03 September, 2007

French ain't that fine

The sisters did a stopover at Singapore before they headed back for Perth, and we decided to buy them dinner at a French fine dining cuisine tucked at the corner of Little India in Serangoon Road.

Over at The French Stall, French expatriates dine alongside locals as everyone sits elbow to elbow in this quaint corner coffeeshop, chattering above the droning whir of wall-mounted electric fans. Oversees by Mr Xavier Le Henaff, who was a chef with a 5-star hotel (presently a Relais Chateau) in Madina, all of us went with high expectations but alas it was not meant to be. For starters, we had the French Onion Soup.

Two slices of Baguette with Mozarella Cheese were soaked in the soup. However, the soup lacked the overwhelming onion flavour and was watery. We also tried the Demi-douzaine D’Escargots Petit Gris au Beurre a L’Ail, or simply Escargots (half dozen) in Garlic Butter Sauce.

The dish was shameful as I was expecting it to come intact with shells such that the flavour could be trapped and sealed in it, but it was not and the taste was a total letdown. The snails were tasteless, as the sauce was not infused nicely with it. We also sampled the infamous Foie Gras, but however their Pan Fried Foie Gras, Spinach and Balsamic Jus was not up to scratch as well. For a dish priced at $18.80, all we had was two pathetic thinly sliced liver that was overcooked and mushy.

I am a firm believer that Foie Gras, just like a good piece of steak, need not come too big a serving, but it must be thick - a thin slice of liver simply does not do this dish justice! Ended off the night with a main of Duck Confit with Orange Peel sitting on Risotto, and was really disillusioned once again. The serving was small and the meat was way to dry for consumption.

The duck taste was totally overwhelmed by the crispy burnt smell from the cooking process. Service was also found to be wanting at the place as mismatch utensils, or worse, no utensils were provided for some of our dishes. One of their service staff was also rather rude when she spoke to us and blatantly ignored us when she walked past our tables subsequently. Outrageously miserable food that comes in a hefty bill is simply not worth it!

Rating

Food: 1.5/5
Service: 2/5
Ambience: 4/5
Price: 1.5/5
Total: 9/20
544 Serangoon Rd
Singapore 218166




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8 comments:

Anonymous said...

aw yeah it was such a waste lor. :( nvm la next time we go elsewhere ok ok?

-peggy

His Food Blog said...

Yeah! After all the good reviews I read - pretty sad that it didnt turn up as well as I expected it to be. Oh so when are you coming back? Or should I say when should I go back to Ipoh? Hee..

Anonymous said...

im not going back at the end of this year but i suppose my sister will~ so yeah she can bring you around this time ;)

Anonymous said...

I'm glad I'm not the only one who thought so...

His Food Blog said...

Hi there,

Yep, it was ashamed considered I brought my overseas friends there for a dinner hoping it would give them a wonderful experience.

Anonymous said...

Even though I thought that their idea of locating away from the city crowd was pretty refreshing, such a pity, the food werent even as good as it was thought to be. Also,the waitresses were undoubtedly unthoughtful and paid very little attention to the customers.

Anonymous said...

That's crazy! I've always had awesome experiences there. As a matter of fact, the duck with risotto was fantastic last night and I have never suffered bad service.

Good luck next time.

His Food Blog said...

Hi Anon 07:48,

Good on you! But truth to be told, I don't foresee a next time... La Petite Cuisine's Foie Gras + Duck Confit anytime for me. :)

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