Restaurant Week Lunch at Violet Herbs (81 Tras Street, Singapore 079020) Reservation: 6221 3988

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Visited on 14 March 2015 (Sat) during Restaurant Week Lunch.

(No 7% GST Charge Here!)

Violet Herbs is a new age semi-formal fine dining restaurant, serving modern european cuisine in Singapore’s well known business district, Tanjong Pagar from Jan 2015. Fine dining is often perceived as luxurious and extravagant. Violet Herbs aims to reach out to more people to enjoy fine dining cuisine without burning a hole in their pocket. Now you don't have to go to fancy restaurant to enjoy good food!

The restaurant was opened by Chef Edward Hoe, who previously held executive roles in Fish Market & Bistro, Restaurant Ember and The American Club Singapore with 19 years of experience. In preparation for Violet Herbs, Chef Edward challenges himself to re-invent European cuisines with the combination of varied herbs.

Violet Herbs houses a 2-storey, 70 seater restaurant where the colour theme of the 2-storey are totally different. Ladies will definitely be attracted by this purple themed ground floor, including myself! Haha.. Feel like a royal without having to be too classy in their purple themed ground floor OR 

Take the flight of stairs up to their more nature themed second floor.

We started with warm Rosemary bread and we loved the bread so much. The rosemary was so aromatic and I regretted not asking for 1 more.. 

Appetizer: Scallops infused Lemon Verbena
(With Purple Potato Puree, Pomegranate,  Bacon Beurre Blanc)

I enjoyed the lightly chared exterior of the scallops. Purple potatoes and pomegranate made an interesting contrast of soft and crunchy textures too. 

Appetizer: Jerusalem Artichoke Veloute
(With Crispy Duck, Truffle Oil, Micro Herb)

This dish was very interesting as it was the first time I've tasted artichoke done in a cream style. The texture was creamy but a little bland. But that also made the hints of truffle oil and crispy duck slices stand out. A unique creation :-)

Main Course: Sous Vide 36 Hours Duck Confit

(With Baby Spinach, Herb Potato, Duck Jus Reduction)

Duck was very tender, with crispy skin and the meat slides off the bones! Sitting on a bed of soft baby spinach and herb potatoes, dressed with flavorful reduced duck sauce. This dish tasted as good as it looks. 

Main Course: Marinated Cod Fillet

(With Nameko Mushroom, Baby Spinach, Sesame Seed, Ginger Broth)

Marinating is a great way to intensify the flavour of food and this cod fillet was marinated so well! Honey-baked marinated cod that tasted not too sweet, just the right amount of sweetness.. the fillet was quite tender, but it would be perfect if it can be more tender.. Overall, I was totally obsessed with this cod fillet and just can't get enough of it... I'm a person who don't like ginger taste but thankfully the ginger broth here was quite light that I can consume it happily. :)

Dessert: Lemon Grass Panna Cotta 

(With Rosemary Ice Cream, Palm Sugar Coconut Sauce with Sago)

I was quite taken aback by the strong lemongrass taste in the panna cotta. And the rosemary ice-cream atop was too light that I can't really taste the rosemary. I felt that since the panna cotta was of a bigger portion than the ice cream, the bigger panna cotta should be lighter while the smaller portioned ice cream should have more taste. This would have balanced out the 2 flavors.. 

Dessert: Figs & Thyme Cake

(With Thyme Ice Cream, Mix fruit and Edible Flower)

My first time trying figs & thyme cake, the taste was not bad but not everyone will like this type of dessert so it's quite risky...

Overall Impression: As we arrived quite early around 11.30am, we did not receive a smiley-warm reception from the staff upon arrival (perhaps it was still early and the staff had not warmed up yet) But the service started to get better after that so not a big issue to us.. The staff will explain the contents of the dish when served and water was refilled promptly.

Their food quality ranged from average to slightly above average. But dessert has some room for improvement as their 2 dessert did not impress us. They seemed to be unique creations but just didn't win our hearts.. I'm a super dessert lover so was a tad disappointed in the last course. 

If you're looking for fairly good quality food at wallet-friendly prices with admirable semi-formal fine-dining ambience, this place would suit you to a tee!

The parking here are all roadside parallel parking lots so be prepared to bring enough parking coupons ya!

Note: The above menu and prices is only during Restaurant Week. Please refer to their website below for their different types of menu and prices.

Opening Hours: Monday to Saturday

11.30am to 3pm, 6pm to 10pm

Website: http://www.violetherbs.com.sg/weekday-set-dinner/