Chef Joel Robouchon has the most Michelin Stars under his name than any other chef, so you know you’re in for a real treat when you enter one of his restaurants.

We dined at L’atelier de Joel Robouchon in Paris, back when I was pregnant with Hunter. It was one PHENOMENAL meal that we’ve always remembered. So we were very excited to go to their Singapore branch to celebrate my 32nd birthday (the actual day is this Thu on 31st Oct, btw!)… especially since we were already staying at Sentosa.

It was a wonderful dining experience, which was to be expected.

What we didn’t expect was what a bargain it was! It’s SG$68++ for their 3-course dinner set, which in itself is already quite a deal. But dine between 5-7PM (which we did), and you get a 3-course dinner set that is pre-selected for you, for $34++!!! I mean, THAT IS INSANE!!!!!!!

So we got one $34 set and one $68 set and to be frank, both sets were identical in portion size and quality. So if the $34 one tickles your fancy, definitely go for that.

 

The restaurant reminds me of a dark, trendy, Japanese bar – all resplendent in black and bloody red. The mood is edgy yet refined, and the service is impeccable. We felt truly welcomed and enjoyed the vibrant atmosphere sitting at the bar facing the open kitchen. It was fun watching the open kitchen and all the chefs (there are a ton of them!) at work.

 

 

We enjoyed two French wines, Alsace Reisling vin sec du terroir 2009 and Bourgogne Hautes-Cotes de Nuits 2007. Both wines cost over $50. You heard that right. They were really small glasses too (the photo below hasn’t been drunk from yet).

Each sip probably cost about $2, so I savoured mine sloowwwwwllyyyyyy 😉

At the risk of sounding like a total uncultured n00b, all I will say is – I’m not a wine connoisseur and it tasted like any other good red/white wine to me.

 

Ahhh their famous bread basket of freshly baked goodies. We ate.. errr… all of it.

My only wish? The butter should be salted or herbed butter. It was plain butter which didn’t enhance the breads as much as I would have liked.

 

The chefs were busy, busy, busy in the open kitchen.. and we were well entertained watching them during our meal. I like the open kitchen concept – it means you see all the food being prepared, and the restaurant has to maintain a state of impeccable cleanliness and order since diners are watching.

 

We kicked off with an amuse bouche of Foie gras parfait with port wine and parmesan foam (not pictured). It was served in a shot glass and was a riot of flavours. I can’t say “no” to foie gras! I believe this is the ‘standard’ amuse bouche they serve here, and I can see why. It works.

The Mushroom soup with slow cooked egg and colonatta bacon was a luscious, well-cooked soup packed with rich mushroom flavour. My favourite part was the egg that oozed molten yolk into the soup, making it even richer and creamier.

 

I was utterly impressed with the Prawns casserole of tomato and mint with crustacean foam. The prawns were large and fat, and very sweet. The casserole of chopped tomatoes and cucumber matched well and I found myself mopping up the gravy with bread.

 

We were surprised with a dish that Chef de cuisine Lorenz Hoja whipped up and presented to us – Hachis Parmentier! A delicious blend of mash potato over duck confit (ooooh!) and sace lyonnaise. Chris thought the cheese and cream content in this dish was abit OTT, but I loved it. It’s not for the faint hearted though, or those that are a bit particular about their calorie intake.

 

This was simply labelled as “Roast of the day” and if I remember it was Spatchcock something-or-other. Sorry. My memory fails me now that I’m one year older.

It was a simple roasted spatchcock, but it was roasted very well and tender and juicy. It was two small legs with a crisp and tasty glazed skin, resting on steamed cabbage (which was a little on the oversalty side) and a scattering of greens.

 

The Sauteed John-Dory, steamed cabbages with hazelnut oil and tomatoes was probably a bit welcome, as a simple, clean dish that’s actually really healthy.The fish was firm and smooth, with the skin intact and crispy.

 

And, of course, the famous Joel Robouchon mash potato. Hand-whipped (we witnessed it!) with copious amounts of cream and butter, this was one of the richest mash we’ve ever had.

Was it good?

Do I even need to answer that question? 😉

 

Mid-way through our meal, they brought out a live lobster, in all its waving-claws glory. I felt sorry for the poor bugger… paraded around to all the diners and hearing about itself being cooked and presented. I’d be pretty nervous, if I were him.

 

Their signature Creamy araguani chocolate with cacao sorbet and oreo cookies. We had this in Paris too 🙂 A blend of high-quality ice cream, chocolate, and… errrr… oreo cookies. I thought the last bit was odd. Why not bake their own lovely cookies?

Regardless, a delicious dessert. I’ll never say no to chocolate!

 

The Coconut cloud, caramel graite with pandan creme madame actually proved to be quite good, despite my reservation (always) toward desserts that I’m not familiar with. The light, tropical flavour of coconut blended well with the sweetness of the pandan, and it was a light and refreshing dessert.

 

We ended with a Peppermint tea. I thought it was odd that they brewed it in a big pot… then served it in a teacup…. but then never refilled it! Why? They would otherwise pour away the tea in there, so why not just serve a refill? Totally confuddled.

 

Overall, we enjoyed our dinner date at L’Atelier de Joel Robouchon, and it was special to me because Chris and I rarely go out on dates, and even more rarely dine in a nice restaurant. On top of that, we had the awesome experience of going back to the hotel afterwards, WITHOUT KIDS AROUND, and wake up the next morning, WITHOUT KIDS AROUND yelling out “mamaaaa”!

And that, made it one heck of a birthday treat 🙂