Au Petit Salut (Dempsey)

I find in Singapore there are few establishments I would return to, but this would be one of them.

What has happened to this restaurant? - I have been a regular guest for many years - for both the set lunches and a la carte dinners.

The other day, I called to make a reservation for lunch and managed to get a table outside. The setting was as nice as ever - but too hot at this time for the year.

I ordered the normal 3 course set lunch for $30 (tuna tartar, beef onglet and fruit salad with lemon sorbet). My mother chose the 3 course executive set lunch for $58 (crab avocado dish, sea trout and the fixed chocolate dessert). - My mother was told that the sea trout was not available but replaced by threadfin that is supposedly better quality than the sea trout... She decided to give it a go.

The starters arrived and I couldn\\\'t believe that my tuna tartar was off. It didn\\\'t look fresh and tasted even worse. - I immediately called the waiter and he returned it to the kitchen. - At this moment we should have actually left the restaurant ! - Anyway, I couldn\\\'t find anything exciting from the rest of the appetisers and so I upgraded for a further $10 to the crab avocado dish, the same as my mother ordered. - It got shortly served by another waiter who almost slammed it on my table - with a stern face. Thanks a lot ! - The dish itself was okay but nothing to write home about.

The next disappointment was my mother\\\'s main course. The fish was totally dry, hard and tasteless. My mother only ate the veggies that came with it. Then 2 waiters came and very asking what was wrong. We mentioned that the dish is simply not good. They offered to replace the dish with something else - but my mother declined as by then her appetite was gone. We asked them to reduce the bill instead- My beef onglet was unremarkable - from memory it had been much better in the past.

The dessert were good. Though it should be mentioned that on the menu it was stated that it comes with lemon sorbet but it was served with mango sorbet - without comment.

I ordered a tea and I couldn\\\'t believe the cup that they brought me, an original white cup totally scratched off. I first thought it was so dirty. When I commented on it they did replace it with a fresh one. - A quick visit to the restroom showed me a sink that was full to the top and didn\\\'t drain.

At the end of meal they waved the $10 for the so called upgrade. - Not sure what I expected. Anyway, it wasn\\\'t only about the money but about a spoilt lunch. - The waiters were friendly enough with the exception of the one who brought me the replacement appetiser. 

I dare say, Au Petit Salut’s set lunch is one of the most, if not the most, value-for-money set lunches available in Singapore. For S$30++ per person, you get 1 appetizer, 1 main course, 1 dessert, ending off with a cup of either coffee or tea. While not impossible, it may be hard to reach without private transport or getting in on a taxi ride. However, for those who drive, one would be very pleased to know that Au Petit Salut have you in mind! A 40-lot private carpark is available! Did I mention that, it’s free parking?

I used to visit Au Petit Salut once every 1-2 months and during one of the visits, I commented to the waiter that the complimentary bread was nice. Guess what I found out? The bread was baked by Delifrance and sent to APS every morning. APS used to bake their own breads before but the sheer volumes that they go through in a day deters them from continuing with that tradition. Note: This was a few months ago, so I’m not sure if this still holds true.

Starting off with the quintessential appetizer of Half dozen baked Burgundy snails with tomato and garlic butter. The escargots were, as how I remembered them to be. And to those who claim Burgundy snails taste exactly like chickens, oh boy, you are so wrong!

My dad ordered the Vegetable soup of the day. The soup of the day was the Fennel Soup. Fragrant, Creamy and Smooth, it was. However, I wasn’t too impressed by the soup. I like soups which taste rustic, hearty and robust. Think Cream of Mushroom. Then again, I’m not a real fan of soups, besides good ol’ Lobster Bisque and Mushroom Soup.

For my main course, I ordered the Slow braised pork neck in Madeira served with creamy polenta. An excellent choice, it sure was! The pork neck was really tender and flavourful. The polenta, infused with bits of corn, was as described in the menu – creamy! But do you know what surprised me more? The sheer portion size! I would have expected the portion to be somewhat smaller.

Sidenote: Polenta is a peasant dish made from boiled cornmeal.

My dad had the Red wine braised beef cheeks, carrots, mushrooms and parsley potatoes. I tried a little and I have to say, that the beef was moderately tender. The sauce was decent, nothing really to shout about.

My meal ended off on a sweet note. I loved my Crème brulée infused with fresh Madagascar vanilla beans. You could literally see the vanilla beans and unlike artificial vanilla essence, the beans gave a very fragrant taste to the dessert, that leaves you wanting more.

My dad ended his meal with Choux buns filled with vanilla ice cream in warm chocolate sauce, sliced almonds. The choux buns were pretty standard. I do have to add, that the accompany warm chocolate sauce tasted very nice, especially for those who like dark chocolate.

For full review and photoset, please visit HungryEpicurean at http://www.hungryepicurean.com/

Chi-chi location it may be, the set lunch is more than reasonably priced at $30++ with many choices for starter, main and dessert. Ultra value for money with coffee/tea thrown in too!

I felt slightly cheated disappointed that the complimentary baguette is outsourced from Delifrance instead of being freshly baked in-house. That said, it was served warm and crusty so no complaints there. 

Pina colada smoothie didn’t have that thick and creamy milkshake-like texture I was craving for but I like the tropical combination of coconut cream and pineapple juice. Love the French rum La Mauny, especially when flavoured with passionfruit and mango! Current promotion: $9++ for 2 drinks.

Tuna tartare with basil and olive oil, rocket salad and crouton: A very safe and simple appetiser that served its purpose well enough.

Pork rillette served with mesclun salad and walnut dressing: I can’t attest to its saltiness personally but just to give you an idea of how high the sodium level was, we had 4 refills of the bread basket just to counter its saltiness!

Oven baked Norwegian mackerel with melted capsicum and onions, olives and basil: You know I’ll never say “no” to oily fish! Smooth and tender, this had no fishy scent at all. Nothing “wow” but good enough to satisfy.

Crispy filo pastry filled with ragout of braised duck, mushrooms purée and salad: Another salty dish…

Red wine braised beef cheeks, carrots, mushrooms and parsley potatoes: Portion was very generous! The poor cow must have been quite a whopping fellow to have such big cheeks. Anyway, the sauce was quite bland and wasn’t as flavourful as I thought a good stew should be.

Crème brulée infused with fresh Madagascar vanilla beans: This won the most votes for the best dessert out of the 4 we tried. Spotted lots of vanilla specks which got me excited! Smooth texture and not too eggy custard with a nicely burnt sugar top.

Profiteroles filled with vanilla ice cream in warm chocolate sauce: Crisp choux buns and crunchy sliced almonds are always pleasing.

Passionfruit “Blanc-Manger”: a.k.a. French version of panna cotta. This got a bit too milky after awhile so the tangy passionfruit came in really handy.

Cake “Financier” served with mixed berry compote and vanilla whipped cream: Though moist and soft, this was yawn-inducing compared to the others.

Overall, a pleasant lunch with good service and lush surroundings. Food was not fantastic as nothing particularly outstanding stood out. I’d probably describe the lunch experience as “nice” but sometimes, “nice” can just be so boring.

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