Of course our hopes were high when we chose to dine at famed Canadian chef Susur Lee’s new fusion (contemporary Chinese with a western twist) restaurant at Resorts World Sentosa, in partnership with the Tung Lok Group. After all, Lee’s Susur restaurant back in Toronto has been named one of the top 50 best restaurants in the world. While not as experimental as Susur—that menu changes daily based on marketplace supplies—Chinois by Susur Lee possesses just a dash of innovation (perhaps too little, really). The menu is a conservative selection of Chinese staples and local favorites (they even have chili crab here). Our braised marble goby with black truffle was clearly nothing spectacular even allowing for the extra piece of truffle, which hardly did anything for the dish. Neither was the overpriced poached crispy rice, which was essentially rice and crab meat porridge in a less than stellar seafood broth. That said, our starter of crispy Peking duck skin with five-spiced foie gras and shredded duck was an interesting cacophony of taste and texture. The contrast of the crisp duck skin and creamy foie gras was well balanced against fresh, diced mangoes flecked with red chili, for just the right amount of sweet and spicy. Our favorite dish, surprisingly enough, was the steamed eggplant roulade. This winning combination of tender eggplant strips, sprinkled with bonito flakes and flash-fried preserved vegetables (mei chai) with a dash of sugar was a wonderful interplay of sweet and salty flavors. For dessert, we went with a chinese herbal jelly which arrived dressed in osmanthus flowers. Granted, nothing was truly terrible. In fact, service was decidedly charming and attentive. But at prices like these and Lee’s name on the door, we’d like the kitchen to catch up please (and soon).Have you tried the Steamed Eggplant Roulade? It’s one of I-S Magazine’s 50 things to eat in Singapore before you die (2010).
