Saturday, April 6, 2019

Dinner at Monti (at Fullerton Pavilion): A Citi Four Hands Kitchen review.

👍 Food was generally pretty good, and the view of Marina Bay is gorgeous.
👎 Service was a little hit-and-miss. Pacing of the dishes a little inconsistent.

The Mar 2019 edition of Citi's 4 Hands Kitchen features Monti at the Fullerton Pavilion: A gorgeous Italian restaurant perched on the edge of Marina Bay! Monti's head Chef Felix Chong - with 15 years of experience in Italian fine dining - hosts Chef Guy Grossi, who visits from (among others), restaurant Grossi Florentino in Melbourne.

Did we mention that Monti is gorgeous? Well ... it is!

Monti Fullerton Pavilion Dinner

Inside, the restaurant seating is designed to maximize Marina Bay views. Thanks to the high ceiling & tall windows, you get a very nice view of the Marina Bay Sands side of the bay even if you're not seated right by the windows. It's a nice place to bring a date.

Monti Fullerton Pavilion Dinner

After we're seated we whet our appetites with some Onion, Thyme and Sea Salt bread. The bread is flaky and buttery (sort of like a croissant), and the added aromatics worked really well.

Monti Fullerton Pavilion Dinner

The Amuse Bouche comes from Chef Felix's world: Marron with Lardo, Mortadella Mousse in Peroni Beer Bread, and 'Lasagna' Bolognese Espuma with Crispy Pasta. These 3 snacks were pretty delicious! We especially liked the Marron with Lardo: The fat from the ... well, fat (Lardo is cured pork fat), gave the bite a terrific oily (but not exceedingly so) mouthfeel.

Monti Fullerton Pavilion Dinner

We then move on to the first of Chef Guy's dishes: The succinctly-named King Prawn, sourced from the Indian Ocean and served with tropea onion and pantelleria capers. The prawn stole the show, being perfectly cooked & seasoned.

Monti Fullerton Pavilion Dinner

Next up: Roasted Bone Marrow by Chef Felix, served with 18 hours sous vide Wagyu Beef Short Rib, Saffron Risotto Cracker, and Gremolata Sponge. We didn't really feel that the gremolata (chopped herbs) sponge added much to the dish other than perhaps to soak up a little of the oiliness of the bone marrow. If you're comfortable with animal fats though, you'll love the combination of oily bone marrow and the beefy, super tender short rib on its own.

Monti Fullerton Pavilion Dinner

Next up, also from Chef Felix: Squid Ink Lobster Tortelli, served in a spinach & tarragon broth, and accompanied by artichoke chips, fennel & lemon, and smoked vinaigrette. First the tortelli: It was very good. Well executed al-dente pasta hiding well seasoned lobster inside. The spinach & tarragon broth was also delicious, but we weren't so convinced by the grapefruit and citrus adding - in our opinions - a somewhat excessive sour note.

Monti Fullerton Pavilion Dinner

The final dish from Chef Felix was the Crispy Skin Tile Fish 'Amadai,' served with perfumed fruit, celeriac & chive, and basil seeds. This was very interesting to us: The Amadai was deep fried (presumably only on the skin side) without any descaling, thus curling and crisping up the scales into a light, airy, crispy crust. The texture of this scales crust was a perfect contrast with the moist flesh beneath.

Monti Fullerton Pavilion Dinner

For the final main course: Chef Guy's Mayura Full Blood Wagyu Tri Tip (MBS 9+), with onion, creamy mashed potato, and a watercress gravy. The steak (essentially) was sublime: It had a terrific crust, with a distinct nutty, earthy flavour. And being a from a full blooded Wagyu cow, the meat was naturally fatty, oily, beefy, and delicious. So delicious, actually, that we felt the watercress sauce actually hampered enjoyment, so we left most of it untouched.

Monti Fullerton Pavilion Dinner

Finally, for dessert, Chef Guy bids us farewell with his Buttermilk Panna Cotta with latte, malt, and white chocolate. It was a pleasant, light dessert and a nice end to the meal.

Monti Fullerton Pavilion Dinner

To conclude: The dinner was quite satisfying. We were also quite appreciative of the generous portion sizes. Food was also good: Good enough that we would consider at least two return visits: Once to sample more of Chef Felix's Italian dishes, and once to try the 1.1kg Mayura T-Bone Steak!

Monti is in the Fullerton Pavilion building across the bay from Marina Bay Sands. Non-Halal.

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