BTO: Making a splash on the palate

Business Times - 16 Mar 2009

ITALIAN RESTAURANTS
Making a splash on the palate

NEW CHEF

Pontini
Level 2 Grand Copthorne Waterfront Hotel Singapore 392 Havelock Road
Tel: 6233-1133

AS any eatery worth its truffle salt knows, it's a restaurant-eat-restaurant world out there. Which means you can't afford to rest on your laurels - even if you're one of the most popular establishments in Singapore. Italian favourite Pontini evidently knows this because it decided to bring in fresh inspiration when previous head chef Michele Pavanello's contract ended earlier this year.

 

The restaurant's new culinary brain is Frank Kilian, who comes directly from Sydney's three-hat The Pier restaurant. He's also worked at several Michelin-star restaurants in Europe including London's Zafferano, and - as his new menu shows - he's taking Pontini in quite a different direction from Pavanello's somewhat hearty style of cuisine.

 

Kilian is a German with a thing for cooking Italian food, though there is very little that is traditional in his interpretation of it. Instead, what you get is a sort of simplified version featuring just a few very pure flavours on every plate (and a lot of seafood). But don't mistake this for simple cooking: the chef takes pains to extract the best of each ingredient to represent it in a dish. This could mean, say, slowly straining melon for more than four hours just to get its nectar to use as a soup base in a dessert with fresh coconut sorbet.

 

His first menu for Pontini, launched early this month, features appetisers such as a melt-in-the-mouth scallop tartare with mascarpone, Oscietra caviar and essence of tomato and cucumber ($25). The Hokkaido scallops were very fresh and sweet; delicious against each salty burst of caviar. A potato and rosemary agnolotti ($24) was good too. The firm home-made pasta pockets were stuffed with a yummy, earthy medley of mushrooms around which wobbled jellied cubes of parmesan that were a lighter, more interesting alternative to the usual shavings.

 

There's a decent enough steak and foie gras combo on the list of main courses if you are a meat lover, but what really makes a splash on the palate is Kilian's cod fillet rolled in parma ham ($32). Clean and refined, it comprises the firm and oily white fish, perfectly poached and succulent, within a roasted, porky wrapper. This comes on a bed of lentils with a puff of 'garlic air' on top for a bit of extra flavour.

 

For dessert, pan-fried taleggio, the mild cheese served melting and warm in between crisp slices of crostini ($17), is an excellent and tasty option for those without a sweet tooth. Those who want to end their meal on a more decadent note, however, should order the semi-deconstructed tiramisu with marsala and coffee jelly ($18). Unlike traditional versions, Kilian's tiramisu is prepared only when you order it and served in a glass, the sponge at the bottom soaked in still-warm coffee that pours out when you dig in.

 

The German chef is already in the midst of planning his next menu, to be launched in June, which will feature even more interesting dishes such as red snapper paired with sweetbreads. And if that plus his first creations for Pontini are anything to go by, the restaurant will stay firm on the top rungs for many more months to come.

 

Rating: 8/10
By Audrey Phoon