after much deliberation and exclamations of ‘ohmygawd, dont make me choose!’, Kelvin and i finally decided on the Equatorial’s Chalet for our first MIGF do.
very excited, Kelvin and i decided to pick our restaurant by process of elimination. (it really gets easier once you remove all the Japanese and Chinese restaurants from your list of options) and after coming down to a final 3, we (okay, I) made the ultimate decision based on… the dessert. and so Chalet it was!
the first course was the Cold Starter- Smoked Salmon with Aphrodisiac Pearls, Horseradish Sour Cream and Hot Hash Brown Potatoes. the smoked salmon was really good - sliced thickly, and with a beautiful subtle aroma of smoke. done just right! the 4 slices of salmon were served on a bed of horseradish sour cream; a pairing which even i, hater of all things wasabi related, must admit is good. the ‘aphrodisiac pearls’ are black caviar and salmon roe, and these when popped in your mouth atop the salmon slices + sour cream + a small forkful of the hash brown is … omg*heavenly*.
the Hot Starter comes next - Crisp Parmesan Glazed Asparagus and Porcini Mushroom Cappuccino. pooh to the crisp parmesan asparagus. what’s good is the mushroom cappuccino!!! i sooooo love it. it’s really just a very good cream of wild mushroom soup, but frothy at the top to emulate a cappuccino, and with lots of yummy mushroomy bits! it is served in a little espresso glass, and i suspect that’s what makes this soup very cool to me. sorry lah i very superficial wan, you dont know meh.
the intermezzo was lime sorbet, which we both thought was way too sweet for a palate cleanser. neeeext.
time for the mains! in Chalet you get to pick from 4 choices -
+ Broiled Boston Lobster and Pacific Cod on Linguini in Boullabaisse Stock
+ Pan Seared Canadian Lake Trout Fillet with Crustacean, Cilantro Salsa on Garlic Mash with Fragrant Dill Courgettes and Yellow Squash
+ Mustard Crusted Rack of Tasmanian Baby Lamb on Braised Potato and Leek Compote with Minted Apple and Thyme Gravy
+ Pan Seared Veal Steak on Onion Soubise and Morel Sauce, with Caramelized Carrots and Potato Spirals
Kelvin went with the first- Broiled Boston Lobster and Pacific Cod on Linguini in Boullabaisse Stock. he completely hated the lobster cos it wasnt fresh and was too tough. the portion of codfish was fine, but i did think that the linguini was overcooked and the boullabaisse lacking flavour. overall, a mediocre dish. nothing epiphanic, as Luxe and the Martian would say.
my first choice was really the rack of baby lamb, but because i’m a sissy and get really fluttery when i see the word ‘baby’ on my menu, i decided to go with the trout. but then the waiter said nooooo, the trout not nice, you must have the veeeeeeeal. arghghhgh veal was so totally my last choice. but i’m a sucker for cute waiters who look like they know their stuff, so… veal it is. yes, even though it’s baby cow. nvm. as long as i dont read it on the menu.
again, an average dish. the meat was bland boring blah. saving grace was the sauce it was served on - a combo of a deliciously thick and sweet mushroom sauce (the darker brown sauce in above pic), and a savoury onion sauce with a bisque-like texture (lighter brown). yummy. i finished the sauce, but not the meat, as a form of protest against the cute waiter who bluffed me and said the veal very nice.
why doesnt a restaurant stock up on their wine when they’re participating in a food festival? the Late Harvest SB, which was on their Festival winelist, was what we really wanted but couldnt have, cos Chalet hadnt recieved their stock. neither did they have their Cabernet. -___- wtf gimme my Cabernet. anyways we had 4 glasses of wine each. first glass came with the cold starter and was a Chilean SB which was very nice. Chardonnay came with the mushroom cappuccino, Merlot before the main, and lastly a very crappy Shiraz with the main.
and finally, time for dessert!!!
Dessert- Warm Manjari Chocolate Pudding with Lemon Myrtle Ice Cream and Caramelized Orange Sauce. okay, first of all, when you say Chocolate Pudding, you dont give ppl chocolate cake, ok? and secondly, when you say Warm, make sure the cake/pudding/whatever IS actually served warm, ok? yeah. and when you say Warm Cake, it generally means there’s molten chocolate in the centre, correct or not? so can someone explain to me why Chalet gave us Moist Chocolate Cake With No Molten Chocolate Centre, instead of Warm Manjari Chocolate Pudding?!?!?!
GRRRRRRRRR.
okay lah with all that said, that moist chocolate cake with no molten chocolate centre was actually not bad. texture was totally off, but at least it tasted good. the lemon mrytle ice cream that came in a little biscuit bowl was nice. oh and the little kiwi slices were very sesat.
dessert also came with little chocolate thingies - milk chocolate shells with vanilla ice cream inside, as well as white chocolate shells with chocolate ice cream inside. politically correct chocolates. i like.
one of the Visa perks for Chalet is that you get complimentary after-dinner Vodka Espressos at Flo Bar downstairs. yay. i’ve never had vodka espressos! and they turned out pretty good too. the vodka used was honey-infused, from the NZ vodka brand 42 Below. the very nice bartender, Guna, later gave us free shots of that, cos i was so excited to see honey-infused vodka. heehee!
but all in all, i’m pretty disappointed with this dining experience. it’s alright if the dishes arent innovative; but if they’re going to go with safe & boring, they should at least have them tasting damn bloody good. but i am most pissed off about the dessert. once again, plain moist chocolate cake is not warm manjara chocolate pudding. *shakes fist* Chalet, thou art no longer one of my favourite restaurants. even if your little quartet does a very good rendition of Tears in Heaven.
next MIGF stop, Marche at the Renaissance. hopefully that one turns out better.
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