We Spent Xmas Eve at Portico :)

Merry Christmas everyone!!

Shall revive this blog with the most recent and impressive meal – our Xmas eve dinner at Portico! Like I mentioned on my Instagram, a dear friend asked how come I’m so boring to pick Portico again despite having been there so many times. My reply was that I didn’t want to be disappointed by any new restaurant on a special night! It’s no secret that we love Chef Nixon’s food (K is an even bigger fan than me) ever since his Petite Menu days so I know we can count on him to deliver. And omg he really fed us well! We had a food coma that night, no joke!

say hello to reindeer in a pan! because roasting turkey is so passé~

One of the best things about dining at Portico is that Chef is aware of our likes and dislikes. We no longer need to order the soft shell crabs with salted egg yolk sauce since he already knows that’s one of our must-eats. This time, he also included miniature fish & chips – thinly battered and moist seabass fritters which went well with the heart-stopping sauce too!

soft shell crab, seabass fritters, salted egg yolk sauce, coffee soil

The second platter of “snacks” can be summarized in one word – crispy! Especially interesting was the fried lemon sole skeleton, or “ti po” – the fried flat fish used to impart an intense and savoury-sweet flavour to Chinese-style soups. I can easily imagine this being served in a ‘nose to tail’ dining restaurant!

salmon skin, tomato mousse, ikura, lemon sole bone

The artichoke soup with brown shaved truffles was inspired by the winter landscape when Chef was in Luxembourg for the Expogast Culinary World Cup 2014. Incredibly earthy and hearty, the toe-warming soup was made of pure artichoke goodness and no cream! Best soup we’ve had at Portico so far; this will be a tough one to supersede.

jerusalem artichoke soup, poached egg, shaved truffle, artichoke chips

Oh ya, this is one of the starters for Portico’s 3-course Christmas menu, available till end of the festive week!

The other choice of starter is the clean-tasting crustacean terrine made with prawns, scallops and mussels. The fried mini shrimps on the side were extremely addictive!

cold terrine of crustacean, tomato and dill tartare, marinated salmon trout roe, brown shrimps, pickled ginger cream cheese

I’ve said it before and I’ll risk sounding like a broken record to say it again – best seats in the house are at the bar counter! That’s where you can order the bar tasting menu, served personally by Chef and the interaction made the whole dining experience so much more intimate and fun!

two talented chefs plating our next course!

Love the salty torched smoked eel which contrasted very nicely with the light and refreshing lemon mash!

smoked eel, lemon mash potato, nashi pear soaked in lime

K had a pretty dish – foie gras mousse with fruits on homemade toasted brioche and cranberry sorbet. The latter tasted like hawthorn berries (or 山楂, our childhood snack!) and its tangy flavour complemented the foie gras by cutting through the richness.

foie gras and fruits, brioche, cranberry sorbet

I thought it was smart to present beef cheeks stuffed in foie gras (yes, foie gras again!) as a knob of butter on the steak! Tenderloin was cooked a perfect medium rare and K was super satisfied with it!

beef tenderloin, foie gras, banana shallot, celeriac puree, hazelnut crumb, brussel sprouts petals, truffle madiera sauce

The neatly rolled lemon sole (remember the bones we had earlier? Same fish!) might be a tad too fishy to some but I thought it was still acceptable. Highlight for me was the blue swimmer crab croquette without any potato filler and the right amount of seasoning! I wish there will be a crab cake on the menu soon *hint hint*

lemon sole, crab croquette, lemon jam, caviar, onion puree, saffron braised turnip, sauvignon blanc sauce

After all the savoury food, I was looking forward to desserts! First up was a palate cleanser – sweet mango sorbet made with alphonso mango and drizzled with fizzy soda. The lychee pearls actually tasted peachy after sitting in the pool of yuzu-infused soda!

mango sorbet, yuzu soda, lychee pop pearls

Now, Portico’s take on the classic Mont Blanc is one of the best I’ve ever tried and I’ve been bugging them to put it permanently on the menu haha. I don’t fancy the traditional version as the amount of cream is plain ridiculous. But a parfait-like Mont Blanc that’s not too sweet and with a generous piping of chestnut puree? I approve wholeheartedly. Had this twice already and wonder when’s the third time!

chestnut vermicelli, tahitian vanilla bean parfait, cherry compote

I was ready to surrender by then but hey, got to make some room for the last dessert right?

chocolate peanut butter tart, whiskey caramel, caramelized banana, coconut sorbet

The gooey molten dark chocolate and peanut butter tart marked the end of our meal! The potent whiskey caramel sauce was dopeeee.

Thank you to the Portico team for making our Christmas eve dinner so wonderful! Nixon of course; Charlene for the sweets; Gavin for the coffee; Leslie for the laughter; and everyone else for the professional and friendly service! From start to end, it was a faultless night. See you all soon!

Portico Singapore
#01-10, 991B Alexandra Road
6276 7337

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