Iggy's - 04 Sep 2009

Heard about Iggy's (Regent hotel, level 2) and have been wanting to try... UH hosted a lunch there last friday. It was quite unusual to be shown to the chef's table... later we found out that the entire restaurant of 50 pax max, was full. Anyway I was glad we were given the table as we were able to see the kitchen staff work, alot like what you see on AFC, real life.

A shot of the kitchen which we do not always have the privilege to snap especially in a posh restaurant like this... Many good restaurants allow a sneak into the kitchen but not a full view like this. The kitchen was so well designed, we could not even smell the preparation of food.



The amuse bouche which was not listed on the menu consisted of diced tomatoes in a savoury sauce, topped with what tasted like mascarpone cheese/ sour cream, sprinkle of chopped chives and a pinch of lemon zest. This simple but wonderful starter already won me over...

The Kurobuta pork ragout (above) consisted of home made parpadelle (wider version of tagliatelle), kurobuta pork cheeks and mushroom. This dish reminded me of kong bak/ lor bak which is braised pork. This version was very nice indeed. The pork was tender, flavour of the sauce was intense and the parpadelle was cooked al dente...

Blue fin tuna was next with Japanese influence. The tuna was seared evenly on the exterior, condiments were baby leeks, ginger flower and chives, served with mirin and soy dressing. For the weightwatchers, this dish is perfect... flavourful and healthy.

This next dish was the slow cooked Petuna ocean trout with violet potato and avruga (caviar from herring). The chef did not stinge on the avruga. Every bite contained ample helpings of avruga. The potato complimented the fish and the caviar and it was heavenly....

The mushroom cappuccino was also very good, needless to say, the aroma of the mushroom filled the air when the cup was presented. It wasn't some thick creamy grey soup you find at regular eat outs... but its consistency was not too creamy and it was light but the intense flavour and bites of mushroom was delish! Iggy's version of mushroom soup was one of the 2 best mushroom soups I've tasted. The other one was at Vue De Monde (Melbourne) few years back.

Now comes this onion soup with gratinated cheese croutons. The best onion soup I've ever had... It was refined, chockful of onions with a bite, the onions were not soft and slimy like some other restaurants. The soup came in Staub cast iron round cocotte which allows continuous moisture to be sealed in the cookware and provides genuine flavour of the food cooked in it. This was the real deal!

Iggy's burger was a homemade burger with wagyu beef and white truffle sambayon. The burger reminded me of something similar at "Relish" it was a nice maincourse but not really better than the other dishes we tried today.

The sakura ebi cappellini with konbu and homemade scampi oil was quite special. the tiny sakura ebis were crunchy so there was a bite to this simple but unusual dish. The pasta was well done, just the way I like it (al dente). Overall this main was good.

Pina colada souffle and iced pina colada was special. The souffle was a coconuty mixture which was baked well as shown in picture, perfectly risen. The taste was sensational... I've not came across pina colada souffle anywhere else. Where we were sitting made it strategic to request from the kitchen. 2 others had the cranberry souffle which was not on the menu, it was special request of either grand marnier, strawberry or cranberry. However, it was pretty sweet although aromatic, and they were not really well baked, the souffle top almost fell off the ramekins. I still preferred the pina colada rendition.

Last but not least, forest berries was next. This mouthwatering dessert consisted of campari jelly, blood orange sorbet and or course marinated forest berries. It was a delight... it was so refreshing and light, with a tinge of sourness, gave the meal a nice ending. Enjoyed this dessert very much.

Kudos to the people at Iggy's. I was satiated! The meal lasted me till supper.... Haha!