Restaurant Week has always been hits and misses for me. From the spectacular (all hail Salt at Ion) to some “stellar” disappointments, I’m not always guaranteed a great meal. OCF at The Arts House is worth checking out. This is one meal where you don’t have to run off to eat prata after your dinner.
From the uber-romantic ambience, (if you go on a Fri/Sat night, they’ve got a beautiful singer crooning the night away, accompanied by a pianist) to the service to the food, OCF is one place where you don’t feel like they have “stinged” on the experience just because it’s a “discounted” affair like during Singapore Restaurant Week.
They offer different 3-course menus for lunch ($40) and dinner ($58), we were there for dinner.
The first appetizer I had was brilliant. One of those carefully-thought out dishes that captures all your senses, it looked pretty, with little coins of baked celeriac and was rich with thick shavings of foie gras heightened by the intense smoky flavour of kaviari smoked eel and a much-welcomed crunch element provided by the buckwheat wafers.
The other appetizer choice for dinner was the asparagus with bamboo clams in a chicken jus. The asparagus exuded a smoky grilled flavour, while the bamboo clams were succulent but most of the flavour came from the super-concentrated chicken jus.
Judging by the beef we had for mains later where the jus was so intense, and this appetizer dish where the chicken jus was equally concentrated, I must say OCF loves reducing sauces till the essence is all that remains. Some find such heady concentrations too salty, but i like it.
There’s a choice of Grilled Amberjack or Beef Shortribs for the main – we both felt like beef and it’s one unctuous piece of caramelized, drool-worthy meat. With the intense braising, the fatty short rib just melts in your mouth and with that concentrated jus, you could just end your meal there.
Which would be foolish, because then you’d be missing out on OCF’s piece de resistance – the chocolate dessert. A glorious, perfect, gold-speckled chocolate dome arrives, and with hot moka poured over, it yields gently to reveal a luscious combination of espresso ice cream, whipped chocolate ganache and brownie bits. Oh, be still my melting chocolate heart!
I asked if this dessert is a staple on the menu, and was told that it’s so popular that customers always ask for it – even if it’s not always on the menu.
It’s still not too late to make reservations for Singapore Restaurant Week (19-26 Mar) so go on, indulge and make a night of it at OCF!
OCF:
Address: The Arts House, 1 Old Parliament Lane #02-02, Singapore 179429
Contact: +65 6333 9312 or info@ocf-singapore.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ocfsingapore
Opening Hours:
Monday to Friday:
Lunch from 12noon
(Last Seating at 2pm)
Dinner from 6pm
(Last Seating at 10pm)
Only dinner service on Saturday.
Restaurant is closed on Sunday.