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A modern French restaurant in Singapore, my treat after weeks of DIY lettuce lunches. The place is Lerouy, the chef is Christophe Lerouy and it's near Telok Ayer MRT station on the blue Downtown line.
Flag of France
One of the staff wears a Relais and Chateau black tee-shirt which is a good sign and evocative reminder.
This restaurant was the highlight of the week, the highlight of the year. Perfect for me, at least, and lots of others, French and English speaking.
We were greeted as we walked in the door which is always a good start. Christophe regnized my husband who was paying a return visit.
The man by the door on the front desk immediately knew we were the people who had phoned to say we were arriving late after being delayed by a thunderstorm - their website warns that seats are kept for only 15 minutes - and addressed us by name.
Christophe seemed delighted that I spoke French.
The boss is behind the bar, moving to and fro, surrounded by half a dozen assistants, all with their own speciality. The s-shape bar gives you a view of the food preparation.
Everything is designed for the customer's convenience.
A hook under the counter takes your handbag or umbrella or both.
A hook for your handbag or brolly. Photo by Angela Lansbury. Copyright.
You can see other diners in the distance across the room. Yet the curved countertop means you away from other groups alongside so you feel as if you are in a private space.
High stools but backed and comfortably padded. Photo by Angela Lansbury. Copyright.
Seating
Although you are seated on a bar stool, the stools are soft to sit on and have high backs. They are not too high but easy to get on and off.
Cutlery at Christophe's Lerouy restaurant. Photo by Angela Lansbury. Copyright.
Novelty Cutlery Stand
Service and water and then cutlery and finally food appear with unhurried speed. We ignored the offer or sparkling or still wine and went for tap water which came offered in a topped carafe which was taken away but brought back with no need to ask to replenish our glass.
Wines By The Glass
I discovered a delicious off-dry, almost sweet wine, just what I like. I recall a gourmet restaurant in London which charged high prices but could not provide a glass of wine to my liking.
My choice, advised by my husband who is a wine educator, still educating me, was Chateau de la Roulerie. It must be sweet because it has only 11.5% vol alcohol, a sign of a sweet wine, which pleases me because it won't send me to sleep before I reach the coffee which wakes you up.
Wine bottle at Lerouy. Photo by Angela Lansbury. Copyright.
The wine was so good that we ordered a second glass of the same, instead of trying something new.
It's handy to take a picture. Reading the label again from my photo, I notice that the wine is vegan. (No egg white added to cling to impurities such as fragments of grape skin which are then more easily removed.)
We had warned the restaurant that I am allergic to shellfish. They all seemed to know about that. Very good. The food is all prepared in advance. My husband had scallops whilst I was served another fish.
Choices
Once you have selected your meal, no more decisions to be made, except the wine. We chose the three course set lunch, cheaper than the gourmet meal.
But plenty of food because all sorts of tiny bites keep appearing.
Main Courses
Our main course was kobe beef - slices of soft beef.
Last week a member of my family had lamb.
Desserts
Desserts were strawberry, fresh and compote. And two teeny flowers.
And the best chocolate biscuit I have ever had - what chocolate do they use - it is French or flown in or local? In Singapore I am frequently given chocolates or chocolate cake which is chocolate cake but although it has a brown colour has no chocolate flavour. Not here.
I might try to copy some of these ideas but a meal made by me is not the same. Firstly, you go out so that somebody else does the shopping, cooking, serving and clearing up. Secondly, a friend of mine said his mother tried to teach him to cook. But even with the same recipe, the same ingredients, the same oven, the results were not the same. I found that happened when we used to do rotating dinner parties. Every one of the four couples had a recipe to follow. Yet the results were all different.
If you ever wondered how to dole out the last of the ice cream to two or four or more people here's an idea for you. Make it into a shape like a tapered ends cocktail sausage and surround it with fresh fruit or tiny cubes of tinned fruit or home made jam and chocolate biscuit.
But that's not the end of what you get at this restaurant. The petits fours would be a dessert in itself at some restaurants.
Petits Fours at restaurant Lerouy. Photo by Angela Lansbury. Copyright.
Petits Fours
Do not desert the restaurant after dessert because up comes four tiny petits fours per person. We had a green pistachio macaroon, a tiny cream filled circular pastry tart which made us ooh and ah.The cube of what looks like jelly - but unlike those brightly coloured jellies you see everywhere, this has a strong, sharp flavour. Yum!
Coffee
Coffee at restaurant Lerouy. Photo by Angela Lansbury. Copyright.
Price
The price for the cheaper set lunch at lunch time is much below the higher priced of the two set meals at dinner time. they make up for it on the drinks.
Want a photo of yourself with the chef? No problem.
Angela Lansbury and Christophe Lerouy in the doorway of restaurant Lerouy. Photo by Angela Lansbury. Copyright.
Restaurant Lerouy
3 Stanley Street
01-01S Singapore 068722
Tel:(65) 6221 3639
Website:
https://www.lerouy.com/
https://www.facebook.com/RestaurantLerouy/
https://travelwithangelalansbury.blogspot.com/2019/04/lovely-lunch-at-lerouy-in-singapore.html
Travel
singaporeair.com
visitsingapore.com
Author
Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author and speaker.
