A&A had been planning a zoo trip for the longest time (it was either that or Sentosa, and the rides there are soooper expensive and A&A aren't exactly the type to jump into the sea), so since Adel had planned the Science Centre trip the previous week, Adal decided to do something nice for Adel this time!
After the Zoo trip (which was interesting, somewhat tiring and not as exciting as they'd hoped it would be), Adal brought Adel to Vanilla Pod (along Mandai Lake Road). The restaurant is accessible by taking the bus from the zoo and alighting at the very next stop. You can also easily find cabs outside the restaurant.
When walking in, we nearly got lost because it's actually quite well hidden. The shop is to your right. Just keep going until you reach a glass house near the lake.
Well laid out table, with air-conditioned respite.
Interior of restaurant - very cool despite the glasshouse effect.
Our starter - complimentary bread with balsamic vinegrette - the bread was soft was warm, but a little dense, reminding Adal a little of Miss Marple (Australia)'s scones. The vinegrette was great.The Trio Mushroom Soup was fantastic, sweet and savoury with small chunks of mushrooms that would make a hobbit bite his handkerchief in a manly display of pleasure.
Canadian Seared Scallops! We cannot remember what the sauce was, but the scallops were slightly pinkish in the centre, very fresh and also quite big. We were at first apprehensive about eating scallops that aren't cooked thoroughly, but our first bite dispelled all our doubts.
Red Snapper Fillet! It was actually rather buttery, but very fresh and not over cooked. It's great on it's own, or with pasta or something light, but not, obviously with the below dish:
Crispy and Crackling Pork Knuckle - it was actually fabulous, but since it's pork knuckle, your arteries would despatch emergency resources to handle the unfortunate collision of buttery red snapper fillet with lard-filled pork knuckle. It required a pre-ordering, too, since there're limited knuckles made per day. It would be great with some beer.
It was very crispy and crackling.
Strawberry Mille-feuille! Nice and crispy, with the tartness of strawberry and sweetness of cream and powdered sugar. It was really quite good, though Adal felt the flavours were too well balanced - an accentuated flavour would have brought the oomph out of the pastry, or in this case, the le oomph.
One point that A&A would remember with fondness is the impeccable service of the waitstaff there. Despite being dressed in bermuda pants and just a t-shirt, we were served promptly, and the young lady serving the restaurant was attentive, smiling and un-intrusive.
Canadian Seared Scallops! We cannot remember what the sauce was, but the scallops were slightly pinkish in the centre, very fresh and also quite big. We were at first apprehensive about eating scallops that aren't cooked thoroughly, but our first bite dispelled all our doubts.
Red Snapper Fillet! It was actually rather buttery, but very fresh and not over cooked. It's great on it's own, or with pasta or something light, but not, obviously with the below dish:
Crispy and Crackling Pork Knuckle - it was actually fabulous, but since it's pork knuckle, your arteries would despatch emergency resources to handle the unfortunate collision of buttery red snapper fillet with lard-filled pork knuckle. It required a pre-ordering, too, since there're limited knuckles made per day. It would be great with some beer.
It was very crispy and crackling.
Strawberry Mille-feuille! Nice and crispy, with the tartness of strawberry and sweetness of cream and powdered sugar. It was really quite good, though Adal felt the flavours were too well balanced - an accentuated flavour would have brought the oomph out of the pastry, or in this case, the le oomph.
One point that A&A would remember with fondness is the impeccable service of the waitstaff there. Despite being dressed in bermuda pants and just a t-shirt, we were served promptly, and the young lady serving the restaurant was attentive, smiling and un-intrusive.When Adal is served his food or has his water re-filled in any restaurant, he has a habit of saying 'thank you', and it always irks him somewhat that waitstaff don't reply him or acknowledge it at all. What happened to Ladies and Gentlemen serving Ladies and Gentlemen? That was not the case in Vanilla Pod; the lady serving us smiled or said "you're welcome" everytime he said thank you.
This restaurant is Very Well Deserving of the Singapore Service Star Award. If you want to impress your date, this is the place to bring her/him. Good service, good food, good atmosphere.
Address:
200, Mandai Lake Road
Mandai Orchid Garden
6368 0672
No comments:
Post a Comment