KOT Selections

“Why This Restaurant” is a short series of posts about the restaurants we work with – their cuisine, our wines, how and why they work together, and of course the people.

It wouldn’t have been much of a surprise if Eeling, Michael and Damian (the three owners) had named their gastrobar “Itinerant” rather than Immigrants, given Damian’s peripatetic ways: Robinson Road (Citrine Chocolat, European), Purvis Street (Soul Kitchen, Peranakan and Italian), Bedok and Holland Village (Big D’s Grill, meats and specials), and now heritage food at Joo Chiat. Normally, we would read such a CV with scepticism, but we are in extraordinary terrain with Damian, who cooks everything he puts his mind to with sensitivity and soul.

Almost everyone we send to Immigrants remarks on the spicing, but few notice the variety of chillis and sambals, each one sensitively tailored to a particular dish. Some have an acidic component (usually lime) to lift the dish, others have an intense umami punch from belachan (prawn paste), and our favourite is one which is pure essence of chilli padi – heat, of course, but also a natural, lingering sweetness which makes it clear that chillis are fruits. We like playing off the spiciness with off-dry wines, and both the François Pinon Vouvray Brut and 2011 Albert Boxler Pinot Gris Réserve have the acidity and density to pair with Damian’s dishes.

It is however another wine on the Immigrants list which we are proudest of, the 2010 Clos Roche Blanche Gamay, from the magical couple of Catherine Roussel and Didier Barrouillet. Spicy and complex dishes, such as those at Immigrants, are very difficult to match well, with most settling for beer or a simple wine to wash down rather than complement the food. When asked how the Gamay and Damian’s food work together to create magic on the palate, we prefer the romantic explanation that both the wine and food are somehow alive, imbued with the souls of their creators.

With Immigrants, we think and hope that Damian’s found a home, somewhere to settle after his years of culinary wandering. We invite you to join us this week at Immigrants, a fitting finale to our August collaboration.

Majulah Singapura.

Restaurant details

Website: www.immigrants-gastrobar.com
Address: 467 Joo Chiat Road, Singapore 427678
Phone: +65 8511 7322

“Why This Restaurant” is a short series of posts about the restaurants we work with – their cuisine, our wines, how and why they work together, and of course the people.

A single raw baby clam, fresh from the tank, without any sauce or dressing, perfectly captures what we love about The Naked Finn. The flesh was soft, with a bit of crunch, and a fresh, delicate flavour, bookended by the taste of brine and iron. It was just one clam, but the purity of approach is evident across the entire menu. Ken Loon, the proprietor, has achieved this by taking a guest-first approach (“what can we do for the guest”) and focusing on largely invisible (to the guest) processes: impeccable sourcing, immaculate handling, and intelligent preparation. This obsessiveness makes it easy and a delight to work with Ken and his team.

Most obviously, the ‘naked’ style of cooking lends itself to a pared-down approach to wine pairing, where food and drink work together seamlessly. Our favourite is the 2009 Domaine de la Pépière Muscadet Sèvre-et-Maine «Château Thébaud», a muscular, quietly intense Muscadet (much like the winegrower, Marc Ollivier), but both the 2009 Pinon Vouvray Silex Noir and 2010 François Cazin Cheverny Rosé are very good matches for the entire savoury menu, including bar snacks.

Just as importantly, there are remarkable similarities between our respective approaches, which has made it easy for us to build mutual understanding and respect. Much like how we have long-term relationships with our winegrowers in Europe, we appreciate every opportunity to do so with restaurateurs here, and are especially glad for Ken and his team. We wish that there were more Naked Finns in Singapore, but this one is a very good start.

Majulah Singapura.

Restaurant details

Website: www.nakedfinn.com
Address: 41 Malan Road, Gillman Barracks, Singapore 109454
Phone: +65 6694 0807

“Why This Restaurant” is a short series of posts about the restaurants we work with – their cuisine, our wines, how and why they work together, and of course the people.

We were introduced to Bryan and Petrina by our coffee supplier (Nylon – highly recommended) several months before Morsels opened. They had just secured the lease on their Mayo Street space, and were sourcing personally, mindfully for food, coffee and wine, of course. Over spicy heritage food at Immigrants (yes, another one of the restaurants featured this August), we discovered the many things we shared – a love for Damian’s homemade tau-cheo (soy bean paste), friends in common, time in northern California, and a belief that at their best, restaurants have distinct personalities.

This belief is immediately obvious at Morsels – the slightly mismatched furniture, the laidback but not slipshod vibe, and a menu which marries Singaporean sensibilities with Californian cuisine. Ingredient-driven (e.g. they marinate their own olives, grow some of their own vegetables, and make their own kimchi), unfussy techniques, and bright, clean flavours. We always have the steamed clams with kimchi fig broth, a lesson in balancing umami, salt and acidity, and it’s always fun to pair wines with this dish in a counter-intuitive way. The off-dry 2011 ‘Opale’ (Viognier from the Northern Rhône) from Eric Texier amplifies the umami in this dish, while the natural sweetness of the clams comes through with the thrilling flavours of Thomas Carsin’s 2010 Esperance (Pineau d’Aunis, a rarity).

Some might question why a Singaporean couple would choose to cook such clearly ‘Western’ food, but we think that misses the point of Morsels. More than ever, local chefs now have the chance to train and work abroad, gaining exposure to new ingredients, techniques and most importantly, guests. By the same token, Singaporeans who travel have become more receptive to different cuisines and ideas, helping to build a more diverse and resilient dining ‘ecosystem’. We’re delighted that Bryan and Petrina have chosen to return to Singapore to be a part of this, and hope you will find just as much joy in their distinctive, delicious dishes (and our wines).

Majulah Singapura.

Restaurant details

Website: www.morsels.com.sg
Address: 35 Mayo Street, Singapore 208316
Phone: +65 6396 6302

“Why This Restaurant” is a short series of posts about the restaurants we work with – their cuisine, our wines, how and why they work together, and of course the people.

We work with Malcolm and Candlenut for many of the same reasons we work with other chefs and restaurants: the food is delicious and wine-friendly, we have exactly the right wines at the right cost, and of course he and his team are warm-hearted people with a genuine interest in F&B. But there is also the sense that we’re collaborating with someone who is shaping his own culinary identity, drawing on but not constrained by his rich cultural heritage.

It starts, as it should, with sourcing. One afternoon, in between lunch and dinner service, we started talking about buah keluak suppliers in Singapore, and he showed me the luscious, black paste which they had been scraping from the nuts. It’s now easier to get prepared buah keluak paste than the actual nuts, but the results are strikingly different; pastes are often rancid, and impart an unpleasant sharp bitterness rather than the heady, earthy flavour one expects from the nut. What Malcolm was doing is analogous to a pastry chef making his own cocoa liquor from dried beans to ensure the quality of his raw ingredients. Not many restaurants would even think about undertaking something so labour-intensive.

It continues with Malcolm’s careful, measured cooking. His chicken satay is clean-tasting (rather than heavily charred) and beautifully succulent; with the pineapple and peanut sauce, it’s one of the many joys of the menu. The kitchen achieves the texture not via commercial tenderising agents or sous vide (although Malcolm does use low-temperature cooking for other dishes), but by grilling the sticks slowly and attentively. It’s a subtly great dish, like an understated wine, and rewards thoughtful eaters.

Grounding both Malcolm’s sourcing and cooking is how he treats his team, most evident when they sit down for a staff meal after service. Cooking, contrary to the TV-driven celebrity chef fetish, is first and foremost a social endeavour, and the very best chefs understand and nurture their teams. It’s similar to how our winegrowers treat their summer and harvest teams – with respect and gratitude.

In many ways, Candlenut reminds us of our winegrowers who have historically great but under-appreciated vineyards. They recognise that their forebears have done much of the hard work (just as generations of Nyonyas laid down the foundations for Peranakan cuisine), but that there is always space for new expressions of theterroir (just as no recipe is ever perfect). We have three wines from such winegrowers on the Candlenut list – the gently sparkling 2007 Huet Vouvray Pétillant Brut, a fruity, toothsome 2011 Cheverny Blanc from Francois Cazin, and the very fresh 2009 Pinot Noir from the Dupasquiers in Savoie.

Each time we eat at Candlenut is akin to tasting the new vintage with a winegrower; differences to be discussed, improvements to be noted, but always with a clear expression of his roots and personality. For that, we are grateful, and hope to see you at the restaurant on Wednesday 7 August, or in time to come.

Majulah Singapura.

Restaurant details

Website: www.candlenut.com.sg
Address: Dorsett Residences, 331 New Bridge Road #01-03, Singapore 088764
Phone: +65 8121 4107