Since 2010, we have been visiting Restaurant Ember at least twice a year because none of us can resist the fantastic food (view my previous blog post here). As mentioned before, by 12 noon, the better main courses would have been sold out. For our previous visit, M purposely arrived early to and whatapped us the menu, then W and I will place our orders. This time round we got smarter; we emailed Ember what we wanted 1 week prior to our lunch date.
Anyways, Ember has never disappointed us, EVER. Yes, Ember is that consistent! Every dish is so well executed and delectable. We really cannot fault anything except for one of the desserts-the home made fig cake.
At $42++ for a 3 course set lunch, Ember’s fine dining is affordable to the masses. Top up $6 for Foie Gras or fresh Hokkaido scallops. Coffee and tea is no longer included in the set lunch.
Loved the creamy, smooth texture and intense flavor of the Field Mushroom soup with Truffle oil.
Deep Fried Soft Crab with sweet Wasabi Aioli. Crispy soft shell crab on a bed cucumber topped with sweet creamy wasabi aiolo. A simple but satisfying dish.
Pan roasted Scallops with Parma Ham, citrus and tarragon vinaigrette. Lightly salted and peppered fresh, plump scallops were juicy and flavoursome. However the center is a tad too soft for my liking. The citrus salad with grapefruit was refreshing and complemented the scallops perfectly.
Sauteed Bone Marrow. This is not listed the set lunch menu; the waitress suggested to W since she has tried most of the appetizers before, and wanted something different. Its acquired taste, I didn’t like it, but W adored it.
Crab cake with mustard with Hazelnut Tuile and Crab Bisque. This substantial appetizer is packed full of sweet and succulent crab meat, paired with fragrant crab bisque and a touch of spiciness from the mustard.
Cold angel hair pasta with abalone ($32). We ordered this from the a la carte menu as I was craving for truffle oil pasta. Al dente pasta tossed in pungent truffle oil sits on a bed of (very) thinly sliced abalone. For $32, I thought the serving of abalone could be more generous. The portion of the pasta is rather large; the waiter spilt one serving onto 2 plates as we wanted to share this appetizer.
Pan Seared Chilean Sea Bass with mushroom and smoked bacon ragout, truffle yuzu butter sauce. I am not a fish lover, but I visit Ember repeatedly because of this exceptional dish. Fresh sea bass is pan-seared perfectly till brown and crisp, while the flesh remains soft, moist and flaky. You don’t even need a knife; the flesh tears apart easily with a fork. The fish sits on a bed of mushroom and fried smoky bacon bits, which soak up the fragrant butter and aromatic truffle sauce. Absolutely stellar!
Pork belly with savoy cabbage, apple puree and spiced calvados sauce. Braised and slow roasted for 12 hours, the meat is undoubtedly tender and juicy. However, it does not melt in the mouth. The sinful crackling skin makes up for this though. Presentation of the calvados sauce was unique-bottled up in a test tube. We were told to pour the sauce at the side, not on the pork belly to prevent the skin from becoming soggy. Sweet caramelized apple ring and green apple puree balanced out the saltiness of the pork belly.
Homemade fig cake with grand marnier ice cream. Harmonious combination of alcoholic flavors and sweet fig. This dessert could have fared better if the cake had more moisture.
Crispy caramelized pear tart with homemade baileys ice cream. The tart was flaky and buttery, cramped with thinly sliced pears. Topped with crumble, the tart had a nice crunch and paired well with the baileys ice cream.
Coconut panna cotta with Gula Melaka and water chestnut. I do not like coconut so I didn’t try this. According to W, the panna cotta is smooth and creamy, while the flavors of the coconut, Gula Melaka and water chestnut was interesting.
Warm valrhona chocolate fondant with vanilla bean ice cream. Break into the slightly harden crust and savour the decadent molten chocolate. Perfectly paired with smooth and fragrant vanilla bean ice cream, it’s an excellent way to end a meal.
Restaurant Ember
Hotel 1929
50 Keong Saik Road
63471928
Website