Olivia Cassivelaun Fancourt, or OCF as it is commonly referred to, over at The Arts House is well known for its top-tier French fine dining, live music and overall sophistication. The restaurant has been well publicized for many things, but today I’m here to tell you about their new seasonal festive lunch and dinner menu, specially curated for this holiday season.
The festive menu over at OCF features bold and rich flavors of root vegetables, conference pears and game – flavors traditionally found in France during the cold winter months of November and December.
This seasonal menu is impeccably created with traditional French cuisine, comfort foods and flavors and a Singapore audience in mind. OCF’s holiday menu, which is exclusively presented in a set menu fashion, will be sure to impress anyone who tries it – from that special someone in your life to your most treasured client. This is certainly a special occasion feast.
Let’s take a look, shall we…
The set dinner menu provides two choices – a smaller Gourmand, or a larger Prestige option.
“Pour Vous Palette,” Amuse Bouche
The dining experience kicks off with a small plate of canapes, ‘for your palette.’ We sampled three fresh and flavorful treats of smoked salmon on a chef-made rice cracker topped with kristal caviar, a mushroom tart and smoked Kaviari eel on ratte potato crisp. These delightful openers change daily.
Egg Mousseline
As decadent tasting as it is looking, the amuse-bouche we sampled was an egg mousseline with potato cous cous and Kristal caviar. The dish had an overall very rich and creamy texture with a delicate crunchy bits for balance. This course too changes daily.
La Terrine de Foie et Veau
The terrine beautifully layers slices of foie gras and veal tongue. The veal tongue provides added flavor and helps create an extremely tender texture. For added goodness, the terrine is accompanied by a dash of herb salad and dollops of mustard emulsion and beetroot jelly for added zest.
La Bisque de Homard
The lobster bisque exclusively uses fresh wild-caught lobsters. OCF believes in the fact that lobsters live and grow best in their natural habitat, as compared to being farm raised. I can verify that the lobster bits in this bisque were extremely tender and flavorful. As a lover of lobster bisque, this dish was wonderfully rich, savory and frothy.
Le Bar
Getting to the heartier portion of the menu, we were treated to a plate of crispy-skinned European seabass paired with a shallot confit and topped with a poultry jus. The fish was fresh, tender, expertly prepared and nicely accompanied with a side of soft king oyster mushrooms and pesto compote.
Le Pigeonneau d’Origine Francaise
Next on the seemingly never-ending menu of culinary delights, was the Brittany pigeon. Once sliced and plated for you, the bird is paired with home picked cherries and beets and a rich jus. Brittany pigeons are typically a species that has a more tender flesh and intense, but enjoyable gamey flavor. It was perfectly festive and seasonal all around.
Le Boeuf
And just when you think things can’t get any better, out comes a Japanese Miyazaki beef (A5) – also known as the ‘Champion Cow’ in the 2007 Wagyu Olympics. OCF is aware this is not specifically French, but in only wanting to serve the best of the best, they have chosen this cut of Japanese beef. Note, there is a top up of $40 for this dish, but the melt in your month richness of the beef is worth every penny. You only need a small amount to be satisfied – this was the highlight of the meal for me.
Pre Dessert de la Saison
Nearing the end, we found ourselves treated to a small seasonal dessert. Today, we were presented with a tomato sorbet and espuma (jelly foam). This cool sweet did a wonderful job of cleansing our palette of the heaviness of the fatty Miyazaki beef.
La Poire
For the finale we were treated to a dessert of poached honey pears, caramel and ice cream. The conference pears had a very soft texture and very sweet flavor that went nicely with the Tahitian vanilla bean ice cream and rich salted caramel. This dish was an excellent ending to a stellar meal.
Overall, I was very impressed with the thought and care that went into making this meal appropriately seasonal and festive. Although it’s hot outside here in Singapore, for one meal I was fully transported to a time and place of cooler climates and European holiday charm. Perfect for celebrating Christmas in style.
By the way, look out for the soon to be opened, spin-off casual dining concept Olivia & Co. which will be featuring gourmet bistro food and retail products.
Price: 8-Course Dinner $88 – $198++ per / pax; 3-Course Lunch $38.00++ per / pax
Olivia Cassivelaun Fancourt (OCF): 1 Old Parliament Ln, The Arts House, Singapore 179429 | Tel: 6333 9312 | Website
*This post was brought to you in partnership with OCF
