Art de Noël Holiday Traditions @ Sofitel Singapore City Centre - A Gourmet Affair For This Holiday Season

From 1 November to 1 January 2023, celebrate this Christmas season with your loved ones with Sofitel Singapore City Centre's festive feasts. Immerse yourself in the joyous mood with their specially crafted set lunches, dinners, exquisite afternoon tea, festive decadent buffet spreads, or feast at home with their gourmet takeaways.

Roasted Turkey with Truffle Butter

Racines gives a touch of French flair to your celebratory dinner with its Weekday Semi-buffet Dinner ($98++ per adult) featuring classics such as Seafood Shepherd’s Pie, Gammon Ham, or Duck Breast in Mulled Wine alongside unlimited servings of salads, soups, appetisers and desserts.

Miso Glazed Halibut with Beurre Blanc Sauce

Christmas Eve Dinner ($138++ per adult), Christmas Brunch ($148++ per adult) and Boxing Day Brunch ($148++ per adult) entice you with an even more indulgent spread, including Roasted Turkey with Truffle Butter and Miso Glazed Halibut with Beurre Blanc Sauce.

Hay-smoked Magret Duck Breast with Christmas Spice

A quick but equally sumptuous option will be their Festive Set Lunch (from $39++) or Festive Set Dinner (from $65++) with delights such as Hay-smoked Magret Duck Breast with Christmas Spice, Soy Baked Cod Fish with Seasonal Vegetables and Chestnut Mousse.

Sweet Treats

Chestnut Berry Financier

Pecan Cinnamon Cheesecake

Another great way is to chill out at 1864 with its Festive Afternoon Tea and Yuletide Cocktails. The Festive Afternoon Tea ($128++ for two persons) offers savoury finger sandwiches alongside dainty sweet treats. The latter includes Chestnut Berry Financier, my favourite of the selections, and Pecan Cinnamon Cheesecake for a touch of Christmas flavour.

Mrs. Claus’ Cosmo, Papa Noël’s Mule

Two Yuletide Cocktails of very different characters were created - Papa Noël’s Mule ($20), a concoction of Rémy Martin VSOP, Campari, ginger beer and angostura bitters, and Mrs. Claus’ Cosmo ($18), which is pretty in pink with Ketel One Vodka, Limoncello, cranberry juice and lime juice.

Soy-glazed Turkey

Takeaway Gourmet Delights from Sofitel Singapore City Centre also offers Turkey with Truffle Butter ($172 nett). If you wish to try a more Asian flavour, the Soy-glazed Turkey ($172 nett) checks the boxes with a sweet and savoury Japanese-style rub comprising soy sauce, sugar, sake and mirin.

Framboise Mousse Cake

For sweets, the vibrant Framboise Mousse Cake ($96 nett) is made of almond sponge layered with raspberry jam, raspberry inspiration cream, raspberry jelly, and Opalys vanilla mousse.

Noisette Noir Chocolate Hazelnut Log Cake

The Noisette Noir Chocolate Hazelnut Log Cake ($96 nett) is a cute pencil-shape log cake with a rich chocolate roll as the base. It is filled with delicious Manjari dark chocolate crémeux, hazelnut praline, hazelnut chantilly cream, and Manjari dark chocolate mousse.

Homemade Stollen

Chocolate Panettone

If log cakes aren't your piece of cake, get their Homemade Stollen or Chocolate Panettone. I wish there were more liqueur in them, but both were delicious.

Celebratory gifts and treats from Sofitel Singapore City Centre are available for purchase via https://bit.ly/sofitel-xmas22 from now until 23 December 2022. Guests can enjoy 15% early bird savings using promo code “EBXMAS15” before 9 December 2022. For reservations, guests can call +65 6428 5000 or email HA152@sofitel.com.

Photos and words by Si An. A girl who is allured by travelling, loves the feel of freedom, smell of the rain and the aroma of fine coffee and food. Note: This is an invited tasting.


Racines
Sofitel City Centre
9 Wallich Street
5th floor
Singapore 078885
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Nearest MRT: Tanjong Pagar (EW Line)

Direction:
1) Alight at Tanjong Pagar MRT Station. Take Exit A. Turn left and walk to destination. Journey time about 3 minutes. [Map]

Swan-ky New Festives at Orchard Hotel Singapore

For this festive season, Orchard Hotel Singapore launches a renewed collection of dining offerings with a swan-ky spirit. Taking centre stage in the lobby is the Royal Swan Festive Goodie House, featuring seven larger-than-life royal swans which represent 'Seven Swans a-swimming', as made famous in the Christmas carol "The Twelve Days of Christmas".

"Wicklein" Tuning Musical-Box Tin with Fine Oblaten

Tiered Christmas Tree

The Royal Swan Goodie house fascinates with its almost fairytale-like setup, featuring not just festive Takeaways, but also Christmas ornaments such as musical snow globes. The front is lined up with Christmas Festive Cakes such as Homemade Confit Orange & Lemon Stollen ($42), Rich Christmas Fruit Cake ($48), and bringing the entire family of Santa Village is the Chocolate and Confectionery, with items like Tiered Christmas Tree ($28), Snowman Senior ($18), Santa Speedster ($22), Rudolph ($14), Snowman Lolly ($10), amongst many others. You will be tempted to tune the "Wicklein" Tuning Musical-Box Tin with Fine Oblaten($39.90) and be drawn into the magical sound of Christmas.

Bone-in Honey Baked Gammon Ham

Roasted Whole Turkey

Roast Beef

Drop by The Orchard Cafe this Christmas Eve Dinner Buffet and tuck into an exclusive festive spread. Highlights include Bone-in Honey Baked Gammon Ham, Roasted Whole Turkey and Roast Beef.

Signature Baked Yoghurt Country Tomato Scottish Salmon

The dish that impressed me the most is the succulent Signature Baked Yoghurt Country Tomato Scottish Salmon, one of the best-baked salmons I had for buffets.

Orange Pound Cake

Christmas Stollen

For desserts, savour the Christmas flavours in Christmas Stollen, Orange Pound Cake and Christmas Yule Log.

For more details on Orchard Hotel Singapore's festive offers, please see https://www.millenniumhotels.com/en/offers/asia/orchard-hotel-singapore/dining/festive-offers-2019/

Written and photography by Si An. A girl who is allured by travelling, loves the feel of freedom, smell of the rain and the aroma of fine coffee and food.


Orchard Hotel Singapore 
442 Orchard Road
Singapore 238879
Nearest MRT: Orchard (NS Line)

One-Ninety Bar @ Four Seasons Singapore - Festive Weekend Afternoon Tea

Afternoon Tea gets christmassy at One-Ninety Bar at Four Seasons Singapore. From now till the end of December, One-Ninety Bar shall get you into the mood of Christmas with its Festive Weekend Afternoon Tea.

The Afternoon Tea set comes with 2 rounds of coffee or tea. Coffee lovers, you won't be disappointed with the freshly brewed coffee. Looking at the coffee being brewed in front of me really got me into the mood!

The Savoury tier comes with 5 items - Beef Pastrami On Rye Bread, Honey Pumpkin On Sour Dough, Egg Salad Tart With Caviar And Salmon Roe, Tea Smoked Salmon On Seven Grain Bread and Smoked Turkey Ham On Whole Meal Bread. The highlight for me was the Tea Smoked Salmon On Seven Grain Bread for its mouth-filling texture.

The 2nd tier is filled with classic Christmas flavours - the rummy, spiced dried fruits that spells Christmas in every way. I like the Holiday Stollen, and I suggest having it first when they are served warm to you. If you enjoy a cinnamon bun, this will definitely satisfy your appetite. It is softer than a regular stollen, and less sweet too. Both the Mince Tart and Fruit Cake were just as yummy.

The 3rd tier has a couple of adorable looking sweets such as the Green Tea Azuki Bean Tart that is shaped into a Christmas tree and a pretty sky blue Peppermint Macaron embossed with a snowflake. Or something truly symbolic to Christmas, there's a mini Hazelnut Praline Log Cake as well.

The Freshly Baked tray allures you with its puffy Pumpkin Raisin Scones, Vanilla Scones, as well as crusty and buttery Brown Sugar Shortbread. I'm not a fan of scones that are too rich in butter, and thankfully these are not. Hence I love how I could really slather the Devonshire Clotted Cream over, along with the tart Strawberry-Rose Preserve and Spiced Cranberry Preserve. The shortbread is also a delightful addition to this section, which is not so commonly available elsewhere.

Available on Saturdays and Sundays 2pm to 5pm until the end of December 2019, the Festive Weekend Afternoon Tea is $48 per adult with a choice of tea, coffee or Audrey’s signature Valrhona hot chocolate or tops up to $62 per adult for an additional glass of Kir Royale.

Written and photography by Si An. A girl who is allured by travelling, loves the feel of freedom, smell of the rain and the aroma of fine coffee and food.


One-Ninety Bar
Four Seasons Hotel Singapore
Ground Floor
190 Orchard Boulevard
Singapore 248646
Tel: +65 68317250
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Nearest MRT: Orchard MRT (NS Line)

Opening Hours:
Afternoon Tea Sat-Sun: 2pm - 5pm

Direction:
1) Alight at Orchard MRT station. Take Exit E. Walk towards Wheelock Place via ION. Exit Wheelock Place and turn left towards Liat Tower. Continue walking along Orchard Road. Walk to Hilton Hotel. Go to level 2. Follow the passageway to Four Seasons Hotel. Walk to destination. Journey time is about 12 minutes. [Map]

Lewin Terrace @ Fort Canning Hill - Bask In The Spirits Of Festivities With Their Special Berry Merry Dessert Buffet

This Christmas, Lewin Terrace at Fort Canning Hill presents their special Berry Merry Dessert Buffet ($38++ per pax) available from 4 to 27 December 2018, whereby for a limited time only, diners get to indulge in an exquisite seasonal collection of Japanese-French desserts made from delicate Chitose Strawberries, assorted fresh, juicy berries and rich chocolate. The festive spread include delectable treats such as the Strawberry Tiramisu, Mixed Berry Mille Feuille, Mixed Berry tart to the classics like the Gingerbread Man, Stollen and Apple Paris Brest.

The elegantly set-up festive themed dessert table displays a variety of mouthwatering sweet treats for diners to indulge in while basking in the Christmas splendour. What caught my eyes were the mini snow covered cottage house smacked right in the center of the table and the golden tiered stand with the Ginger breadman cookies - an essential treat for the festive season.

Among the amazing spread of Japanese Chitose strawberry-inspired dessert buffet, the Strawberry Tiramisu stood out with its soft and smooth jelly-like texture, finished off with a fragrant strawberry layer atop.

The White Wine Jelly with Fruits come with bits of kiwi fruits embedded within the jelly. An absolutely light, refreshing treat before digging in and indulging in the richer heavier items.

The Mixed Berries Pound Cake stood out with slices of delectable cakes, gorgeously presented with cream and berries atop. The toppings balances the drier cake texture and exudes out a fresh strawberry fragrance. For other fruity flavours, diners can expect a few classic items such as the Apple Paris Brest which features juicy apple pieces and rich cream encased within a flaky buttery pastry shell.

The Stollen has a nice strong fruit scent from the mixed nuts, spices and dried candied fruits embedded within the moist fruit bread.

Besides the berry-flavoured treats, if you're craving for something rich and chocolatey, Lewin Terrace also introduced a variety of chocolate-flavoured desserts. The gorgeous Raw Chocolate Tart with golden crumbles was a favourite with its rich bittersweet chocolate fudge encased in a dark chocolate tart shell.

The White & Dark Chocolate Macarons lean on the sweeter side with its white chocolate shell. The flavour is balanced by the subtly bitter chocolate filling in the middle.

The Chocolate Pound Cake has a firmer fudge-like cake texture, with a rich bitter sweetness. It was so addictive I couldn't resist popping more of those rich mini pieces into my mouth.

The Caramel Pudding comes in a cute egg-shell shaped cup and has strong notes of caramel, yet not cloyingly sweet.

While the dessert buffet has a nice variety of sweet treats, I feel that more strawberry-flavoured items could be featured as the bulk of the spread, as what the name of the buffet suggests. Variety aside, the quality and taste of the dessert items were executed excellently - perfect for berries/chocolate dessert lovers to indulge in for a sweet sweet Christmas this year.

Berry Merry Christmas Dessert Buffet available 4th to 27th December 2018, Lunch only. Tuesday to Friday, 1PM – 3PM.  $38++ per pax, $20++ for children aged between 4 to 12 years.

Words and photos by Crystal. A girl who likes to eat, photograph, and write about food, and dreams about travelling around the world one day. Note: This is an invited tasting.


Lewin Terrace
21 Lewin Terrace
Singapore 179290
Tel: +65 63339905
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Nearest MRT: City Hall (EW Line, NS Line)

Opening Hours:
Tue-Sun: 12pm - 3pm, 630pm - 1100pm
(Closed on Mon)

Direction: 
1) Alight at City Hall MRT station. Take Exit B. Take left onto North Bridge. Walk to the traffic light junction of North Bridge Road and Coleman Street. Cross the road towards Peninsula Plaza and continue walking towards the junction of Coleman Street and Hill Street. Cross the road to the central fire station. Continue on Coleman Street until Singapore Philatelic Museum. Look out for the metal gate before the museum, turn left in and take the stairs to destination. Journey time about 15 minutes. [Map]

A Fantastic Festivities At Mandarin Oriental Singapore

In this festive season, include in your celebration yuletide goodies from Mandarin Oriental Singapore. Savour the new creations along with the traditional flavours.

For me, amongst the Christmas roasts, the highlight for me is this Chinese Style Roasted Christmas Goose ($185). I love the golden crisp skin with a layer of lucious fats underneath, and its meat is a lot more tender than that of duck. The plum sauce and giblet gravy goes perfectly well with it. Traditional Roasted Turkey ($185) is also available, served along with truffle mashed potatoes. Both come with apple and chestnut stuffing.

Boneless Honey Baked Ham served with Pineapple Sauce ($160) is great for any gathering. I thought the use of Pineapple sauce is something different, which is just as good as the usual tart berry sauce.

Something more indulgent, especially when you have bottles of red wine, is this Roasted Australian Grass-fed Ribeye ($265) served with roasted potatoes and red wine sauce. The meat was pretty light and not too rich, just enough to keep conversations going throughout the night.

Four new festive cakes to sweeten up your celebrations. Pretty in pink is this Joy of Christmas ($45/500g ,$75/1kg). If you like berries flavour, the berry tea infused mascarpone cream circling the an Earl Grey Tea soufflé roll will be right up your alley.

What I find more of a surprise is the Christmas Snow ($70) which is a combination of almond and pineapple mousse, layered with pineapple compote. A rather unusual pairing but it does work. Both ingredients are quite subtle in flavour but there is an elegance to it compared to other desserts.

The Black Forest ($80/1kg) here is one of the most gorgeous looking ever. Impressive visual plated and decadent with Grand Cru Dark chocolate mousse. Instead of whole cherries popping up unevenly within the cake, the cake has a layer of cherry confit in the middle, hence there is a tart and sweet cherry flavour in every bite.

The traditional flavours are on par with the new, such as this Traditional Christmas Stollen ($26/500g, $50/1kg). The almond paste filling in the middle was pretty tasty and I thought it also makes it less conventional as a stollen.

Another nostalgic flavour is the Traditional Christmas Fruit Cake with Spices, Rum and Dark Brand ($36/450g, $68/800g).

The festive counter at the hotel lobby opens from 4 to 26 December 2018. For orders, please email mosin-festive@mohg.com or call +65 68853081. For restaurant reservations or dining enquiries, please email mosin-dining@mohg.com or call +65 68853500.

Photos and words by Si An. A girl who is allured by travelling, loves the feel of freedom, smell of the rain and the aroma of fine coffee and food. Note: This is an invited tasting.


Mandarin Oriental Singapore
Marina Square
5 Raffles Avenue
Singapore 039797
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Nearest MRT: Promenade (CC Line, DT Line), Esplanade (CC Line)