LEspresso

L'Espresso
22 Scotts Road
Level 1 Goodwood Park Hotel

https://www.goodwoodparkhotel.com/dining/l-espresso

Best Of L'Espresso High Tea

Destination Of Choice For Afternoon Tea

(Ratings: On a scale of 1 to 10, with 1 = Worst and 10 = Best)
Overall: 9
Ambience & Setting: 9
Food & Beverage: 8
Service: 9
Value for Money: 9
Spent about SGD $72 per person.


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With a reputation as a choice destination for high tea, or British English afternoon tea, since the 1970s, L'Espresso in Goodwood Park Hotel is a cozy cafe by day, a chic lounge by night, and an overall relaxing and welcoming place. Positioned in the central space of the Goodwood Park Hotel lobby, L'Espresso is unmissable, whether for the neatly lined rows of comfortable furnishings, the buzzing crowd queuing or dining here, or for the attractive eye-catching display of dishes which look so appetizing.

Ambience at L'Espresso is relaxing and luxurious, with an elegant splendor. The large dining hall occupies most of the lobby, with wide lounge seats flanking low tables on the gleaming marble floor. A full-length glass panelled wall brings in ample natural light and a view of the landscaped gardens of the hotel, which flank the main pool. Though positioned as 'high tea', it's more accurately a buffet style, with the rows of dishes displayed attractively along the buffet line.

Service at L'Espresso is professional and attentive, with a discreet bearing. Crucially, staff are observant and proactive, clearing away empty plates throughout your meal, ensuring you always have table space for more. They demonstrate good product knowledge on the dishes and beverages, and are efficient at fulfilling requests. I feel they accord each guest personalised attention, and really make you feel welcome. The queue to be seated can be a little disorganised though.

Food at L'Espresso draws on British English high tea cuisine, as well as classic Modern Singaporean hawker favourites. Unlike other high tea elsewhere, they offer a buffet line, with an equally wide range of sweets and savouries, all decently executed and worth going for seconds (or more). As a buffet, portions are unlimited, though each serving is typically small and dainty in size, great for sampling. Still, it's difficult to eat everything available, as it's just too much. Prices are reasonable and great value, budget SGD $72 per person.


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L'Espresso High Tea Details & Pricing

L'Espresso Seating Indoors

L'Espresso Seating Outdoors

Choose from a selection of premium TWG tea, which is served in an elegant Tea Pot.

Tea Pot

Loved the Finger Sandwiches enough that I got several rounds of it. They had 4 different varieties during our visit, in a choice of either white bread or wholemeal bread. The Cucumber & Cream Cheese has a creamy juicy crunch, with refreshing vegetal sweet milky cheesy flavour. The Egg & Truffle Aioli has a crumbly creamy grainy texture, with enticing earthy eggy sweet flavour. The Gammon Ham & Emmental Cheese is tender soft to the bite, with meaty salty savoury cheesy flavour. The Turkey Pastrami & Sauerkraut has alternating crisp pliant textures, with robust meaty salty tangy sour flavour. All so good. Good!

Finger Sandwiches

Cucumber & Cream Cheese

Egg & Truffle Aioli

Gammon Ham & Emmental Cheese

Turkey Pastrami & Sauerkraut

Finger Sandwiches

Loved the Spam, Cucumber, Egg Omelette Ciabatta sandwich. The soft ciabatta bread has bready sweet flavour, while the egg omelette is soft and springy with eggy sweet notes. The slice of juicy Japanese cucumber with vegetal sweet flavour, and the tender soft slice of spam luncheon meat with meaty salty savoury flavour, pair so well together. Highly recommended!

Spam, Cucumber, Egg Omelette Ciabatta

The Parma Ham, Pickled Gherkin, Cream Cheese Bagel sandwich seems to emulate a classic Reuben pastrami sandwich. The layers of thin but succulent parma ham, bold with meaty salty savoury flavour, are stacked in a thick pile, resulting in a juicy and satisfying bite. The soft bagel spread with thick cream cheese has bready sweet milky cheesy flavour, while the crunchy pickled gherkin contrasts with tangy sour sweet vegetal flavour. Highly recommended!

Parma Ham, Pickled Gherkin, Cream Cheese Bagel

A selection of Open-Face Sandwiches & Tarts, these were decent at best.

Open-Face Sandwiches & Tarts

Open-Face Sandwiches & Tarts

The warm Shepherd's Pie was nice, with chewy minced beef and soft mashed potato spread with fresh tomato sauce. This has bright vegetal meaty sweet savoury starchy flavour, yum. The Crumbed Chicken With Honey Mustard will appeal as well, the moist and tender chunks of spice battered chicken having a mild sweet savoury spice flavour. Good!

Shepherd's Pie, Crumbed Chicken With Honey Mustard

A decent rendition of Laksa here, though it could be more punchy and milky. Otherwise, rather decent, can't go wrong. Base of silky thick bee hoon / rice vermicelli noodles, topped with tender fish cake, springy hard boiled egg, crisp bean sprouts, bouncy deshelled prawns, and spongy tofy puffs, finished with a rich laksa gravy. Big with savoury sweet spicy flavour. Portion size is just right too. Good!

Laksa

The Dry Mee Siam is above average in quality, with spongy tofu puffs and springy hard boiled egg to accompany the silky thin rice vermicelli noodles. Infused with mee siam gravy then strained, the noodles carries a surprising tangy zesty sour sweet spice flavour. Good! However, the Seafood Gyoza Dumpling was rather forgettable.

Dry Mee Siam, Seafood Gyoza Dumpling

We loved the Roasted Pork Neck With Caraway Crust & Shallot Jus enough to get several rounds. You can also choose the thickness of the cut when you place your order. The pork neck is rubbed with caraway and perfectly roasted till medium rare, the meat being moist and tender and succulent, with bold meaty sweet savoury herbal flavour. The thick shallot jus lends a herbal salty savoury flavour to the pork. So yummy. Highly recommended!

Roasted Pork Neck With Caraway Crust & Shallot Jus

Roasted Pork Neck With Caraway Crust & Shallot Jus

Loved the Fried Yam Cake so much that we got several rounds. With textures of crisp crunchy outside and soft moist inside, the yam cake holds pleasant earthy savoury sweet flavour. Served with a potent garlic chili sauce, bright with sweet spicy flavour. Highly recommended!

Fried Yam Cake

Fried Yam Cake

From the roving Good Ol’ Days Desserts Trolley, we got these. The Pandan Chiffon Cake is light and airy, infused with pandan / screwpine leaf essence, having pleasant earthy floral sweet flavour. The Castella Cake is soft and spongy, with enticing buttery sweet flavour. Highly recommended!

Pandan Chiffon Cake

Castella Cake

The Orange Frangipane Cake has a base of crumbly orange sponge cake, topped with wobbly orange mousse, layered with orange jelly, and topped with a milk chocolate leaf. With bright fruity sweet flavour, this was lovely. Good!

Orange Frangipane Cake

The rich Ondeh-Ondeh Cake features a crumbly soft pandan / screwpine leaf infused sponge cake, layered with thick sticky gula melaka / palm sugar, topped with chewy grated coconut and a crisp palm sugar biscuit wafer. With bright floral earthy sweet flavour, this was nicely addictive. Highly recommended!

Ondeh-Ondeh Cake

The Berries Chocolate Tart has a crumbly chocolate pastry tart shell, filled with creamy chocolate mousse, topped with a juicy raspberry and a juicy blueberry, finished with a strawberry globule. It bursts with fruity sweet sour flavour, then you get the deep chocolatey sweet notes within. Highly recommended!

Berries Chocolate Tart

The Coffee Éclair was decent, with the soft choux pastry having a light chew. But the small amount of coffee cream within lent only faint toasty earthy sweet flavour, making this dessert rather tame compared to the rest. Could be improved.

Coffee Éclair

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