#crispy garlic

This was followed up with Hong Kong Style Pork Ribs (港式排骨). We ordered a small portion (S$14.50) but there were still plenty of pieces sitting in the aluminium foil bowl in the shape of a bird. Love the sticky and sweet glazed ribs but the meat could be a little more tender in my opinion.

Sis wanted the Seafood Yam Basket (佛钵飘香) filled with prawn, fish, squid, cashew nuts and vegetables. This Singapore creation is essentially a deep-fried yam ring or taro basket made with mashed yam and filled with separately stir-fried ingredients. Underneath the yam basket are crispy deep-fried rice vermicelli.

The last dish to appear is also everyone’s favourite Crispy Mango Chicken (芒果脆鸡). Chicken thigh meat is dipped with a coating of batter that has soda water added to give it that airy and crispy shell. A drizzle of sweet and lightly spicy mango chilli sauce is squeezed onto the plate before plating the fried chicken cutlet over it. Julienned pickled mango is then added on top as garnish.

For the main course of Roasted Beef Tenderloin, my colleague picked the full-bodied Clos du Bois red wine to go with the red meat. Bright, vibrant flavours of apple blossom, sweet citrus and pear layer over a core of minerality with toasty brown spice and creamy custard. The wine is full bodied and rich with a silky texture and a long finish. The medium rare beef was so wonderfully tender and flavourful, almost melt in the mouth texture, enhanced by the rich and robust morel mushroom sauce. And on the side are buttery mashed potato and asparagus that were a little fibrous.

I had requested for my Grilled Pork Chop to be served without the jasmine rice. The thin piece of charred meat was fork tender but somehow lacked the flavours of the pork. Mine came with green beans and carrots with a small pinch of toasted black sesame seeds at the side.

The Braised Beef Short Rib was the better of the two main courses I had that night. The succulent beef short rib braised in a cabernet reduction was fall-off-the-bone tender that eating it involved minimum chewing on my part. The mashed potato and roasted carrot help cut down the richness of the fatty dish.

Both of us had the Lemon Curd Tartlet for dessert. While creamy, the lemon curd wasn’t tart enough and the sweet, torched meringue did not help either. Should have alternate the meringue with raspberries to cut down the overall sweetness instead. And I don’t see the chocolate curls mentioned in the menu.

Was looking toward the Mississippi Mud Pie which was essentially half whipped cream. :( A thin Oreo cookie crust sat on the bottom with chocolate filling, whipped cream and chocolate shavings on top. Would have been even better if ice cream replaced the whipped cream.

We retreated back to our cabin for an early night. A lone Towel Bear sat on the bed, yet another nifty handy work by Yuda, our stateroom attendant.