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]

Gourmet Italian Osteria (GIO) @ Tanjong Pagar - Showcases The Essence Of Traditional Italian Gastronomy With A Contemporary Approach

Gourmet Italian Osteria at Tanjong Pagar is created to offer you high-quality dining experiences that you will get from an Italian restaurant in Venice or Rome. With vast experience under his belt, including being the creative director of Italian Trade Agency Pavillon at the Food and Hotel Asia 2022 in Singapore, Chef-in-House David Marchiori brought into Singapore not just genuine Italian flavours but also a taste from home. A series of 4-course set menus showcase the essence of traditional Italian gastronomy with a contemporary approach - Traditionals, Journey to Venice, Mama's Recipes and Signatures. We had the pleasure of trying out Signatures Se Menu, which serves the best of beef goodness of things.

Balsamic Negroni

Pizza Fritta con Chef’s Nduja e Burrata 4.5/5

The dinner started with Pizza Fritta con Chef's Nduja e Burrata, featuring a hot fried pizza base juxtaposed with cold and spreadable homemade pork salume, burrata, and spiked with fiery Calabrian chillies. Instantly transformed from a typical main to an appetiser, this fried pizza with its mouth-filling texture is the perfect accompaniment to your wines or, even better, Gio's Balsamic Negroni. I love how the cold, milky-sweet burrata harmonises the heat and savouriness of the chilli and the flavoursome pork salume.

Beef Fillet Tartare 4.5/5

Our 2nd course is a Battuta di Filetto di Manzo con Zabaione al Parmigiano Reggiano e Prosciutto Chips. Chef David Marchiori believes in allowing the beef to shine. Hence GIO's Beef fillet tartare deviates from a typical steak tartare because it carries no acidity. Instead, the technique is more on amping up the savoury elements - a drizzle of Parmigiano zabaglione and brilliantly crowning the tartare with moreish prosciutto crudo chips.

Beef Cheeks 4/5

The 2nd main was interesting - Guancetta di Manzo Brasata Biscottata con Verdure Baby. The beef cheek is first braised, then hand-pulled before being compacted into a block. Then it is portioned out like a brownie and pan-fried to crisp the exterior before being served. Hence, as my fork pierced through the crusty layer, it unveiled the gelatinous meat. What a refreshing way to enjoy beef cheeks!

Pumpkin Ravioli 4.8/5

Before dessert, we also tried a tasting portion of Ravioli di Zucca, Amaretto e Ricotta Affumicata. The Pumpkin ravioli is made with the chef's mama's recipe that consists of amaretto and smoked ricotta, and it is the most memorable one to date. Unlike most pumpkin kinds of ravioli I had tried, this plate has so many more flavours permeating through and mingling with one another instead of just the singular sweetness of the pumpkin.

Tiramisu 4/5

Dessert was Tiramisù al Pistacchio di Sicilia. The pistachio mascarpone was nutty and creamy but light and simply mellow sweet.

GIO also has a strong curation of wines, including La Cantina Di Cunez Nadir, located near the town of Gressan, which offers a local mix of grape varieties and Tenuta Il Palagio, a Tuscan wine estate owned by rock star Sting and his wife, Trudie Styler.

You may wish to join its House of Artisans of Wine – a wine club membership whereby the terroirs of hidden gem Italian wine-making are harvested and brought to a sharing community right here in Singapore. At an annual membership fee of SGD 500, members will receive a welcome vintage bottle, SGD 300 voucher to buy selected wine, special retail price for their exclusive wine selection, 15% discount on GIO's Artisans of Wine (AoW) list, exclusive wine scouting upon discovering a favourite Italian winery, as well as 30% discount on GIO's wine monthly events. Members also enjoy monthly special offers and monthly pre-order air shipments.

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.


[PERMANENTLY CLOSED]
Gourmet Italian Osteria (GIO)
27 Tanjong Pagar Road
Singapore 088450
Tel: +65 80301224
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Nearest MRT: Tanjong Pagar (EW Line), Maxwell (TE Line)

Opening Hours:
Mon-Thu - 1130am - 3pm, 530pm - 1130pm
Fri: 1130am - 3pm, 530pm -12midnight
Sat: 530pm - 12midnight
(Closed on Sun)

Direction:
1) Alight at Maxwell Road. Take Exit 1. Walk to Maxwell Well Road. Cross the road and walk down Tanjong Pagar Road. Walk to destination. Journey time about 4 minutes [Map]

2) Alight at Tanjong Pagar MRT station. Take Exit A. Walk to Tanjong Pagar Road. Turn right onto Tanjong Pagar Road. Walk down Tanjong Pagar Road. Walk to destination. Journey time about 7 minutes. [Map]