Hi there
Since Dean & Deluca has opened, diners have been happily visiting the shop to eat, drink, take out, shop over there. Couple times I went there, the place was still bumping with lots of people who wanted to get a nice gourmet meal, may be a little pampering along the way too. 🙂
Since they opened, the first monday I was there, the place was really packed with people trying to check out their in house menu and also stocked up on the gourmet items, so I was unable to dine there, but couple weeks later, we managed to find a proper seating and check out their menu. 🙂
Their selection although is not very wide, the looks and freshness make up for it. At the ordering counter, you can be mermerised by the colorful dishes they showcase in their chiller.
And as if that is not enough, be prepared to be greeted by wide ranges of bread too when you queue for your turn to pay.
We started off with their soup, on the chalk board itself, there were 3 kinds available.
- Triple Mushroom – $10
- Minestrone – $11
- Clam Chowder – $12
We wanted to try out Clam Chowder, but it is only available on fridays, so we go for Minestrone and Triple Mushroom. Minestrone is chockful of ingredients, you can find asparagus, beans, carrots, tomatoes, onions, courgette and many more. It has a very tangy flavour to it as what a proper minestrone should be, but I find this a bit too thick to my likenings, its texture is more like a goulash or gravy kind, which can be a bit too heavy for soup.
We managed to try out Triple Mushroom, which has a very earthy mushroom flavour, I suspect they have added truffle oil in there, as this earthy flavour is so captivating, for $10 a bowl serve without any bread or rolls, I expect no less and this does not disappoint at all.
The Prawn, Avocado & Mango salad comes with generous portion of Crystal Bay prawns, avocado, mango & courgette cubes mixed with mesclun salad with a vinaigrette. The prawns are firm and fresh, and goes well with the mango & courgette, but the avocado was a little turned off for me because it has already turned brown, if only it is still fresh jade green, I will like this dish better. Of course this dish can also be replicated at home with the right toss of ingredients, but I guess the ambience counts? 🙂
You can choose between 1 portion ($22.50) or half portion, we ordered half portion ($11.25), which is still a decent portion to share.
Other salad I saw that was available was tomato with fresh mozarella cheese, tuna salad, both looks so colorful that you will probably be more than happy to bring them home in the oh so chic Dean & Deluca packaging.
As for the main course, undecided of either having sandwich or pasta, we went for the latter eventually, and we ordered Mac & Cheese ($10.). This comes with generous amount of macaroni packed tightly with gooey cheese. I personally prefer it to be more cheesy, as this tasted a little bland for me, my favourite part is the golden brown top which adds a little smoky flavour to it.
But our trip to Dean & Deluca was well redeemed by this lovely rendition of Lasagne Al Forno ($15). Just by the look of it, it is already enticing enough for you to order it, perfectly baked with golden brown top and edges gives it a nice crisp against the tantalizing layers of pasta sheet.
A must try if you dine there. The flavourful meat sauce in between melted into the soft yet slightly al dente pasta, and all flavours binded tightly with this soft wonderful savoury melted cheese. One of the best lasagne I have tried so far.
To round the meal off, we did try out two drinks which is the Green Tea Chendol ($6.50) which is made of green tea powder and some full on flavourful chendol concoction blended in a cup. The Gula Melaka taste is very distinct and fans of chendol should be pretty happy about it, something very singaporean indeed.
The other drink we have is Mango sticky ($6.50) , which is literally Mango + Sticky Rice, just the idea of it is pretty intriguing, but it makes sense if it is serve as a dessert drink where fresh mango flavour and grinded sticky rice gives it a sweet ending.
But I find the sticky rice strange as every sip (they provide small straws) is a hassle as the sticky rice will get stuck in the straw, besides, it kind of feel like you are drinking bubble tea but instead of bubbles, you get a whole mouthful of rice. So I think it is more of the texture that I find a bit of a hassle to drink although taste wise I have no qualms about it.
So all in all, it is a pricy place but for some of the menu, you can get both decent gourmet food which you will come back for more. I know I am going to order the triple mushroom soup next time I am there, and perhaps a sandwich or hamburger to go with it, as it looks oh soooo good too! 🙂
Happy Dining!
RESTAURANT REVIEWS : DEAN & DELUCA SINGAPORE AT ORCHARD CENTRAL
Location : #04-23/24 Orchard Central, 181 Orchard Road, Singapore 238896
Tel : 65097709
Opening Hours : 11am – 10pm
Happy Gourmet Dining & Shopping!
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Cheers,
Dawn