Been meaning to return to Bar Lourinhna (37 Lt. Collin St.) for another good meal. Thoroughly enjoyed myself the last time I was here. And so expectations were high and to be met.
Wendy was the first to arrived and it was hard to get a table for 8. The dining area on the 1st level is small and narrow. So it isn’t catered for a big group. We were stuck to the low tables & stools which is the ‘waiting are’ up in the front end. As usual, were spoilt for choices. Fortunately, we had a large group and all of us could order what we wanted and share. We ended up ordering 12 dishes and 4 desserts!
The highlights of the night for most of us were the goat (wet roast), hot smoked veal tongue & faro (I believe that this is a type of spelt?), king fish and the exquiste Pomegranate crema & pistachio praline!
I reckon one of the signature dishes here is the Yellow tail kingfish ‘pancetta’ & lemon oil. The fish itself is fresh and the dressing is so well balanced. A good dish to kick start the meal.
Yellow tail kingfish ‘pancetta’ & lemon oil
Initial thought of the goat was that it looked a little on the dry side when it first got served to the table. But I was proven wrong. This reminded me of a very local dish back home called kambing soup. It is the intensity of the goat taste and aroma that I loved. The dish is packed full of flavour. Reminds me of having a hot bowl of kambing at the hawker stall in Singapore. And since half of the group are originally from Singapore, we all agreed that this is one of the better dishes served tonight.
Goat wet Roast
The last savoury dish was the hot smoked veal tongue and faro. OMG! I am so in love with this dish. And I can speak for most of the group. The smokiness and oilyness of the tongue was so punchy. The faro soaked up the juices of the tongue and I can’t help myself mopping it up with the sourdough bread! Delightful!
Hot smoked veal tongue with faro
The other girls decided to order most of the desserts on the menu to share! The one that stood out was the Pomegranate crema & pistachio praline. The pomengranate and pistachio provided the crunch and plays well with the crema (pannacotta-like) that was rich, creamy and not too sweet. In a way, it reminds me of breakfast (thick yoghurt with crunchy nuts & muesli).
(Please view the photos and more reviews on my flickr page.)
A couple more dishes that is worth taking note is the Grilled king prawn. Fresh and sweet! Mixed feelings about the rabbit (wet roast) around the table but I did like it. Not extraordinary but it was comforting. I felt myself wanting to eat it all!
Some of the dishes were disappointing. The Wagyu ‘carne cruda’ & shaved horseradish is bland and did nothing for me. The Wagyu itself lacked seasoning and the bitterness of the green and horseradish, I felt, overpowered the delicate Wagyu flavour. The pinenut cake & cinnamon ice-cream brought me back to the memories of burning incense at a chinese temple. A tad too over-whelming for me.
I aways enjoy myself at Bar Lorinhna but next time, we will have to stick to a smaller group. It was a little difficult to have a proper conversation with everyone and had to eat off our laps as 8 of us had to squeeze in to accomodate to another group of 4! I recommend getting there early if you don’t like waiting for a table. It starts getting packed at 5.30pm. And a mental note to try the spanish cocktails and one of the long table dinners that is held upstairs on the first Tuesday of every month.
