Singapore Food Festival returns
Foodies, it is time to unite at the annual Singapore Food Festival’s food village at Bayfront Event Space next to Marina Bay Sands.
Go hungry, and with friends, to share the festival’s widest array of food available.
At the main SG Food Walk section, highlights include the spicy dry laksa goreng ($12) from private-dining outfit Good Graces; laksa and nasi lemak pizza (from $13 a slice) from La Levain bakery-cafe; and fried or steamed Hong Kong-style radish cake ($15) from home-based business Caitoucake.
There are three new zones – Sweets Alley, Cafe Boulevard and Food Cartel – and I suggest you save room for the sweet treats.
Sweets Alley is home to several drink and dessert brands, such as Whiskdom bakery, known for its brownies ($38 for six). Popular ice-cream parlour Creamier has created two festival-exclusive flavours ($6 for one scoop) – waffled putu piring and sesame tang yuan, complete with chewy mochi bits.
Cafe Boulevard, which showcases Singapore’s buzzing cafe culture, features several home-grown names such as Arc-en-ciel Patisserie, Le Matin Patisserie and Hapi Cafe, which has collaborated with Pourabucha kombucha.
To enter the Food Cartel section, which includes an air-conditioned bar area and chef arena, you need to buy the premium pass ($18, which includes a free drink) or drinking pass ($28, with one free drink, beer and cocktail).
This is where you can find the Dearborn and Sourbombe Artisanal Bakery collaboration, a scrumptious union of Dearborn’s famed granola and Sourbombe’s sourdough bombolinis and savoury croissant rolls.
A must-try is the chive and ocean trout roe croll ($13), which hits the spot with the pops of salty roe on crispy pastry.
Before you leave, head to the SG Mama Shop area to buy snacks. Highlights include Ooh mala chips (from $5) and vegetable chips (from $3.50) from Confetti Snacks.
If your appetite is still not satiated, there are other fringe events and workshops to complete the gourmet experience.
Where: Bayfront Event Space, 12A Bayfront Avenue
MRT: Bayfront
When: Till July 30. Mondays to Fridays, 5 to 10.30pm; Saturdays and Sundays, 10.30am to 10.30pm
Admission: From $8
Info: singaporefoodfestival.sg
The Epicure Shangri-La
Cantonese restaurant Shang Palace’s current dining promotion tastes as good as it looks.
Priced at $188++ a person, the six-course Epicure menu is created by the restaurant’s executive Chinese chef Daniel Cheung.
Each dish is beautifully plated, starting with the appetiser platter of suckling pig topped with black caviar, tender chilled abalone, sauteed sliced sea conch and baked Kagoshima wagyu beef pastry.
My favourites are the poached spotted garoupa fillet with crispy bean crumb and sliced black truffle doused with hot oil and soya sauce to finish; and stewed red leg prawn with lemongrass sauce and garlic that is served sizzling in a claypot.
The trio of desserts comprises chilled mango cream pudding with pomelo, chilled osmanthus wolfberry jelly and a peanut-shaped baked peanut pastry.
Where: Shang Palace, Lobby Level, Tower Wing, Shangri-La Singapore, 22 Orange Grove Road
MRT: Stevens
When: Till Aug 13. Monday to Fridays, noon to 2.30pm and 6 to 10pm; Saturdays and Sundays, 11am to 3pm and 6 to 10pm
Tel: 6213-4398
Info: str.sg/iioR
New Italian menu at The Cliff
Get away from the bustling city and head to The Cliff in Sentosa for a slice of Italy.
Located at the Sofitel Singapore Sentosa Resort & Spa, The Cliff has always been under the radar, but it is worth heading to for a leisurely lunch or peaceful date night.
Its new Italian chef de cuisine Paolo Benedet, who has been in Singapore for more than 10 years, has revamped the menu to offer southern Italian fare featuring sustainably sourced produce and herbs from the hotel’s garden.
Prices start at $39++ for a weekday two-course set lunch, and from $88++ for a three-course set dinner (from 6pm daily).
Begin your lunch with a refreshing starter of endive salad with gorgonzola dolce, candied pecans dressed in a pomegranate and cherry vinaigrette or buffalo mozzarella caprese with cherry tomatoes.
Main course options for lunch include herb-roasted sustainably farmed sea bass with ratatouille, and pork pluma with braised cannellini beans with lardo.
For dinner, the spaghetti alla puttanesca is also part of the line-up of mains.
The dishes are available in the a la carte menu, alongside other dishes such as burrata with parma ham ($35), grilled octopus ($32) with cauliflower puree and iberico chorizo, and OnlyEg Parmigiana ($26), which uses plant-based eggless patty and roma tomatoes.
To finish, order the signature tiramisu, made with chef Benedet’s family recipe.
Where: The Cliff, Sofitel Singapore Sentosa Resort & Spa, 2 Bukit Manis Road
MRT: HarbourFront
Open: Noon to 3pm and 5 to 10pm daily
Tel: 6708-8360
Info: str.sg/iioD
