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“Healthy and delicious food that goes easy on the stomach”
Tangerine restaurant is located away from the main area of Resorts World Sentosa (RWS), so you may have to walk quite a distance to get there. The alternative is to hop on a shuttle bus at Hotel Michael to Equarius Hotel, right beside where ESPA is located.
If you have overloaded on all kinds of junk food during the week, month or year, you probably want something healthy for a change; besides the run-of-the-mill salads, vegetarian dishes and juices, there is also spa cuisine, which consists of mainly light and wholesome foods which is what Tangerine serves.
The lush greenery around and sound of croaking frogs really made me feel far from the city, almost as if I was on a tranquil and undiscovered island. Glass walls enclose Tangerine, so you can sit and bask in the forest-like surroundings.
We began with the amuse bouche, the Momotaro Tomato Custard with apple gel and olive soil. The tomato together with the apple gel was a contrast of sweet and sour, so you get a fresh and tart taste. The olive soil added a savoury element, resulting in a very appetising combination.
The Hawaiian Papaya ($16) has a subtle sweetness of the fruit made light and fragrant by the inclusion of lemongrass and kaffir lime dust. The single Hokkaido pan seared scallop is tender with a nice char that went very well with the slightly dense soup.
Here they take the usually calorie-laden curry and make it their own, as shown by the Risotto with Light Red Curry Emulsion ($26). The version here has only 282 calories while usual values can go up to several hundreds, so I would say it is a pretty good trade-off.
The risotto is full of curry flavour, and in it there are mushrooms and crunchy vegetables that give a nice contrast in texture. The roe also gives extra pops of saltiness. We also got a fresh prawn and scallop, soft with a bite and sweet.
At this moment a very timely drink came as a palate cleanser before the main course. The Kaffir Honey Chill, had a faint taste of celery. This may put some people off, but as someone who does not like celery herself I found it to be alright. The presence of the vegetable actually made it taste even more refreshing.
Next is my favourite, the Green Chilli-Herbs Baked Cod Fillet ($36). The food here is not too spicy, so do not be intimidated by the dish’s name! The slight sweetness of the cod marinade actually comes from the green chilli, with other flavours from a whopping 17 ingredients (18 in total). The fish itself was nice and moist, and fell apart beautifully with prodding from the fork.
Last but not least was dessert, Avocado Espuma with Goma Ice Cream ($16). Despite the absence of cream, it tasted as rich as if the ingredient was used. The avocado added on to the creaminess, while the muesli and dried fruits gave some texture. The ice cream itself had a lovely sesame taste that was neither too lacking nor overwhelming.
If you are feeling slightly health conscious or want to get away to somewhere special for dinner, Tangerine at ESPA is a good place to go. Dining far in the ulu part of Sentosa really made me feel like I was in a different country.
I also love how Tangerine thoroughly debunks the misconceptions that spa cuisine is bland and tasteless. While keeping nutrition in mind, they do not skimp on flavour, and the result is fantastic. They have proven very well that you can have your cake and eat it too!
Expected Damage: $50 – $70 per pax
