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2014-02-12
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Official website: http://www.ipcfoodlab.com/FINALLY got to try out this restaurant that I'd bookmarked for sometime - just to discover that one was going to open much nearer to home in a week's time. But I guess prices would be higher at the Caine Road branch. Can't wait to try!Environment:Quite airy, but tables were packed quite closely. Be warned that conversations will be easily overheard. I wonder if they let willing customers tickle these ivories. Such a waste if it merely serves aesthetic
FINALLY got to try out this restaurant that I'd bookmarked for sometime - just to discover that one was going to open much nearer to home in a week's time. But I guess prices would be higher at the Caine Road branch. Can't wait to try!
Environment:
Quite airy, but tables were packed quite closely. Be warned that conversations will be easily overheard.
I wonder if they let willing customers tickle these ivories. Such a waste if it merely serves aesthetic purposes...Service:
Average. The pace of serving was moderate. They were not in a rush to get people out of the resto because there weren't many, really. It's too remotely located. Staff were friendly and helpful.
Food:
Both of us went for the set lunch (which wasn't really a 'set'...coz we paid extra for every additional item on top of the entree...)
Salad of the day+$20
I like the presentation. Rustic and no fuss, full of fresh goodness. I do believe all the veg was sourced within a 10km radius. You can really taste the difference. The salad wasn't drenched in a sauce so overpowering as to mask the natural veg flavour. Constituents Red curry organic wild rice with capsicums $70
The rice required a lot of chewing. The texture was similar to that of risotto. The curry was only mildly spicy, but very flavourful and aromatic. The capsicums were sweet and juicy. We cleared up every last drop of curry with penne. Super, super carby. But you feel healthy after eating it. Heh. Organic penne with sauteed tomatoes $70
Penne was al dente - really, really good. I do not care much for fresh pasta. We thought tomato sauce meant red sauce but no, here it meant an evenly cubed, lightly cooked tomato medley. They came in red, green and yellow. Loved it. The tomatoes yielded their natural juices which became part of the very light 'sauce' coating every strand of pasta. Another extremely 'feel-good' kind of dish. Not filling at all. Rich cheesecake with strawberries and basil $68
Very, very rich and substantial. The body wasn't very smooth, but was extremely dense and quite chunky. It was almost like eating cream cheese. Even denser than cream cheese. D: I liked the flavour though, almost slightly savoury. I loved the sweet, fresh basil which went surprisingly well with the cheesecake and strawberries. The compote, sadly, was too sweet and sticky. I would've preferred a lighter, more natural sauce. The best thing about this dish has got to be the interaction between herb and fruit. Conclusion:
The interesting thing about this meal was: both H and I did not feel full. Very queer. So we had to order the cheesecake in lieu of the set lunch dessert (a small panna cotta with a mini fruit salad which I could've downed in one gulp) and only after the cheesecake did we feel, mm, we can go. Is it good or bad? But we did not feel very hungry quickly after the meal.
Will certainly visit the Caine Road branch. Sheung Shui is a bit too far. Hope more restaurants such as these pop up around town!
Other Info. :
Check out the menu here: http://www.ipcfoodlab.com/media/ipcfoodlabmenu.pdf
(The above review is the personal opinion of a user which does not represent OpenRice's point of view.)
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