My recent dining experience at Sorrel, the latest fine dining bistro in town, was impressive. First was the interesting play of unexpected flavors, exquisitely crafted into bite size dishes; and second, that they were created by 24 year old Chef Johnston, Hotelier-Restaurateur Loh Lik Peng's golden boy.
Trust Loh to find someone to put the fun back in fine dining, and fun we had as we sampled the 5 and 7-course dinner sets ($88/$118). The 2 dinner sets are completely different so it was a no brainer for us to order both. There are no stuffy starters or main courses here. Instead, dishes are categorized into Snack, Amuse Bouche, Pre-Dessert, and Sweet.
Before the meal even started, some delicious snacks were sent our way as per any decent fine dining restaurant except that they were more unconventional.
A fusion play of a crunchy morsel of yam croquette and lotus chip with a dot of curry emulsion.
I wish i could have more of that milk bread which has the most amazing pillowy steamed bun texture. And that smooth rum butter... i can't even...
A palate cleanser of beetroot popsicle (which tasted like hawthorn) paired with a hibiscus tea was sent our way before we dived right into the main menu. For easy reference, i'll indicate (5) for the 5-course and (7) for the 7-course and i'll also be highlighting the more interesting dishes.
(7) The Ikura was one of the standouts for me. Who would have thought that a wasabi dashi would go well with a creamy Fromage Blanc and salty salmon roe, but it did and the flavors just came together and excited our taste buds with each bite.
(7) The Pumpkin was almost dessert-like with a coconut and peanut mix. I liked the light hint of ginger in this one.
(5) The Algae Capellini was a hit! Expect mouthfuls of umami with the basil emulsion and grilled sweet seafood. The crunchy noodles tasted like compressed seaweed and i wouldn't be surprised if they really are!
(7) I could not stop going MMMing and AHHing while tasting the Hand-Dived Scallops. This is what a modern day Surf-n-Turf should be, with buttered and seared plump scallops and creamy foie gras, sweetened with a Heirloom carrots puree and roasted almonds.
(7) The other seafood dish was great as well. Briny sweet Langoustine paired with white asparagus and topped off with cauliflower fritters and broth, with basil emulsion. I wished the asparagus wasn't that overdone though but that would be me nitpicking.
On the meat front, we preferred the tender Baby Chicken (7) roulade over the boring Pork (5) dish. Thanks to the sides of egg yolk, ham shavings and amazing crackling.
Pre Dessert from the 5-course was the Parsnip Sorbet and we found this to be more interesting than the 2 sweets from the 7-course. Light flavors in this one despite it looking creamy and all. Other than the usual white chocolate ice cream and hazelnut crumble, a savory aspect was brought out with some smashed black olives.
The Rhubarb sorbet (7) wasn't too bad with textures of vanilla and some creamy green tea mousse.
I love Sorrel and i think it's perfect for a girls' night out (somehow i think i enjoyed it a lot more than S did). Perhaps it's due to the smaller plates and more delicate flavors. Anyhow, i'll be back when they change the menu. For sure.
21 Boon Tat Street #01-00 Singapore 069620
Tel: +65 6221 1911
Mon- Fri: 12 - 2pm, 7 - 10pm
Sat: 7 - 10pm
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