Tatler Dining Singapore's content director contemplates a few well-loved dishes and what they say about the evolution of some of Singapore’s finest restaurants
We all have our favourite restaurants—destinations that brought us some of the best meals we’ve ever had. Explaining it might even involve a few dramatisations, and possibly vocalisations to emphasise our delight. We may also enthuse about a particular dish. It may not be the main course, but it is a dish that has not only swept us off our feet, but one we continue to find new reasons to love. It’s a dish that continues to feature prominently on the menu, evolved and sometimes elevated to affirm its role in the success of a restaurant.
Some chefs, though, prefer to avoid labelling such standouts a signature dish—especially when their well-earned standing as arbiters of good taste supports the luxury they enjoy as constant innovators. Yet these very dishes seem to speak the loudest about a chef’s winning style, not to mention its ability to stand the test of time.
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Garden Variety
I remember the first time I tried the English Garden at Jaan By Kirk Westaway, introduced as part of the chef’s take on modern British fare. This was two years ago, and the deceptively humble salad continues to shine. At the very least it is a celebration of the season’s bounty. And there’s a few—at least 36 ingredients the last time I checked—that include 11 cooked vegetables (from white and purple cauliflower to baby carrots and Hokkaido corn); six raw vegetables (black radish, Japanese kabu, and more); nine herbs, such as red oxalis, citrus mint and even locally grown wild tarragon and edible flowers. A balancing act of five condiments brought all the amazingly fresh flavours together, led by the savoury anchovy dressing and a light watering of a broth made with Scottish kombu.
“I never planned for it to be a signature dish; I planned for it to be special, but didn’t expect the huge response it gained,” Westaway muses. Despite it being “more of a spring or summer dish”, the Devon native also acknowledges his surprise at how the dish continues to evolve while remaining a crafty showcase of his “reinventing British” concept that returning guests look forward to. It helps that his is a cuisine style that isn’t solely dependent on British produce. Instead, it’s aimed at changing the diner’s idea of what might be classified as British cuisine.
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