il Lido Italian Dining & Lounge Bar

il Lido, the name inspired from Venice’s Lido Island, is located at the Sentosa Golf Club , with a paranomic view of the Singapore’s straits. iL Lido is the TOP 50 Restaurant in 2009 and I was full of anticipation and eagerness to try their food and of course, the magnificent view at the outdoor area. I actually made a reservation indicating an indoor seating but I changed my mind when I saw the paranomic view… I requested to be seated by the view area. The view was simply fantastic but the only problem would be the mosquitoes and the heat…. was perspiring… Without even looking at the menu itself, my mind is already set on the 3 course set lunch priced at $38++. Crispy Garlic bread I was served with a basket of crispy garlic bread crisp after placing my order. Oh goosh! how am I going to finish that huge bowl? Anyway, I tried a little and I felt that the garlic flavour was weak . It was crispy but still failed to impress me. Prawn Salad This was my choice of starter, The Prawn salad. It was served with 4 grilled jumbo prawns with balsamico served on a bed of lettuce. The prawns were quite huge tasted fresh and cruchy. I enjoy every bite of it. The bed of lettuce is simple- lettuce and shredded carrots and tossed in mustard seed dressing. Snapper with rosemary and brocolli The mains took a while to arrive. I was not informed of the cooking method and they even told me that the chef is replacing the brocolli to rocket leaves but they still serve the brocolli to me in the end. The snapper fillet is breaded (in breadcrumbs with rosemary) and deep-fried and served with brocolli. I must admit that the fish is quite thick . I do not really prefer fish to be deep-fried as it would lose it’s natural flavour. However, despite the fish being deep-fried, the fish is still quite tender and juicy in the interior. The saffron sauce added a light touch but the breadcrumb mixture is toooo… bland and almost tasteless. Perhaps a little salt could be added to spice it up. Towards the end, I felt that the fish becomes a little dry and tough (perhaps it turned cold) and thus I left it unfinished. Strawberry Mousse The strawberry mousse is very light and not too sweet, served with raspberry puree and soursoup puree. The texture is very smooth. Overall, I would agree that the view and ambience is fantastic. However, there are just few hits and misses about the food. Again, travelling to the Golf Club is not that convenient and thus a RETURN might be unlikely.

Fine Italian dining, a panoramic view of the beautiful Sentosa Golf Course and a cool evening breeze blowing in from the ocean; now that’s a setting for a dinner! Diffused light made for a most romantic atmosphere though it made taking photographs a real challenge. The $55 per-head restaurant week price was exceeded as we just had to sample some wine from the list that earned Wine Spectator magazine’s Best of Award of Excellence. The final bill came up to $280 for a 4-course dinner for 3.

The Porcini Mushroom and Truffle Cream Soup was smooth and creamy with a viscosity that was just right. However the flavours were somewhat subtle and it was found to be under-seasoned, a lament that would be echoed throughout the meal. I had the Scallops with Chanterelle Mushrooms, Sweet Garlic Cream and Crispy Prosciutto on the other hand were a delight with fresh, pillowy, sweet shellfish bathed in a rich, flavourful sauce. The chanterelles seemed a little soggy though.

The Angel Hair with Spicy Baby Prawns was pleasant but overcooked and soggy if unfairly compared with the flawless al-dente experience I had just hours before. The sauce was spectacular though, with a rich sweetness that only the painstaking reduction of a masterfully prepared stock could achieve.

The slow cooked Wagyu Beef Cheek with Celeriac and Crunchy Vegetables had a lovely, soft texture though not quite achieving the melt-in-your-mouthness symbolic of the prized, marbled meat. Flavours were balanced but once again under-seasoned; we could not help but request for salt and pepper, a decision not regretted for the nuances were truly brought out thereafter.

I felt like seafood again and chose the Atlantic Cod with Chanterelle Mushroom, Baby Leeks and Prosecco Wine Sauce. From the get-go, the presentation and taste profile was a little too similar to my scallop appetiser for comfort. The leeks were delightfully sweet and tender but alas, the fish was overcooked to the point of toughness, a true tragedy for such a fine and fresh cut that was so deliciously buttery that the dish might have been too rich if not for the fabulous pinot grigio I had with it. The chanterelles had a more pronounced flavour this time around which might indicate a slight lack of consistency on the kitchen’s part.

The Molten Lava Chocolate Cake in Hazelnut Crust with Vanilla Ice Cream arrived sans-hazelnut crust as the waiter belatedly explained they ran out of hazelnuts; replacing the vanilla ice cream with hazelnut ice cream instead. The cake itself was pleasantly rich though the chocolate used was not dark enough for my liking. The hazelnut ice cream struck the right balance of richness and nuttiness but the strawberry coulis threw an unpleasant spanner into an otherwise harmonious taste profile reminiscent of a milk chocolate praline.

The meal was closed with two sweet wines that continued the theme of mixed-feelings that was characteristic of the dinner. The first was a Frangolino Rosso Non-vintage that had the most magical nose so full of blackcurrant and berry notes that I would liken this elixir to Ribena’s sexy, seductive older sister. It is a most accessible wine with an almost alcopop taste profile. In short, I loved it.

The Moscato D Asti 2007 intrigued me initially as I have never encountered a sparkling Moscato before. It had a champagne-like appearance in the glass but any impressiveness stopped there as it had no nose to speak of and was frankly quite bland.

For photos of the food (my DSLR pics exceed the 2MB HGW cap) do visit http://fatlittleboy.blogspot.com/.

After a golf game at Sentosa, proceeded to the Il Lido Bar for some great Vodkas on the rock with olives....the evening cool breeze was great for conversation with old mates from USA.
Proceeded for dinner, and was well seated in well spreaded table outdoor / under shelter....was recommended the lamb and guest had veal....wine was lovely Dolcettas from Tuscany.
We were smitten....but when the bill came, it was an expensive S$800 for 2 mainly due to excessive drinking at the bar and 2 bottles of Dolcettas....we both agreed that the money will be more better spend with a lady.
But all said, this is still a classy restaurant with an excellent exclusive location.

Went to Il Lido for dinner with my family on a weekday night feeling a little apprehensive after reading all the not-so-fantastic reviews on HGW, but since we had a voucher we had to use, we went anyway. There werent alot of people there that night, and most of those that were there were sitting outside, so the inside area was nice and quiet. The service was pretty good, and the waiter serving us was friendly and polite, despite being kinda chatty..at least he knew when to stop though, so it was okay!

Anyway, we were served some crispy bread to start with, not really something i'm used to and i suppose it was alright but i would much have prefered warm and soft bread instead!

For appetisers we had Foie gras, Parma ham and all 3 soups on the menu (Tomato, Mushroom and Lobster). Okay, frankly i hate fish and everything fishy so the Lobster soup just made me want to gag, but my fish loving family members all thought it was quite nice so maybe its just me. The creamy Mushroom soup was pretty average, I'm coming to feel that mushroom soups tend to taste about the same with the rare exception of one or two really nice ones. The nicest soup was the Tomato soup, it was not the puree kind of tomato soup i expected, and closer to a clear soup with really small tomato chunks inside. The tomato taste wasnt too strong and it was pretty tasty on the whole..and i don't actually like tomatoes in general! The Foie gras was quite nice with a sweet fruity sauce drizzled around it which went really well with the liver. My only grouse is that the portion is too small. The Parma ham came with my father's set. Didnt think it was anything spectacular but i suppose it was alright.

On to the mains! I had the Risotto with goose liver, my sister had the Duck ragout pasta (forgot the exact name), my mother had the Squid ink pasta that was part of my fathers set and my father had the Beef tenderloin. I was pretty disappointed with my Risotto, found it kind of bland and tasteless. There was ALOT of risotta and not alot of goose liver so most of the time it was like eating italian porridge (and i hate porridge!). The Duck pasta was quite good, thought i think it might go better with a different type of pasta, the one that it came with was those really big and floppy kind which kinda makes the dish taste quite starchy. I liked the Tenderloin the most, it was really tender (no pun intended, har har), and went well with the sauce. The absolute worst dish was the Squid ink pasta, however. It was REALLY TERRIBLE! It was supposed to come with some crab sauce, but the crab taste was just overwhelming, like they didnt use fresh crab or something. That just made the whole dish really fishy and smelly. yucks!(and its not just me because everyone else hated it too).

For dessert we had the Warm chocolate cake, the Pannacotta and Tiramisu. Nothing much to shout about and pretty unmemorable in general.

In conclusion, a really pretty restaurant and really good service just about made up for the rather mediocre and not-very-value-for-money food. Our waiter did tell us that the restaurant has changed chefs 5-6 times and the latest one is another new chef so maybe thats why the food quality is not really what you would expect of a fine dining restaurant. We would probably have been less happy with Il Lido if our voucher did not effectively take 50% off the price though!If i do ever come back (not likely), it will only be for drinks, because the view is really very nice!

P.S. The 4 course set costs $88 and came with the Parma Ham, the Squid Ink Pasta (from hell), the Beef Tenderloin and the Tiramisu. The rest of the food we ordered ala carte.

Wanting to take advantage of the $38++ 3 course set lunch offer, I was more than willing to travel all the way to Sentosa. On a weekday, the restaurant was pleasantly filled with the ladies-who-lunch and uncles-who-golf. By the way, I noticed that the latter were wearing shorts with pulled-up socks, so I reckon dress code is not a problem as long as you are rich!

Complimentary bread bowl with thin slices of crispy toasted bread. Addictive like chips!

Divine starter of pan seared scallops on shiitake mushrooms! Two plump and juicy scallops, yum.

Though underseasoned, the cod had an extremely smooth, delicate texture and moist, soft flesh while I love. Natural fatty goodness! While I applaud the idea of replacing boring mashed potato with kidney bean purée, this was bland to the point of being tasteless. Flavour of tomato coulis was also mild and weak.

Instead of serving in individual ramekins, the coffee creme brulee is creatively presented like two scoops of ice cream atop a bed of strawberry compote. This was a cross between a pudding and a mousse, and I really like that it’s light and not rich with a subtle coffee taste. And I love berries so the compote was delicious!

This is a really nice place for lunch. Food was good and service was not snobbish at all. The location is also not as inaccessible as I thought as a quick train and bus ride took us there to the golf club directly. And though it’s like comparing apples and oranges, I must say that the standards at il Lido and Cafeteria il Lido are two worlds apart!

For photos/reviews, do drop by http://myfoodsirens.wordpress.com/ =)

went with 2 other friends to try since there is UOB promotion.
Food was ok, but what striked us was the snobbish service.
The staff totally ignore us, and were only serving the caucasians at the table around us. They ignore our calling out for them, so our glasses of water were hardly refill; even paying for the bill took a long time! The only draw is you can enjoy the scenary of the golf course.

Having read the recents on HGW, I was a bit sceptical about dining here though i had been wanting to have a meal here for the longest time. Having to travel all the way to Sentosa did nothing to alleviate my uncertainty (I had even contemplated cancelling the reservation last minute and choose a restaurant beginning with the letter 'P' in the Keppel Bay area instead). In any case, i booked on the very afternoon itself and needed no invitation to request for sitting indoors (i wouldnt want the humidity and heat to hinder any enjoyment i might derive from dinner). We managed to snag a table along the perimeter nearest the coast and so the view was much apprecicated.

Food:

Here's what my wife and I had:

Tuna tartare with lemon oil - For the uninitated, this would be like 'chopped tuna sashimi'; this was a simple appetiser but the fish was fresh, thereby whetting my appetite for more.

Crab salad with avacado and orange - This was execellent, the crab mean dovetailed very well with the avocado and provided a lovely balance

The appetisers paired well with our prosecco.

Risotto with foie gras - We had asked for one serving of risotto to be shared between the two of us, and thank goodness we did share. The serving portion was so big and we would struggle to finish this on on our own. The risotto itself was quite well done and the texture was commendable; however, we preferred the version we had at Garibaldi which for us sets the benchmark for risotto

Roasted angus beef - This was off the menu and was recommended to us by the wait staff; we had not taken beef for nearly two months and both of us were almost dying to swallow a piece of steak; the beef came to us sliced and executed to our requirement of 'medium rare done-ness'; just as well that this dish came without side carbo and we were quite filled after the very hearty risotto. Needless to say, we had red wine to down our steaks with.

We were not able to find bandwidth to accommodate desserts and so just made do with coffee.

Conclusion:

I was plesantly surprised that the evening (and more importantly the food) turned out well. We were celebrating a joyous occasion and we would hate to have mediocre food dampen our mood.

Went to Il Lido two Sundays ago to take advantage of their 1-for-1 degustation menu. Overall, it was a good experience. The view is spectacular and that time we were there, it was a particularly cool night. We stayed outdoors for the view but inside looked cozy and inviting too. Service was courteous and non-obtrusive. Salt was not on the table but otherwise, the courses for the degustation menu were satisfactory. The foie gras was the best part but all the rest fare just as well, in terms of serving and taste. Great place to idly spend a weekend night.

We were planning a girls' night out for a friend who is leaving Singapore for good in a month and I came across the 1-for-1 dining offer from the Her World Magazine last month and thought it would be a fantastic idea.

We intentionally arrived early when there is still light to catch the sunset. The venue is lovely although personally I'm not sure if I'd like to sit on plastic chairs the whole night in a 5* restaurant even though they were Starck.

Girls being girls, we were contemplating on having some champagne to start off the evening and we seriously contemplating on a magnum to celebrate the occassion. Luck was not on our side though as we asked our waiter (named Jai) whether the Ferrari magnum was a champagne and got a haughty response of "Of course not" despite it being listed under Champagne on their wine list. I did not see it but my friend sitting across from me mentioned that he looked at us like we were idiots. In my attempt to lighten things up although I'm already fuming, I said well your wine list does not specify where the wines are from and he continued in his rudeness with a comment "Ferrari? Italy?" with yet another set of facial expressions that confirms that we must be idiots. It's only when we told him to his face that we do not deserve such rudeness as the menu was incorrectly printed did I think he stopped. Bad start to an evening where I'm about to blow some cash. I was looking forward to dining at Il Lido for a week and the encounter made me feel like walking out the door. I suspect the manager noticed what happened(or maybe Jai knew he was out of place) because subsequently we did not see him around anymore.

The rest of the staff were friendly and helpful and the food was pretty good. We tried both the degustation menu and the gourmet menu and I liked them both well enough.

Overall, the experience was disappointing. For the price we spent eventually (we brought 2 bottles of our own wine), it's nowhere compared to the service you get at restaurants like Au Petit Salut, St Pierre, Raffles Grill and Les Amis. I even prefered my regular dinners at The French Stall! Il Lido disappoints in the true fine dining category and qualify for a bistro (albeit expensive one) category.

It was indeed very very pleasant, il Lido it didn't disappoint and best of it, I didn't have to pay a single cent (except the entry fee) ;) Note: I am basing my review on the 'almost entirely' new menu that they have created since May 2009! According to the Events Mgr, they have brought back some one time specials, all time favourites..the rest are absolutely newly created!

**Burrata Cheese with Parma Ham and Rucola (aka Rocket Lettuce)
You've gotta try this kickass appetizer! The threesome complements each other so well..so good, I can have this everyday. For those who don't know, Burrata Cheese's outer shell is solid mozzarella while the inside contains both mozzarella and cream, giving it a unique soft, light and fresh texture...yum!

**Beef Tenderloin Carpaccio with Rucola and Parmesan Cheese Shavings
Pretty decent take on this italian dish, it was quite satisfying but the Burrata is still better!

**Tagliolini with Spiny Lobster
Hmmm I personally didn't like this at all. The lobster was really tough, and the sauce of the pasta was too heavily flavoured with lobster. If you're into lobster bisque soup, you may enjoy this better than me.

**Veal Ravioli with Mushrooms and Truffle Cream
I usually try not to order veal but this was recommended. And yes, it was deliciously sinful.

**Atlantic Cod with Roast Vegetables
Have always loved cod but I can't help find the taste of cod was too ordinary. I'll pass.

**Traditional Tiramisu
Not too bad but I prefer my tiramisu creamier with more mascarpone cheese, so Valentino wins hands down, sorry!

**Molten Lava Chocolate Cake with Vanilla Ice Cream
A popular dessert choice in il Lido. Simply comforting and a nice way to finish the meal.

Oh I must mention that the waiter, James served us well that night and his recommendations were all spot on!