I must say, COMO Dempsey is a really nice retreat from the hustle and bustle of the city centre and the best part is that, it's only a few minutes from the very busy Orchard Road.
Apart from Candlenut, there are three other restaurants here including a tempura bar (IPPOH), fusion restaurant (COMO) and Jean Georges' Dempsey Cookhouse & Bar.
Royal longan and red dates tea ($5) - We were all sweating a bit when we got here so everyone decided to get something icy for a quick cool down first. I went with their iced longan and red dates tea which was really thirst quenching. Now that I've finally stopped sweating, I could focus on ordering for the team.
Some complimentary crackers to start things off first. My little nugget almost single-handedly took out the entire basket of them but thankfully, our server was kind enough to give us another basket, free of charge.
Crispy bean curd skin Ngoh Hiang, minced pork, prawns and water chestnut ($16) - Homemade "spring roll" made with crispy bean curd skin and stuffing of minced pork, prawns and water chestnut. This was very tasty and I particularly enjoyed the bean curd skin which was crispy yet not too flaky like most spring roll skins made with pastries.
Charcoal grilled Snake River Farm Kurobuta pork neck satay, Kicap Manis glaze ($16) - Very tender and juicy.
And not a bit chewy like some of the satays we had in other places.
Blue Swimmer crab curry, turmeric, galanal, kaffir lime leaf ($32) - There were a couple of curry on the menu but this one with blue swimmer crab meat caught my eyes. To my pleasant surprise, this came with a lot of crab meat. The curry also surprised me a bit with a fair amount of acidity from the kaffir lime leaf while the turmeric provided some heat.
Westholme wagyu beef rib Rendang, serunding, turmeric leaf ($32) - Like the previous satay dish, the beef rib Rendang was very tender and full of flavors. It was a little more spicy than I expected but worked rather well with the steamed rice.
King tiger prawn, Gula Melaka coconut sauce, lemongrass, Thai basil ($28) - This came with a pair of king tiger prawns drizzled in a rich coconut sauce which have been flavored with lemongrass and Thai basil. Very nice.
Candlenut Buah Keluak fried rice, sunny side up ($28) - Probably the least impressive dish from this meal, ironically also a signature dish here. There're a lot of flavors in there highlighted by the sambal while ingredients like buah keluak (黑果), chillies, shallots and candlenuts (I think some shrimp paste too) were also in play. A little too flavorful and over the top for me (Make sure you have a lot of iced water ready!).
Omelette of homemade Chincalok, spring onion, crab meat ($20) - Kind of like Thai-style crab meat omelette. Less fluffy but equally tasty.
Some vegetables and mushrooms for my little one as usual.
Mao Shan Wang ice-cream, durian purée, Kueh rose ($15) - Dessert is a must on a hot summer day like this. While I'm not a fan of durian, I thought I should check out some Mao Shan Wang on this trip because the harvest was supposed to be really good according to our cab driver.
This wasn't bad. A nice scoop of Mao Shan Wang durian ice-cream served with durian purée and durian sauce. Nice little garnish with Kueh rose (蜂窩餅) which was a traditional Malaysian / Indonesian snack made with flour, egg and coconut milk. Great to check this off my list.
Fresh sea coconut, young coconut shaved ice, calamansi, ice jelly, royal jelly honey ($12) - Everybody wanted something refreshing to wrap up the meal so what's better than a fresh sea coconut? This came with different textures of coconut which was perfect after all those spicy dishes. Didn't notice the hint of calamansi until I read the menu again.
Food Rating: 6/10
Price: $$$$
Address: 17A Dempsey Road, Singapore 249676
Closest Metro Station: N/A
Tel: 1-800-304-2288
Website: www.comodempsey.sg/restaurant/candlenut
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