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2013-06-07
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See more food reviews at http://thehungrybunnie.blogspot.comAu Petit Salut is the posh sister restaurant of the casual bistro Chez Salut over at MBFC. I much prefer the tranquil garden locale of the former to the cityside bustle of the latter. Service was discreet and professional, but warm enough to feel personalised. Save for the long gap between our mains and desserts, we didn't have any complains about their almost stellar service. The long wait for our sweets may have been attributed to the
Au Petit Salut is the posh sister restaurant of the casual bistro Chez Salut over at MBFC. I much prefer the tranquil garden locale of the former to the cityside bustle of the latter.
Service was discreet and professional, but warm enough to feel personalised. Save for the long gap between our mains and desserts, we didn't have any complains about their almost stellar service. The long wait for our sweets may have been attributed to the fact that we'd ordered a chocolate fondant cake from the ala carte menu in addition to the ones on our set dinner menu, so while the waitress did inform us in advance that the fondant attracted a 15-minute wait, she also waited for the fondant to be done before serving all of the desserts up at the same time. I think it would have been much better timing to serve us the set menu desserts first, to tide us over, and then serve up the 15-minutes lag-time fondant. We would have been finishing up the set menu desserts just in time to enjoy the arrival of the fondant.
Food was a mixed bunch of greats and okays, nothing very wrong with any of the dishes but a few of them could have been greats. We were pleasantly surprised (and loved) that the set dinner was priced so affordably at $88++ for 2 starters, a main and dessert, finished off with a coffee or tea. Especially in view of the fact that this restaurant is very much lauded and a venerable kingpin in the (local) world of fine French dining.
We had:
1) Chilled Alaskan King Crab cake on a tomato espuma, topped with radishes, with a brush of black squid ink aioli and shotglass of king crab foam, was a refreshing start to dinner. It was clean, clear and with the barest of sweetness.
2) The Sauteed Duck Foie Gras was meltingly delicious. Mandarin gel, gingerbread pearls and orange segments served to lend a citrusy lightness to the heavy fat of the goose liver. This was so good that it could have converted an animal activist
3) The Fillet of Black Cod was smooth and moist and fatty, contrasted with the crackling crispy rice crust. A mound of quinoa, mussels and chorizo mash, saffron dressing and crustacean froth lent a bright, sunny and seafresh burst of flavour to the complex dish
4) The French Duck Leg Confit was the best dish of dinner, hands down. It was jam-packed with flavour, and fall-off-the-bone tender. Geriatrics would have loved this - no chewing involved! A unique white chocolate & cauliflower purée was a nice twist from the usual mash, and the pomegranate relish provided a fruity sweetness.
5) The Chocolate and Pear Mousse Torte with vanilla ice-cream, fresh strawberries and shimmery chocolate pellets was nuanced and just the right balance of sweetness and richness.
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