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SKAI
The 70th floor of Singapore's Swissotel The Stamford has been home to Equinox for the longest time. Following a revamp, the folks behind that institution has come back with a new concept, but still sticking to the strong tradition of spectacular views and great food. SKAI opened its doors to its first patrons sometime over a couple of months ago, with a brand new fit-out and a Japanese inspired fusion menu. we took the evening timeslot to enable us to enjoy the best of both views, day and night - which were equally breathtaking.
SKAI is helmed by Paul Hallett, a British executive chef from the previous setup and carries a philosophy of using quality ingredients to create strong flavours. the restaurant's new menu has a greater variety of dishes for sharing and retained its distinctive quality of good service and creative cocktails. for the earlier visitors to this place, the team has been quick to point out that they were still a work-in-progress and welcomed all suggestions to improve their act. and while there were indeed some minor tweaks that could be done, this visit was a truly memorable one for us. 
Pretty cocktails for the Gram, but great on the tastebuds too. this cocktail is a mixture of wheat vodka and champagne, yet with honey and apricot to give it bright colours and the sweetness for easy drinking. i also truly enjoyed this drink of Brunchin Spritz, a mixture of Italian Aperol and Prosecco which brought out the distinctive orange flavour without being too sweet. in all, drinks were on point and we were ready to move on to the food. 
we picked a couple of dishes from the small plates section and decided to go for our favourites. Nonetheless, the delivery of popular bar food takes on a unique interpretation such as this Black Pearl Oysters, which came with cream and caviar. freshness was also maintained and we enjoyed the oysters so much that we slurped the shells clean pretty quickly. we also tried the Seared Foie Gras which came with apple, green tea granola and drizzled with Choya. the meat was really juicy yet tender and went well with the sweeter ingredients. 
we also tried some of their signatures including this much talked about Crispy Rye Noodles. its basically crispy Gong Zai noodles, with an onsen egg and truffle sitting in a pool of assorted mushrooms. pretty much an acquired taste, especially after the staff poured the shoyu sauce in, making the dish a tad too salty. it still remains an exciting proposition and understandably why most visitors would have tried this dish, alas, it was a little too alternative for us. but while pointing out some learns, there was surely a win with their Uni Saffron Risotto, a Japanese-Italian rice dish served with sea urchin, cucumber, citrus and cured egg yolk. a very flavourful combination indeed. Desserts were also winners, not to mention the initiative to celebrate one of our birthdays on the must-try caramelised soy bean cheesecake. we enjoyed this experience very much and we are sure that SKAI will become a local icon very soon. 
SKAI 80 Bras Basah Road 70th Storey Singapore 189560 Opening Hours Mondays to Fridays: 12 pm to 2.30pm; 6 pm to 10.30 pm Saturdays & Sundays: 11.30 am to 3.30pm; 6 pm to 10.30 pm (drinks till late daily) prepped to become the go-to sky-dining establishment in Singapore.. Labels: #crispyryenoodles, #japanesefusion, #restaurantswithview, #risotto, #skairestaurant, #skydining, #soybean cheesecake, #swissotelthestamford In Piazza
with many restaurants in Singapore staking claim to produce authentic Italian fare, one would really need to be "in the industry" to know who is for real. a new series of F&B outlets opened up at The Pines, an extension of the new Hotel Mercure Singapore on Stevens, of which this restaurant opened up by a group of Italians seemed serious about getting their Italian cuisine right.
located within a glass-house with the hotel as its backdrop, the interior boasts a spartan setting with high ceiling and spacious seating. Operations manager Daniele is often present to greet all patrons and introduce the signatures of the place. together with two Italian chefs, the team enjoy vast experience cooking Italian food across Europe before deciding to bring their interpretation of the dishes to Asia and Singapore. 
The signature of this restaurant comes from their oven grilled pizzas, and even more so by show-casing the most simplistic pizza of all, the Margherita pizza. named after the historic queen consort of Italy, the simple dish garnished with mozzarella cheese and tomato sauce is a specialty here. nonetheless, we found that a tad too simple and went to try the recommended Diavola pizza instead. This pizza comes with Italian tomato sauce, mozzarella cheese and pork salame. we added anchovies for good measure which the Chef readily agreed to and true to good authentic pizza, the dishes is extremely flavourful despite its ordinary outlook. 
we have always said that good Italian food is tested through its Risotto (most places can whip up decent pasta). we tried the Risotto Allo Scoglio which is essentially Arborio rice served with fresh mussels, prawns, clams and squids. there was good aroma all round and every bite was rich with the taste of spices, herbs and a generous serving of seafood. It is notable to also share that In Piazza has a wide selection of Antipasti (starters) to choose from and a good range of pastas, including vegetarian options. the dishes are often introduced by the town in Italy that it originated from and it gave further context to the food that was being served. 
it was somewhat impressive (and also amusing) that the service staff are trained to memorize the wide selection of wines and desserts, having them share the options with us was somewhat of an incredible recital. We ordered an Aperol Spitz, an orange based soda cocktail and a glass of red wine, after receiving good advice from the crew, certainly good choices to wash down the mains. some sorbet ice cream to cap off the first experience there encapsulated the Italian experience. As we share our visit to In Piazza, we hope that this largely undiscovered restaurant gains further popularity as we think it is authentic enough to stand amongst the local institutions. we wish Daniele and his team all the best as they make their way into the Singapore food scene. 
In Piazza The Pines 30 Stevens Road #01-04/05 Singapore 257840 Opening Hours Daily: 10.30 am to 10.30 pm a touch of Italy to your neighbourhood.. Labels: #hotelmercuresingaporeonstevens, #inpiazza, #italianfood, #margheritapizza, #risotto, #stevensroad |
..ThE lEgEnD..
Last Movie: Ad Astra
Golden Village, Singpost Centre 
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