Last week we went to L'Angelus' new sister-restaurant, Les Bouchons ('The Corks') right around the corner from Club Street, at 7 Ann Siang Road.
The plan seems simple: a variety of red-meats, some basic side-dishes, and wines under $48SGD.
It's been only open a month. Run by Sam Chin and C.W. Choong, it was off to a rocky start. The chef they imported from France, and indulged with a tony third-floor flat above the restaurant, left his key and a "sorry!" note on the floor of the restaurant early one morning before he exfiltrated back to France!
Although it's a new restaurant and doesn't have much traffic yet, things seem under control, and the staff provide the same service that Gabriel and Phillipe up the street at L'Angelus do -- attentive, pleasant and occasionally entertaining.
We got off to a great start when I was introduced to a liqueur that I've never tasted before, but instantly fell in love with: Creme de Cassis. Chilled, I mistook the light red blackcurrant liqueur as some sort of beaujolais. It's refreshing, without even a hint of harshness and is extraordinarily smooth. The flavors are restrained. If I'd been told what it was, I might have expected a cloying, sickly sweet beverage. However it was nothing like that at all and served admirably as a side-beverage to my nice, rare ribeye and potatoes meal.
For appetizers we had snails and a plate of mozzarella and tomatoes. I must say that the snails were rather bland, especially compared to what they serve at L'Angelus. At least part of the reason might be that there were no toast points served with them, hence no way to soak up any of the rich butter.
The mozzarella was a much better dish. Firm roma tomatoes without any mealiness, and a suprisingly tasty mozarella--often a terribly bland cheese. The oil mix locked in the flavour and connected the cheese and tomato nicely.
There isn't a great variety to the main course. It's mostly red meats (ribeye, filet, a large 2-person roast), although it serves salmon and prawn dishes for non-beef eaters. Of course I chose the ribeye which comes with "free flow french fries" and a salad.
The salad wasn't so smart, and I didn't finish it. Too much arrugula, that bitter, bitter weed I hate so much, and the lettuce seemed slightly less fresh.
The mediocre salad didn't long distract me from the nicely marbled ribeye I was served, and the truly excellent fries. Freeflow french fries may sound like a weird gimmick, but they're truly good. I've read all about the fries at Les Halles, and the extraordinary production steps they take to produce uniform perfection. I have to assume these are prepared similarly. We tore through two baskets of them, cooked to the correct softness, with a golden brown coat, and lightly salted.
I passed dessert for a single espresso. My wife enjoyed an ice cream dish. Alternatives would have been typical French desserts like Creme Brulee and Clafoutis. L'Angelus prepares them excellently, so I can only assume they're similar quality here.
The restaurant itself is charming, designed and decorated as a typical Parisian Bistro. The bonus is a second-storey private dining room. The cozy wooden area has a large teak table, some couches, and radio. Enough to host a 5-15 person party. We're looking for a good reason to hold one there soon.
Les Bouchons Restaurant
7 Ann Siang Road (perpindicular to Club Street)
Singapore
069689
Tel: +65 6423 0737