Madame Patisserie Tasting Session
76 Boat Quay #01-76
Opening Hours (Boat Quay):
Mon - Sat: 8am - 11pm, Sun: 8am - 8pm
27 Mackenzie Road
Opening Hours (Mackenzie):
Sun - Thu: 11.30am - 12am, Fri - Sat: 11.30am - 1am
http://www.madamepatisserie.com/
This was an invited media review. I did not pay for the meal during the free hosted tasting session, but I did pay the standard price during subsequent visits.
Attended with representatives from HungryGoWhere, The Hungry Bunny, and Purple Taste.
Excellent Pastries, Good Mains, Decent Desserts
(Ratings: On a scale of 1 to 10, with 1 = Worst and 10 = Best)
Overall: 8
Ambience & Setting: 7
Food & Beverage: 8
Service: 8
Value for Money: 7
Budget about SGD $25 ++ per person.
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Originally operating as a bakery / patisserie at Boat Quay, Madame Patisserie has many regular customers who enjoyed their baked goods and desserts, and wanted them to also serve main courses. To meet this high demand for good quality yet affordable food, Madame Patisserie has since converted its original outlet into a casual cafe, and in January 2014, opened a bistro in Mackenzie, in the Selegie area.
Founded by ex-Ritz-Carlton pastry chef Sherie Quek, Madame Patisserie also hold baking classes and workshops from time to time. Breads and pastries are freshly made in-house daily, and I find them really tasty!
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| Madame Patisserie Facade |
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| Madame Patisserie Signage |
Madame Patisserie retains the original shophouse facade, and the floor space at Mackenzie spans 3 shops. Divided into a bar, cafe, and private function room with kitchen, the ambience at Madame Patisserie features warm lighting within its limited space. Furniture is comfortable and modern, with colour schemes of black, white and wood. The open air concept of Madame Patisserie is both a plus and minus, while cooling air breezes throughout the interior, the heat of the day also tends to raise the ambient temperature within the premises.
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| Madame Patisserie Private Function Room |
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| Madame Patisserie Cafe |
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| Madame Patisserie Bar |
Service at Madame Patisserie is friendly and personal. Staff are very welcoming, happy, and willing to assist. The chef, Regis, often walks around and mingles with customers to get feedback. Some of the staff are dual trained, working both the bar and serving tables. Servers have working knowledge of the menu, and are able to make recommendations.
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| Madame Patisserie Menu |
Food at Madame Patisserie is generally tasty and hearty, with some hits and misses. Dishes are beautifully presented, pack good flavour, and are freshly prepared, with relatively short waiting times. I feel prices are affordable for portion size and quality, averaging about SGD $18 - $30 per person.
The soup of the day, Madame's Special Apple And Carrot Soup (SGD $10.90), has a delightful sweetness and freshness, a creamy texture, and tastes similar to butternut squash or pumpkin. Lovely and satisfying, and the crisp baguette slice is perfect for dunking.
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| Madame's Special Apple And Carrot Soup |
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| Madame's Special Apple And Carrot Soup |
The Rucola Beef (SGD $17.90) is made for sharing, with thinly sliced and seared grilled beef, served on fresh rocket leaves and cherry tomatoes, drizzled with a slightly salty and savoury wafu dressing, and garnished with crisp fried shallots. Odd combination, but the crunch of the shallots contrasted well with the moist and tender beef. Our group really enjoyed this dish despite it being a salad!
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| Rucola Beef |
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| Rucola Beef |
The Pan Seared Foie Gras (SGD $20.90) is a perfect appetizer for sharing. The foie gras is perfectly seared and absolutely flavourful with just a hint of grilled / roasted taste, and the fatty richness is cut with a sharp and tangy maple balsamic vinaigrette. Tiny cubes of apples, strawberries and tomatoes round off the sweetness of the dish, and the garnish of orange slices go well with the savoury foie gras. The presentation with an upright slice of crisp toast makes for an interesting visual.
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| Pan Seared Foie Gras |
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| Pan Seared Foie Gras |
The Beef Cheek (SGD $24.90) is slow braised over 12 hours, but I still found it slightly tough. Slightly better when paired with the savoury red wine meat gravy, which coats the meat with an earthy richness. Fresh lettuce and sauteed broccoli and shiitake mushrooms together with a smooth and creamy mashed potato mousse round off this dish. Decent enough, but I've had better beef elsewhere.
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| Beef Cheek |
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| Beef Cheek |
I thought the Duck Confit (SGD $17.90) was very good, but not very traditional, more like a combination / fusion dish of 2 French dishes, Duck Confit and Duck A L'Orange. Still, it's rare to find duck meat that isn't overdone and dry, and I was pleased to see the meat was tender and still moist. Served in an orange sauce with orange zest, this added a nice sweetness to the dish. I find that most dishes here tend to straddle the line between savoury and sweet...
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| Duck Confit |
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| Duck Confit |
I loved the Grilled Chicken Roulade (SGD $16.90)! The tender grilled chicken is very tasty, and the roll is tightly packed, such that cutting into it doesn't make it fall apart. Served with a nicely grilled tomato, sauteed broccoli and shiitake mushrooms, and the signature smooth and creamy mashed potato mousse. Easily among the better main dishes here!
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| Grilled Chicken Roulade |
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| Grilled Chicken Roulade |
The Smoked Duck Linguine is very rich and quite heavy because of the amount of cream sauce used. While the slices of duck had a hint of smoky taste, I find them too thin. The garlic and sundried tomatoes add a burst of flavour, but the cranberry cream sauce get cloying and heavy after awhile. Decent, but difficult to finish.
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| Smoked Duck Linguine |
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| Smoked Duck Linguine |
The house signature dish of Madame Patisserie, and easily the most well recieved and loved dish of the evening, the Bacon Bomb (SGD $16.90) is decadent goodness. A savoury, prefectly grilled portobello mushrooms is topped with fresh sliced tomato and creamy, softly cooked eggs, then wrapped in strips of grilled bacon, and served on a creamy mashed potato mousse. Flavourful on so many levels, and just a sinful delight to eat, my fellow diners actually ordered another round of this for takeaway! Needless to say, this is highly recommended, worry about the calories later!
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| Bacon Bomb |
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| Bacon Bomb |
A unique pasta, the Beef Paccheri (SGD $18.90) is somewhat of an acquired taste. Crisp paccheri pastry shells encase a filling of minced beef ragu and melted parmesan cheese, served in a house-made tomato sauce. The contrast of crisp and chewy in a pasta dish is different, and I find it takes a little getting used to. I loved the tomato sauce though.
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| Beef Paccheri |
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| Beef Paccheri |
Agnello (SGD $26.90), which means young lamb in Italian, is a juicy grilled piece of lamb shoulder, slow roasted till tender. Excellent flavour, and the meat pulls off rather easily.
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| Agnello |
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| Agnello |
The Vanilla Mousse With Lychee Jelly (SGD $8) and Chestnut & Pear Dome Mousse Cake (SGD $8) are rather decent desserts, that I feel are rather pricey. Of the 2, I prefer the dome cake over the vanilla mousse, but I wasn't particularly impressed with either.
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| Vanilla Mousse With Lychee Jelly, Chestnut & Pear Dome Mousse Cake |
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| Vanilla Mousse With Lychee Jelly, Chestnut & Pear Dome Mousse Cake |
I find it odd that the Apple Crumble is served without ice cream, but it is already very good on its own. Sweet, crisp and crumbly all at once, the flavour is good, but I wish the presentation could be more appealing.
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| Apple Crumble |
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| Apple Crumble |
Cocktails during happy hour are incredibly cheap... but note that the alcohol content is also lower than average! Which means the 'normal' strength cocktails are served outside of happy hour, but in return, the price is higher. So if you want a cocktail cheap and low in alcohol, it's best to visit during happy hours! I also like their range of beer and wine available, which is quite extensive.
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| Singapore Sling |
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| Beer Erdinger Weissbier |
The outlet at Boat Quay focuses on better breads, pastries and desserts. With river side ambience and a children's play area, this is perfect for couples or families.
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| Madame Patisserie Lawn |
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| Colourful Shelves |
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| Children's Play Area |
There are more local Singapore beers on the menu here, such as the sour Beer Hula Calamansi (SGD $7.90). The combined sour and bitter taste may require some time to get used to, but it is certainly unique.
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| Beer Hula Calamansi |
The very affordable Cinnamon Banana Roll (SGD $2.50) is a unique spin on the traditional Cinnamon Roll. With the cinnamon sugar caramelised against the inside of each layer of the soft bun, and spaced with sweet fresh bananas, this is a great dessert or snack.
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| Cinnamon Banana Roll |
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| Cinnamon Banana Roll |
The Lemon Drizzle Cake (SGD $6.50) has a nice tangy, zesty taste to the soft sponge cake. Not too overpowering, the contrast of sweet and sour is rather refreshing.
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| Lemon Drizzle Cake |
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| Lemon Drizzle Cake |
While i find the Apple & Mango Tarte Tatin (SGD $17) to be overpriced, the spin on the traditional warm apple tart is quite unusual, combining mangoes with the apples. The fruits are nicely caramelised, taste is decent, but the overall portion is rather small for the price.
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| Apple & Mango Tarte Tatin |
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| Apple & Mango Tarte Tatin |
I feel that Madame Patisserie has better main dishes at their Mackenzie outlet, while they have better bread, pastries, and desserts at their boat quay outlet. It looks like each outlet has a strong point in different areas, which translates to a different dining experience depending on which outlet you visit.
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CONVERSATION