Dean & DeLuca

Dean & DeLuca
181 Orchard Road
#04-23 Orchard Central

47 Pekin Street
#01-01 Far East Square

http://www.deandeluca.com/

https://www.facebook.com/DeanDelucaSG


Gourmet Grocery With History, Decent Cafe

(Ratings: On a scale of 1 to 10, with 1 = Worst and 10 = Best)
Overall: 6
Ambience & Setting: 7
Food & Beverage: 6
Service: 4
Value for Money: 6
Spent about SGD $28 per person.


.....


An upmarket grocery store and cafe, Dean & DeLuca was founded in New York City, United States Of America, by Joel Dean and Giorgio DeLuca in 1977. As an emporium retailing gourmet food and houseware, Dean & DeLuca was among the first of its kind, and quickly gained fame. Dean & DeLuca opened its doors in Singapore in June 2012, with a focus on retailing their famous house brand of items.

As a grocery store, Dean & DeLuca is laid out in a neat, linear pattern, with rows of shelves displaying their wares. The most eye catching displays are their bakery and confectionery counter with various pastries and freshly baked bread that smell amazing. Their salad and desserts refrigerated display is colourful and eye-catching as well. Dean & DeLuca also has a good number of seats for their cafe, featuring modern, comfortable furniture in hues of wood and teak, with a solid feel.

Most interaction with Dean & DeLuca staff are limited to over the counter transactions, and the cafe itself is largely self-service, with ordering, payment, and collection done at the cashier. However, I do find staff helpful, able to advice on items in stock, or provide general information on food preparation. Thumbs up as well for efficiency in fulfilling orders, you'll generally wait less than 10 minutes for your food. However, dirty / empty tables aren't cleared quickly, typically taking up to 15 minutes or more.

Cuisine at Dean & DeLuca is largely Italian American inspired, with a small selection of main courses, and all-day breakfast / brunch items, as well as salads. Taste of most of their main courses borders on average though, nothing very spectacular. Their specialities are their desserts and baked goods, be it bread, pastries, or other confectioneries. Portions are suitably large American size helpings, and prices are reasonable for the use of fresh, premium produce, budget around SGD $28 or more person for a meal here.


.....


The sights, sounds, and smell of the store is both exciting and intoxicating. I find a simple pleasure in being able to pick out what you want from the fresh displays.

Dean & DeLuca Signage

Dean & DeLuca Bakery

Dean & DeLuca Salads & Desserts

Dean & DeLuca Grocery & Seating

Assorted Coloured Sugar

Handmade Mini Shortbread Biscuits With Stem Ginger

Organic Fruit Spread

The Latte (SGD $5.50) is decent, strong and full bodied. Not the best I've had, but a good choice if you visit. The Mocha (SGD $6.50) fared slightly better, as the addition of chocolate enhanced the flavour of the coffee.

Latte

Mocha

The Hot Chocolate (SGD $6) was weak, and very thin in texture. Frankly, among the worst I've had. Skip this.

Hot Chocolate

The fruity, zesty, tangy taste of the African Solstice Tea (SGD $6), with notes of sweet and sharp, is made from a blend of rooibos, wild berries, and rose petals. Good!

African Solstice Tea

The White Ginger Pear Tea (SGD 6) is a sweet, calming, and refreshing blend of white tea, pear, and ginger.

White Ginger Pear Tea

The festive Christmas Red Velvet Cheese Log Cake (SGD $9) was pretty good, I loved the taste of the cream cheese frosting, and the log cake itself was light and still slightly moist. The colour was attractive too, deep and rich hue of red. Worth a try!

Red Velvet Cheese Log Cake

The festive Christmas Rainbow Log Cake (SGD $7.50) looked very pretty and colourful, but the taste was rather disappointing. Flat and one-note, plus I felt there was too much cream. Even I scrapping off the majority of the cream, it was still rather heavy on the palate.

Christmas Rainbow Log Cake

I loved the Farmhouse Carrot Cake (SGD $8), with its thick, dense, yet still moist texture and flavourful taste of carrots and honey. The icing sugar and cream cheese frosting on top is sweet without being heavy, and the addition of a slice of dried apricot lent a fruity flavour. Very good!

Farmhouse Carrot Cake

The festive Christmas Sweet Potato & Pumpkin Pie With Ice Cream (SGD $8) sounds like a great idea on paper, but the actual execution was somewhat average. Taste is decent, with the prominent sweetness of the sweet potato, overpowering the more delicate sweetness of pumpkin. The pie slice is extremly thick, and while I loved the vanilla ice cream, the pie crust was thick, doughy, and not that great.

Sweet Potato & Pumpkin Pie With Ice Cream

What makes the Bread & Butter Pudding (SGD $6.50) here different from others is the sweet, tart stripe of raspberry jam in the middle, lending a fruity flavour. The bread is properly soft, and I love that it's studded with raisins. The portion size is so thick and huge, you're better off sharing it! My only complaint is that the milk provided to pour over the pudding wasn't enough!

Bread & Butter Pudding

The Sticky Cinnamon Roll (SGD $3.50) looks better than it tastes. The large, thick roll is doughy, and although the cinnamon sugar is evenly spread inside, the roll is dry. Sweet, but not overly so, I would have preferred it to be either more crisp, or more fluffy. Below average.

Sticky Cinnamon Roll

The Bombolini Raspberry (SGD $3.50) is an Italian style donut that is filled with a sweet fruit jam, in this case, raspberry. The dough is fluffly and soft, sweet with the dusting of powdered sugar, but the raspberry filling is a little thin. Still quite good though.

Bombolini Raspberry 01

Bombolini Raspberry 02

The Coffee Cream Eclair (SGD $3.50) is very good. A nice chewy choux puff pastry, stuffed full with rich, smooth, coffee cream, which has a nice flavour without being overly sweet. Decorated with almonds and roasted coffee beans, this dessert is heavy on taste, has the correct texture, and is very satisfiying!

Coffee Cream Eclair 01

Coffee Cream Eclair 02

Now the Wagyu Beef Lasagna (SGD $15) was decent. Taste was good, solid with the flavour of beef, cheese and tomato, and the portion was extremely huge! My only quibble is the use of wagyu, because taking this premium cut, making it into mince meat, then covering it with other strongly flavoured ingredients defeats the point of using wagyu.

Wagyu Beef Lasagna

I loved the Honey Glazed Gammon Ham (SGD $23), which had 2 thick slabs of savoury smoked gammon ham, covered in a thin cranberry sauce. The grilled vine-ripened tomato was juicy and very tasty, with an intense tomato flavour. Also like the sauteed button mushrooms, with a nice, earthy taste. The weakest item here was the garden salad, while fresh, lacked dressing and was dry. Overall though, this was the best main course I had here.

Honey Glazed Gammon Ham

What I loved best about the Lamb Shepherd's Pie (SGD $12) is the stringy, savoury cheese crust on top, just melted enough to be gooey. This covers a thick layer of smooth mashed potato, and within, a decent helping of minced lamb and carrot filling. The taste is decent, the lamb filling and meat sauce isn't too salty or savoury, but the taste could have been improved with the use of herbs or spices. Average at best.

Lamb Shepherd's Pie 01

Lamb Shepherd's Pie 02

The portion size of the Pan-Seared Salmon (SGD $15) is large, but because they use frozen salmon here, the taste is somewhat muted. Also, they overcooked this during my visit, because I ended up with a chewy texture to the fish, and a slightly rubbery texture to the skin. Below average.

Pan-Seared Salmon

The best thing about the Slow-Cooked Beef Striploin (SGD $18) was the herb roasted potatoes, fragrant and savoury, with a touch of sweetness from a dusting of cinnamon. Otherwise, this dish was the absolute worst dish I've had here, the beef is dry, tough, and overly salty. The high price for such a small portion of meat makes this poor value for money, avoid ordering this at all costs!

Slow-Cooked Beef Striploin

I find the Grilled Ancho Chicken (SGD $12) to be decent. On one hand, the dish has a thick slice of tender chicken breast, doused in a savoury, tasty brown gravy. On the other hand, the dish is rather light, and the chicken meat borders on dry. Points for taste, but not for texture! Still makes for a pretty decent dish worth ordering though.

Grilled Ancho Chicken

Among the standout brunch items on the menu for me is the aptly named The New Yorker (SGD $17). This classic American New York breakfast dish features a mound of softly scrambled eggs, onions, and capers, topped with a thick layer of savoury smoked salmon, all sandwiched within a giant sesame seed bagel spread with butter and cream cheese. Decadent, filling, savoury, salty, sweet, tangy, all at once. At such a low price, this humongous breakfast is extremely value for money, very tasty and delicious, and can even be shared! Highly recommended!

The New Yorker

A perennial American-Italian-Jewish favourite commonly found on the menu of New York delis / delicatessens, the Beef Pastrami Sandwich (SGD $19) features thinly sliced, savoury, moist marinated beef pastrami, sandwiched between warm, soft ciabatta bread along with gooey swiss cheese and pickled horseradish gherkins. A hearty, satisfiying sandwich, it warms the belly, and is an excellent choice of comfort food. Highly recommended!

Beef Pastrami Sandwich 01

Beef Pastrami Sandwich 02

The Chicken Burrito (SGD $13) is a generous portion of a tightly stuffed burrito, with a skin that is crisp outside and soft inside. Packed with tender chicken meat, lettuce, cheese, tomatoes, and onions, love how the ingredients work together to provide moisture and flavour. Taste is good, and the dish is very filling! Served with a side of garden salad and truffle fries, the huge portion alone makes this dish value for money.

Chicken Burrito 01

Chicken Burrito 02

.....