Review: San Marco (4 out of 5 bear paws)
San Marco
The Fullerton Hotel
Tel: 6438 4404
One gets jaded patronising fine dining restaurants in Singapore, and the 2Bears were not expecting to be surprised by dinner here.
There were some well-executed old standards in the "summer menus" we selected:
(1) chocolate fondant cake which every restaurant has (half-)baked to death - it's the bombe alaska or cherries jubilee of our generation;
(2) plump foie gras which when done well, like in the dish we enjoyed, renders any creative garnishing (here, pear) quite forgettable; and
(3) tomato & mozarella salad, which came in the form of alternating tomato and mozarella slices reassembled into the original tomato shape.
I'm not doing the names of the dishes justice - the link above leads you to the website and full menu - but I am a great believer of straightforward food descriptions. The present rule seems to be that the more expensive the restaurant, the lengthier and more excessive the menu explanations.
Does good old chicken rice need to undergo rebranding as "Plunged-cooked Chicken paired with Glossed Jasmine Rice, cucumber carpaccio, ginger micromince, sweet sour organic chili dip and dark soya concentrate" ? Think not.
Anyhow, surprises in San Marco came in the form of the freshness of the tomato stack, favourful porcini bruschetta afloat in a beef consomme, a slice of grilled dry ham providing the turf to the salmon surf, rose flavoured pannacotta which Ms Bear found absolutely delightful, the home-made marshmallow as petit fours, and the deferential service. The 2Bears like to sneak bites from each other's dishes and paws up for San Marco's facilitative attitude. If you wish to be as generous with your dining partner(s), courses will be placed at table centre with additional plates per diner in the Chinese fashion.
The Fullerton Hotel
Tel: 6438 4404
One gets jaded patronising fine dining restaurants in Singapore, and the 2Bears were not expecting to be surprised by dinner here.
There were some well-executed old standards in the "summer menus" we selected:
(1) chocolate fondant cake which every restaurant has (half-)baked to death - it's the bombe alaska or cherries jubilee of our generation;
(2) plump foie gras which when done well, like in the dish we enjoyed, renders any creative garnishing (here, pear) quite forgettable; and
(3) tomato & mozarella salad, which came in the form of alternating tomato and mozarella slices reassembled into the original tomato shape.
I'm not doing the names of the dishes justice - the link above leads you to the website and full menu - but I am a great believer of straightforward food descriptions. The present rule seems to be that the more expensive the restaurant, the lengthier and more excessive the menu explanations.
Does good old chicken rice need to undergo rebranding as "Plunged-cooked Chicken paired with Glossed Jasmine Rice, cucumber carpaccio, ginger micromince, sweet sour organic chili dip and dark soya concentrate" ? Think not.
Anyhow, surprises in San Marco came in the form of the freshness of the tomato stack, favourful porcini bruschetta afloat in a beef consomme, a slice of grilled dry ham providing the turf to the salmon surf, rose flavoured pannacotta which Ms Bear found absolutely delightful, the home-made marshmallow as petit fours, and the deferential service. The 2Bears like to sneak bites from each other's dishes and paws up for San Marco's facilitative attitude. If you wish to be as generous with your dining partner(s), courses will be placed at table centre with additional plates per diner in the Chinese fashion.
posted by 2Bears at 11:40 PM
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