PRELUDIO

03-01/02 Frasers Tower, 182 Cecil Street, S(069547) TEL: 6904 5686

Chef Fernando Arévalo’s “author’s cuisine” is a culinary concept guided by a keyword or phrase. The current season is “monochrome”, hence the restaurant and everything it serves is inspired by black and white. Take the sweet French white beetroot, which has been slow-baked with olive oil and salt and pepper, peeled and put together with burrata from Puglia and walnut crumble, then covered in yoghurt foam to form a ball of cloud, and served with caviar. It looks minimalistic and quite monochromatic, yet tastes anything but. The natural aromas from olive oil and dill, the sweetness from the beetroot and the umami accent from the caviar form an unusual combination that invigorates the palate. Even the scallop, usually a rather trite ingredient, comes alive under this concept. Sweet Nantucket scallop is poached with butter to retain its delicate flavour and crisp texture without any artifice, then perked up by salted corn cream and a punchy black garlic sauce.