Birthday Dinner at Sky on 57

My actual birthday 2 Sundays ago was spent cooped up at home for most part of the day. Kh made a reservation at Sky on 57 saying that even if I planned to coop myself at home feeling sickly, crampy and miserable, I still had to have dinner. Making up and dressing up certainly sprinkled some sort of magic dust on me in the process. The pain and moodiness dissipated with each wave of the mascara wand, each glide of BB cream, each curl of hair (bimbocity continues...) Oh, if only the magic was dusted much earlier in the day.




Sky on 57 is located at the Marina Bay Sands (MBS) SkyPark, on level 57 which is the highest point of MBS. The restaurant, helmed by celebrity chef Justin Quek, offers a delectable array of modern Asian cuisine with French culinary influence. All of these delivered in a setting that offers a bird's eye view of our beautiful city.




The above image was taken from http://www.yoursingapore.com/. Our view from the table was great except that we would be overlooking the outdoor terrace through the glass with loving couples standing in our line of vision to the panoramic city scape.




I'm someone who loves my cheap hawker food so when I saw the sky-high price of Chef Justin Quek's (JQ) acclaimed Hokkien Mee, my jaws almost dropped. Yes, lobster would be used instead of prawns but would that cost about $50 extra? I was undecided on my mains so we decided to opt for the degustation menu. There were 2 Gastronomic Menu options to choose from of which, one was a seasonal bespoke creation -- a menu created on the spot based on our dietary preferences and food allergies. Kh decided on that for the both of us and told the waiter, "Surprise me."




Still sceptical about spending so much on Asian food which we could get from hawker centres and Chinese restaurants, I decided to read up some reviews. The mixed reviews ranged from 2.5 to 4 stars out of 5 and I was eager to give my take on this restaurant and JQ's culinary skills. The variety of bread had us spoilt. I must say that the truffle butter served with the complimentary bread had already teased my taste buds and heightened my expectations for JQ's cuisine. I had to request for another piece of truffle butter to go with the 2nd bread.




This lovely crispy seaweed on the house further whetted my appetite. I really could not wait to be further surprised. I really dislike not knowing what would be served but this time round, I found excitement in it all.

Before I proceed further, may I ask all vegetarians, detractors of fine dining and people who think people who spend too much on food are dumb, to stop scrolling and come back for my next post?




1st course:

~*French Oyster*~
Tomato gelee and ikura roe

I didn't even know how I should describe this oyster. It was like kissing the sea softly on the lips. It was salty, sweet, briny, firm, chewy all at the same time -- a fresh burst of flavours. American chef and food writer James Beard described oysters as simply “one of the supreme delights that nature has bestowed on man". I would steal his words for this delightful little tart of an oyster.




2nd course:

~*Hokkaido Scallop*~
Ceviche with Oscietra caviar, lemon vinaigrette and micro greens

At the 2nd course, I confidently declared to kh that "this is only the 2nd course but it is my favourite fine dining place already." This dish took me right back to our Maldives holiday when I was hooked onto fresh, raw seafood, tataki, tartare etc seasoned with vinaigrette.




By our 2nd course, the terrace was more empty. This couch was right beside/under us and I'd thought of sitting there for a while to enjoy the breeze after our dinner.




One of the best white wine ever. From JQ's selection-- Schloss Vollrads Riesling, 2012. The aroma was like fresh grapes and apples, and the taste clean and fresh. It was not acidic at all and a great pleasure to drink.




3rd course:

~*Amadai*~
Crispy scales, curry mussels

This fish wasn't descaled. The scales in fact was the main recipe for its crispiness. I love the cripy skin with the tender flakey meat.




Me love fish. Me just want an excuse to take photo.




4th course:

~*Pigeon*~
French pigeon confit, braised abalone, Chinese sausage and risotto

Initially, I was confused between which was the abalone and which was the pigeon. I don't think I've ever eaten pigeons before and was trying to discern a poultry texture from the pieces of unknown. I usually dislike Chinese sausage but this one tasted good. It seemed to have a hint of liver. Hubby usually do not like risotto but felt that the risotto in this dish was good.




5th course:

~*Omi Beef*~
Wok fried in black Asian pepper sauce vegetables

To me the term "wok fried" reminds me of Chinese cuisine, of zi char, of delicate smokey wok taste. I almost could not believe these wok fried chunks of Omi beef could taste like French cuisine. I loved it! I'm craving for it while I'm typing this.




6th course:

~*Langouste*~
Superior broth soup

OUR ultimate favourite dish for the night was this langouste bee hoon! I had craving for the broth for the next few days and kh was upset that this isn't available on their à la carte menu. I simply do not know how to describe this dish. Yes it is bee hoon only ma... Something so easy to cook, something that could be gotten from hawker centres and even in instant mee packets but this bee hoon is just so DAMN GOOD that I do not have refined words to describe this dish. Think of it as a bee hoon that is more delicate, more refined and clean. Think of it as a soup without the oily feel yet so full of robust flavour that is savoury yet not salty. Think of it as a superior broth made using the freshest ingredients that is so full of natural goodness.




7th course:

~*Red Fruits*~
Pink champagne jelly, vanilla ice cream

You know when it comes to desserts, I often pick one fruity one and one chocolatey/creamy one for the both of us to share coz I love both fruity tarty and creamy sweet. I'm glad I did not get to choose for this menu coz I'm usually undecided. The red fruits paired with champagne jelly and vanilla ice cream was just the perfect combination of zesty and sweet to end off the meal. Oh, and check out the edible gold speck.




When we were still at home, Kh told me that there would not be special arrangement for birthdays as he did not call in advance. I voiced out that for such an expensive restaurant not to have birthday arrangement is indeed a shame. Hence, I was really surprised when our waiter brought out a birthday dessert with a few others singing the birthday song.




This is the most unique dessert ever. Our good ol waiter told us that it is a dessert that you either love it or hate it. The macarons are gula melaka flavoured. I'm not quite a fan of gula melaka. The 2 white balls are truffle white chocolate balls. "Truffle" as in not chocolate truffle but the fungi truffle. Like my favourite truffle fries "truffle" and the truffle butter "truffle" earlier on. Yes, salty truffle.




This was the brightest photo for the night coz I intentionally illuminated myself with the candle flame. I was really quite miffed that the place was so dark to snap any photo that did justice to the food. All the photos in this post except for this had been edited by adjusting the brightness, contrast, saturation and colour curves. The graininess of the photos is so bad but I'd to make do with them or to present dark photos.




A shot of us in the restaurant before we headed out to the terrace.




I love our waiter and I feel like kicking myself for not remembering his name now while crafting this post. He provided the most impeccable service ever. It was professional yet casual all together and he got us laughing quite a few times. When I asked if he could do me a favour of writing down our bespoke menu for ease of blogging, he told me that he would try his best though it would not be a full description. Imagine my delight when he presented 2 of these to us, informing us that he had gotten his colleague to print it out.




By the time we finished our meal, the terrace was almost ours. The table behind kh was where we were sitting just now and the guys actually knocked on the glass to wave to us.




Our beautiful night city scape panning from right to left... all blurry and unfocused no matter which mode I chose. Time to get a new camera.








It was just too difficult to get a good shot without flash.




This was the most unblurry one of us and the stunning view.




It was a lovely dinner at Sky on 57. Indeed my favourite fine dining place to date. What you don't see in this post is how I... pardon my language... pissed through my ass thrice through the night. Kh had no problem at all and I guess it was because of my weak gastrointestinal health. I still love the whole experience and would definitely be back again. Thank you dear hubby for the pleasant birthday dinner.




It's already a week past June and I've yet to meet up all my friends who arranged to meet up with me. I've got a lot more photos of birthday meet ups and pig outs these past 2 weeks to stay tuned!