Lunch at Restaurant André, Singapore

This afternoon, I finally revisited my favourite restaurant in Singapore for a long-overdue lunch with an ex-student Dylan. He had been wanting to experience what it was like in a top restaurant and I thought there was no better place in this country to take him. With a multitude of awards to its name, and definitely more to come, Restaurant André is undoubtedly one of Singapore's finest gastronomic establishments. My first solo lunch here last year had been most impressive. It is very rare, if at all possible, to come across a restaurant in Singapore that possesses a complete mastery of both food and service, and Restaurant André simply ticked all the right boxes, just like during my best gourmet experiences in Europe and Japan. Naturally, I was very excited to be returning.

As requested, we got a lovely table by the window this time, great for the view outside as well as for taking food pictures with ample lighting. It should be mentioned that currently,  Restaurant André only serves its cheaper set lunch (price unchanged at 5 courses for $128++) on Wednesdays and Fridays, not every day as was the case before this year. Book well in advance as seats are extremely limited and demand is constantly high - even more so for the twice-a-week lunch service.

Dylan, who has truly blossomed into a fine young man
since I taught him a couple of years ago!

Today's menu
(it changes every day depending on what's best from the market)

Amuse-bouche: rice cracker topped with sea urchin emulsion, Oscietra caviar, gold leaf, egg white, dill and oyster leaves.

A crisp plain rice cracker made for the perfect backdrop to a multitude of tasty toppings to stimulate the palate. These included sweet and creamy sea urchin emulsion, juicy and briny caviar, and bits of oyster leaves which tasted exactly as their name suggests, adding a further touch of umami. The canapé was also kept fresh and light by small blobs of soft egg white and strongly aromatic dill leaves which complemented the deep taste of the other toppings perfectly. Scattered bits of gold leaf imparted a final hint of luxury to this pleasant morsel.

Starter: stone crab and sea urchin tartare, sour cream, compressed cucumber, cucumber pearls, elderflower jelly, chamomile powder, shallots, wild herbs (kinome, cress) and flowers.

This was a most sophisticated and wholesome salad. The luscious base consisted of chunks of shredded crabmeat mixed with sea urchin to form a sweet, succulent and creamy tartare, which was itself surrounded by a ring of light sour cream for balance. Discs of compressed cucumber were then carefully arranged on top, and their fresh concentrated sweetness and firm juicy texture were perfect complements to the tartare. Gelatinous cucumber pearls provided an additional bite and burst of flavour, while chamomile powder sprinkled on the discs and bits of elderflower jelly scattered throughout the salad imparted the most delightfully sweet floral aromas. Herb garnishes of kinome and cress completed this dish on a very clean and spicy note. Despite the multitude of seemingly disparate ingredients, they all came together to form a truly well-balanced and satisfying starter.

Bread and butter came next, and the coupling of a warm, crisp and full-bodied sourdough with silky, creamy and delicate Échiré butter from Western France was perfect. French butters are indeed one of life's greatest pleasures.

Soup: chicory soup with chicken skin and liver, millefeuille of chicory terrine, crispy fried cockscomb and tarragon emulsion.

This light foamy soup was very tasty and moreish. The mild bitterness and roasted coffee-like flavour of chicory was an extremely effective balance for the crisp paper-thin slivers of roasted chicken skin and creamy and musky pieces of chicken liver within the soup. On the side was probably the most unusual combination of ingredients I'd ever seen - deep fried aromatic cockscomb with a firm gelatinous crunch (like soft bone) contrasted with juicy and mildly bitter leaves of white Belgian endive arranged in layers, wrapped with a sugarloaf leaf and skewered. For further freshness, a surrounding emulsion of French tarragon, the best variety of tarragon and one of the four fines herbes of French cooking, imparted a distinctive sweet aroma reminiscent of anise and licorice. The emulsion's fruity and slightly astringent olive oil base certainly helped too. On the whole, this was a very well balanced dish with lovely touches of indulgence.

Fish: charred Spanish mackerel, served with sea lettuce, iceberg, celery, smoked carrot tartare, smoked eel sauce and seaweed powder.

This fillet of Spanish mackerel came from Japan, where it is known as sawara and is considered the best kind of mackerel. It is in season from late autumn till the end of spring, so we caught it just in time. Its flesh was perhaps not quite as oily as the ones caught in the height of winter, but still remained very moist and firm, with a characteristically rich taste. The skin was nicely charred, which added a nice crispy bite and further depth of flavour. Surrounding the fish were a variety of accompaniments selected to enhance its smoky umami. In particular, I loved the clear smoked eel sauce for its lightness, and the bits of carrot for their juicy sweetness amidst an unusual smoky depth. Sea lettuce (a kind of seaweed) was a first for me, and I liked its succulent texture and delicate briny taste. Shreds of iceberg, slivers of celery, and garnishes of shallot and cress kept this dish feeling very clean and crisp throughout. Indeed, it was quite remarkable how a dish could feel this delicate yet possess such an intense overall flavour.

Meat: poached baby lamb saddle, crispy wild granola with Israeli couscous, deep-fried lamb fat, roasted onions and potatoes, potato skin, smoked onion and potato jus.

The most substantial dish of today's lunch, the lamb saddle was absolutely tender and melt-in-the-mouth, with a rich gamey flavour thanks to the meat's ample fat content. This robust meat was aptly matched by equally full-bodied accompaniments, including a tasty jus of smoked onion and potato, with a good portion of roasted onions and potatoes to go along. The roasted potatoes were perfect - nicely browned and crisp on the surface, with a light and airy body - not the slightest hint of greasiness or starchiness throughout. Crispy bits of deep-fried lamb fat scattered throughout the dish, similar to deep-fried lard in a much humbler local hawker context, were utterly sinful but oh-so-delicious. For further bite and flavour, toasted granola with an intense nuttiness was paired with firm and chewy large grains of Israeli couscous made from hard wheat flour, a very different variety from the common fluffy powder-like North African couscous derived from semolina. A semblance of delicacy was provided by a fresh oregano garnish and ephemeral slivers of potato skin (how do they even achieve that thinness?!). I was completely sold on the sheer opulence of this elevated take on Sunday roast.

Dessert: whipped watermelon, red fruit Ispahan (rose and lychee sorbet, red berries, strawberries, rhubarb).

Anyone into French pâtisserie, specifically macarons, will know of the rose-lychee-raspberry combination known as Ispahan, created by the famous Pierre Hermé during his early tenure at Ladurée, and now a signature confectionery at both establishments. André's version of Ispahan featured a dainty sorbet combining the deep sweetness of lychees with the delicate aroma of roses, enhanced by bits of dried rose petals scattered over it. The sorbet was surrounded by a pool of whipped watermelon that had the consistency of a very light and smooth mousse. Hidden at the base of the dish were fresh berries, strawberries and chunks of rhubarb, which balanced the overall sweetness with their juicy tanginess. On the whole, this was a crisp and elegant dessert that contrasted very nicely with the rather heavy preceding meat course, almost like a palate cleanser.

Dessert: 'apple tart'.

Another creative take on a classic dessert, this was essentially a deconstructed apple tart. Within two concentric rings of soft cinnamon dough lay a generous amount of apple compote with fresh diced apples and caramelised apple & cinnamon film, poached blackberries and raspberries, chopped hazelnuts and seaweed crystallised with sugar, topped with a scoop of milk ice-cream.

I was particularly impressed by the crisp paper-thin apple film which carried a remarkably intense flavour despite its appearance, as well as the apple compote, which was soft but not mushy, and had a light tangy flavour much easier on the tastebuds than the typically cloying pie/crumble filling. The other fruit components also had a delightful juiciness. It was not all delicate and airy though; the deep, warm and mildly spicy aroma of cinnamon permeated this dessert, the milk ice-cream on top was absolutely luscious and full-bodied, while chopped roasted hazelnuts provided both a substantial crunch and a distinctive toastiness. Finally, in what must be the most unusual and inspired touch ever in a dessert, tiny stalks of seaweed crystallised with sugar contributed a subtle and astonishingly effective umami that, like jewels in the crown, really enhanced the elegant sweetness of this 'tart'. I couldn't have asked for a more sophisticated conclusion to an excellent meal.

As always, André came out to greet every table towards the end of the lunch service. I love his personal touch and hands-on approach, which sets him apart from many other celebrity chefs who are busy doing everything else except being in their own kitchens for quality control. This time I didn't miss the opportunity to congratulate him on the recent opening of his new restaurant RAW in December 2014 back in his hometown of Taipei, and we had a nice chat about his reasons for wanting to establish a presence in his home country. It's more than a business franchise; his patriotism is well-known and I got the impression that for him as a pioneer in the fine-dining scene, it was mainly about wanting to give younger Taiwanese chefs a chance to hone their craft in this industry, to showcase the possibilities of Taiwanese produce to the world and to create a unique brand of fine-dining - a fusion of European and Taiwanese culinary cultures. His heart is certainly in the right place, and it seems that RAW is already one of the most sought-after tables in the city; I hope I get to try it one day! But please André, don't leave Singapore just yet!

Service was stellar as always - warm, eloquent and knowledgeable, an experience here is probably as close to top European standards as you can get. There were a couple of new faces, but my two favourite members of staff, managers Stepan and Alain, were still around and they actually remembered me (maybe because I talk too much!). Unfortunately, I learnt that Alain would be leaving the restaurant very soon for his native France for an extended break, before deciding where in Europe to work next. Singapore has been his first and only Asian sojourn and he's loved it so far, but he feels it's now time to be closer to family. It's a real shame that we couldn't get to know each other even better in Singapore, but I did express my interest to stay in touch, and I know he'll do very well wherever he chooses to go. All the best Alain!

Needless to say, one can hardly go wrong coming here for the occasional indulgence - I can't wait for my next visit already!