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2010-07-05
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We arrived 8 on the dot, and were seated to our cart table (a comfy U-shape, with sofa seats). Tonight was a full house at Lian, signs of a good restaurant (and reservations here are a must!). There were five of us and we ordered the following: Tiger Prawn and Lotus Root in Yellow Curry ($178) which came with a side of sliced baguette. The picture doesn't really do this dish justice, the yellow curry was excellent, and the tiger prawns were very large and fresh. However, this dish is quite spic
Tiger Prawn and Lotus Root in Yellow Curry ($178) which came with a side of sliced baguette.
The picture doesn't really do this dish justice, the yellow curry was excellent, and the tiger prawns were very large and fresh. However, this dish is quite spicy, despite being a yellow curry. My only complaint would be that the lotus root could have used a little more time in the heat as they were rather crunchy for my liking. We also ordered an extra side of rice ($20) (which took a ridiculously long time to arrive, probably because they were so busy and quite short of waiters) for my brother to mop up the sauce.
Seafood and Abalone Rice in Lotus Leaf ($128) was nicely presented. The rice inside is actually fried first, with plenty of turmeric (explains the yellowness). The rice was so good, nothing like I've had before... just wish the portion was slightly bigger!
Whole Lobster with Garlic Butter ($250): Size first - it was one lobster split in half, with its claws shelled and the claw meat on top of the body. I would estimate there was about 7 or 8oz of pure lobster meat? (Yummy!) The sauce in the middle is a tangy (lime), salty (fish sauce) and spicy dipping sauce which was rather tasty, but only if you wish to wrap the lobster meat in the lettuce. The lobster itself was already rather tasty - fresh and juicy with the fried onion, garlic and breadcrumbs on top. Also, there was at least two tablespoons of red lobster roe in the head/neck parts of the body. This dish reminds me a lot of 避風塘-style fried lobster, because of its presentation.
Red curry salmon ($160) also came with a side of baguette. I've had this on a previous visit and remembered it to be a very mild curry - very suitable for people who cannot take spicy foods. The salmon is a nice large piece of fillet, fully cooked but just enough so the flesh doesn't become dry or tough.
Last to arrive was White Miso Marinated Sea Bass Wrapped In Cucumber Ribbon ($195). The purple dices are japanese pickles (plums?). The cod was lightly pan fried, although not as smooth and silky as the cod fillets I am used to (my last was at Ippei-An, and this could not compare to the cod there). Flavours for this dish seemed much more Japanese than Thai or Vietnamese. The sauce is a slightly sweetened miso sauce, and I suspect the use of honey. The cucumbers were so thinly sliced and paired with the fish quite well - a pretty healthy dish altogether. Nonetheless I am confused as to why this dish was available at Lian, a supposedly Thai and Viet (fusion) restaurant. It simply didn't fit in with the other dishes on the menu which were all very Thai / Vietnamese-influenced!
We also ordered a lime soda ($35) which was slightly sweet, sour and very refreshing!
Lian offers quite a long list of desserts, mostly paired with home-made ice cream such as honeycomb etc, from $70-80 per each, but none of us really had room for them, as most of the desserts (save for ice cream) sounded very rich.... next time perhaps!
With the AE plat card our bill came to only $725 - a steal!
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