellini had a texture like QQ-wonton mee. It went deliciously with bottarga, which I was told is similar to bonito shavings in Japan. The vinaigrette was made from tuna belly drippings. A hearty noodle.

Left: Lychee yuzu sorbet with tomato and hamachi; Right: Cappellini broccoli sauce, oil drippings from roasting toro made into a vinaigrette

Main #6 “Unique” – Potato Salad/ Scallop Ravioli/ Sea Urchin/ Truffle Apple Chiffonade (5/5)

Served on a hot stone, this dish was newly created by the kitchen. A warm ball of potato topped with shaved scallop and sea urchin. Contrasted well with green apple matchsticks (chiffonade) and St Jacques Creme Anglais (a scallop sauce). Served on a warm hearty stone.

I accidentally didn’t take photos of the full-dish (it looked too delicious), but this dish tasted and looked masterful. You’ll just have to imagine four risotto balls orbiting a pool of St Jacques creme Anglaise. The cloud of potato melted in my mouth with the shaved scallop remaining, the sourness of green apple complementing the uni and scallop.

Main #7 “Memory” – Warm Foie Gras Jelly with Perigord Black Truffle Coulis (5/5)

As always, incredible. Love the film on the foie gras jelly.

Main #8 “Terroir” – Pork Belly cooked in Butter/ Spelt/ Apricot Ragout/ Broccoli Mousse. (4.75/5)

This course was the sledge-hammer of the meal. I began to feel really full from this point onwards. The pork, was perfectly roasted, but was a bit tasteless in the middle (the white bit). The broccoli mousse makes a reprise from the smoked basil cappellini. What was most fascinating was the spelt + red quinoa + apricot granola in the middle. It was an inspired mix of cooked and roasted spelt, and roasted red quinoa. It looked and tasted like an ancient cereal gruel.

Pre-dessert #1: “Ispahan” Lychee Nata de Coco Jelly/ Rose Espuma/ Freeze-dried raspberries (5/5)

Andre’s tribute to Pierre Herme’s famous Ispahan pastry. Three different textures – crunchy freeze dried raspberries (simulating the macaron layer), rose foam (simulating the rose cream) and lychee nata de coco (simulating the lychee fruit) combined. Whimsical and imaginative.

 Pre-dessert #2: (to refresh) Apple/ Fennel/ Cucumber Sorbet/ Lychee Shots 

A pre-dessert to refresh – very light and palate cleansing.

Pre-dessert #3: (what you see is what you get) Melon Soup/ Muscat Grapes/ Bitter Almond (4.5/5)

A dish that doesn’t hide its flavors from you. A technically well executed dish, especially the pretty jelly of sliced muscat grapes.

Dessert: Crystal Snickers (5/5)

A thin, hard sugar containing all elements of the snickers bar. Brought to life by Makito Hiratsuka. It was the concentrated essence of a snickers bar in a crystal ball.

Food: André’s cooking is an expression of his skills and his training.  His much-vaunted Octaphilosophy is not so much a statement of intent as a statement of who he is as a person and a chef, and there rests the fine distinction between hubris and sincerity (I hurry to add that Chiang falls on the right side of that line).  The eight spokes of Octaphilosophy each represent a savoury course, but with the addition of Japanese chef pâtissier Makito Hiratsuka, whose CV is almost as star-studded as his boss’ (El Bulli, El Celler de Can Roca, Paco Torreblanca), desserts are now given an ­avant-garde twist. – Julian Teoh

 

1. Mignardises: “Popcorn” Chocolate
2. Amarena Cherry Madeleine
3. Strawberry Sangria Chupa Chups (not pictured)
4. Coffee Licorice Marshmallow
5. French Earl Grey Crystalline

Same as Wednesday, except the Earl Grey Crystalline was warm and crisp on both sides of the candy, which made it better. Strawberry Sangria chupa chups was as delicious as before. If the kitchen ever decides to sell the white chocolate strawberry sangria Chupa Chups, I know I would buy them.

One of the best meals I have ever eaten, this meal featured the kitchen at the height of its powers. Of the seven main variables to a restaurant Andre meal I talked about (the six Octaphilosophy elements besides Pure, which depends on the seasonal incredients, and Memory, which is always foie gras chawanmushi, plus dessert), all of them were amazing and memorable in some way or other.

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Conclusion: Andre can be a hit-or-slightly-miss affair, but when it is a hit, it is a jackpot. You’ll always get a technically excellent meal, but subject yourself to Chef Andre’s whims and magic can happen.

Verdict (31/07/13): 16/20

Verdict (10/08/13): 19.5/20

Memory: Challans Duck, Blue Lobster with 1-ingredient gnocchi, Undersea Forest Oyster Tartare, Oyster Ice Cream, Eggplant Terrine and Crisp Duck Tongue, Dehydrated Kelp Risotto, Potato Salad with Scallop, Andre’s tribute to Ispahan, Crystal Snickers