A couple of months back, I pinged https://restaurantweek.sg to see if their next season had been scheduled. A strange error message appeared, saying that the domain no longer existed.
It came as a surprise, since we’ve been participating in the Singapore Restaurant Week for more than a decade now. Our very first booking was in March 2013 and we’ve been attending every year, excluding the forced Covid-19 hiatus.
I checked the website again a few weeks later, and was greeted by the same error message. In my mind, there were only two possible reasons.
One, the organiser, DiningCity Singapore, had decided to discontinue the event. Two, the IT intern tasked with renewing the domain registration had majorly screwed up.
Thankfully, it turned out to be the latter, as The Wife recently noticed that the Autumn 2023 edition was going to be held from 1 – 29 October.
Well, thankfully for us and the many long-time supporters of Restaurant Week. Not so much for the IT intern who failed at this one important task.
I hope you’ve learnt from your mistake, and trust that you won’t make it again. Don’t be too hard on yourself, and remember that whatever doesn’t kill you only makes you stronger.
During the previous event in April, we ended up at three places: (i) Basilico for an excellent all-you-can-eat Italian buffet, (ii) Lusitano for our first ever taste of Portuguese food, and (iii) Akanoya for a somewhat lackluster robatayaki experience.
For this upcoming run, we repeated our tried-and-tested selection process; the same one used for the Autumn 2022 and Spring 2023 editions. Here is our shortlist. As before, I’ve included links to the restaurants and their respective menus.
1. The Great Mischief
The Wife has had her eye on the restaurant for a while now, but it’s never made her shortlist. The Great Mischief finally debuted this time round, and not only that, it entered right at the top of the charts.
Featuring Spanish classics like patatas bravas, burnt cheesecake and sangria, the menu is rustic and comforting. Paella isn’t included, but that can be easily fixed by placing an additional ala carte order.
2. Basilico
We just went to Basilico in April and had a wonderful dinner with old friends. It made such an impression that we’re almost surely going back again.
I’m especially looking forward to their huge range of Italian cheeses, small but delightful selection of fresh tomatoes and the excellent surf-and-turf combo of Stufato di Manzo and Branzino al Forno.
3. 13% Wine Bistro
The four course S$48++ lunch set at 13% Wine Bistro seems like good value-for-money. Starting with a sampler of three signature appetisers: beef tartare, Oysters Kilpatrick and pork terrine.
Followed by a seafood bisque, a main course of either duck confit or seafood sabayon, and finally ending with a mango panna cotta. Nothing particularly fancy, just simple and straightforward dishes.
4. Cherki
This is actually the second time that Cherki has made it to our shortlist. Their five course dinner, blending Peranakan ingredients into Western dishes, sounds really inventive and intriguing.
Examples include crab cakes with ginger flower guacamole, duck confit with tamarind and achar, braised pongteh lamb shank and gula melaka tiramisu. Let’s hope it doesn’t descend into fusion/confusion.
5. Allo French Restaurant
Hands up if you remember the 80s sitcom ‘Allo ‘Allo! Well, I’m not embarrassed to say that I do (yes, I’m old). I don’t know if the restaurant has any connection to the show set in a French cafe during World War II, but the name evokes fond memories of the heydays of British comedy.
Unsurprisingly, classic French bistro staples like Boeuf Bourguignon, Steak Frites and Chicken Fricassée are on the menu of the restaurant, which is located along the ahem, “interesting” Desker Road.
6. 87 Club Street
No prizes for guessing where the last restaurant on our shortlist is located. Unlike the traditional offerings at Allo French Restaurant, 87 Club Street unabashedly fuses Western, Japanese and Korean elements into its food.
Exhibit A: Beef tartare on toast with hamachi and ikura. Exhibit B: Grilled mackerel with miso beurre blanc and fennel. Exhibit C: Braised and grilled pork belly with gochujang and pear slaw.
Final Decision
In the immortal words of Kenji Fukui, the OG Iron Chef announcer: “Who takes it? Whose cuisine reigns supreme?”
Tune in next month to find out!
Featured image credit: DiningCity Singapore
