Guy Savoy has a rare accolade of having one of the most expensive degustation menu in Paris. The local version was not very far off. We ordered the Innovation and Inspiration Degustation menu of 12 courses for $420 per person. And you have to order the same for the entire table.

Amuse Bouche and Appetisers

Artichoke and black truffle soup, toasted Mushroom Brioche and Black Truffle Butter – This is one of Guy’s most famous of dishes and is featured in all his restaurants.

I like artichokes as part of the salad, this was the first time I had artichoke as a soup so I do not know what to expect and I was surprised how good it was. The soup was rather sublime…the flavour of fresh heart of artichoke was present. It was creamy to the palate, and the black truffles and parmesan cheese were a wonderful duo that enhanced the whole flavour profile.

The brioche which accompanied was wonderfully light, and the truffle butter provided the umami and unique high that you get from truffle. It was spread on the brioche by the waiter in-situ, so you could not indulge with a really large blob of butter. I enjoyed it on its own. Not sure if the strong taste complimented the artichoke soup, but I could really eat this brioche for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

Next up : Oysters ‘two ways’: whole oysters on oyster purée with a jelly of seawater; tartare of raw oysters with lemon and seaweed granité.

“Concassé” of oysters, lemon and seaweed granité – this was like a palate cleanser, tart yet full of the flavours of the sea.

Whole oysters on oyster purée with a jelly of seawater – this was oysters upon oysters upon oysters. The taste of freshly shucked oysters was amplified, making the whole flavour profile quite unforgettable yet incomparable.

The Mains

Lightly spiced NZ scampi and turnip “net” – the scampi was deep fried but the texture remained tender and just rightly done. Could not makeup the turnip net though, but it was a rather dry dish.

Caviar and potato “stones”, smoked egg sabayon – here, the magic begins.

First, the seemingly innocent eggs came with the plate of caviar and potato that has been baked to resemble stones. Then Chef Eric Bost came over and and broke them over our potatoes, releasing the sabayon! The flavours of the potato and caviar are clean, savoury and pure, with the sponge adding a deep but subtle sweetness. The tagliatelle were simply fried super-thin shavings / ribbons of potato, gorgeously crisp and not at all greasy. As he explained, he is trying to emphasise “earth” as a theme by presenting the tubers as stones, and also “birth”, with both the eggs and caviar playing a strong supporting role.

I kept wondering how did he make the sabayon in the egg?

Young squid “marine-grillé”, ponzu vinegar, red radish gelée, grilled eggplant puree – grilled sotong-kia, ever so tender, on a bed of pink ponzu sauce, with strips of red radish achar and brinjal mash. That would be how my mom would call it. Not as atas right? But the plating was simply excellent.

Salmon “frozen” on ice, scalding hot consommé, lemon pearls – another very unique course in the degustation.

This was very unique in that Chef Bost provided a raw piece of salmon for me to taste its freshness. Then he proceeded to “cook” the salmon on a block of dry ice. He then pours some hot soup into the final presentation. The combined taste of hot and cold is out of the ordinary in the senses, yet delicious.

Lobster served in the shell, reduced jus, tart of raw and cooked heart of palm –  The lobster is “barely cooked” with a tart of cooked and raw heart of palm. I can only say, lobsters done by these French chefs were definitely better in a lot of cases.

This had become a repetitive action, where Chef Bost came over to drizzle the sauce over the course and explaining what we were eating.

Lobster with Avocado and Lobster Foam – the rest of the lobster was served separately with a layer of avocado and lobster foam.

Pan-fried duck breast, “braised and grilled” celery root spiral, potato chip bouillon, sauce “au louvre” – another course that required assembly on the table side, we were told that the quality of the foie gras was not good so we were given duck breast instead.

Chef Bost came one last time to prepare the final assembly of the course in-situ. Pouring a consommé like sauce, it provided the necessary liquid for the rather dry duck breast.

Roasted veal sweetbread, white bean puree, saffron and marjoram crust – by the time this course arrived, we were almost filled, and then there’s the dessert and cheese trolleys. Of course the veal was of the perfect temperature and doneness, the puree was creamy and the au jus just made it the best mash I had tasted. Wanted more of that mash and gravy even though I was stuffed.

Rounding Up

Cheese and dessert trolley – Another trolley of Bernard Antony cheeses, together with another trolley of ice creams, sorbets, dessert jars and traditional biscuits.

Selection of matured cheese – Another trolley of Bernard Antony cheeses, I chose a beautifully pungent Pont l’ Eveque, oozy brie de Meaux,  two-year old comté and left the rest to the server. The cheeses were in good condition (as good as the local climate would allow but obviously not as ripe as you would get them in France). They were accompanied by slices of walnut raisin bread and two conserves: apricot/rosemary and raspberry/cassis.

Dark chocolate sorbet – it was technically a sorbet because it was not sweet. You had to lessen the bitterness of the dark chocolate with the sugar on the plate, if you want.

They said that the dessert was free my little princess who was with us celebrating our birthdays. But I am pretty sure it was all accounted for in the more $1000 bill at the end of the day.

Unfortunately, the degustation menu did not feature the signature Crispy Sea Bass that featured pan frying the sea bass with the scales intact. Would definitely want to try it one day!

Afterwards

Another blogpost of another one that bite the dust. Why do I want to do two in a row? 2013 was an interesting time, the integrated resorts were opening, and the celebrity chefs were all landing in tiny Singapore. While LP+Tetsu had the signs that it would not work, Guy Savoy showed that while the food was fantastic, the price was really crazy for its time.

Guy Savoy was the contemporary of Joel Robuchon, and both opened their signature restaurants in Singapore at the same time. Guy Savoy, in my humble opinion, was the more fun of the two. Joel Robuchon executed his restaurant like clockwork so it was just like every one of his others around the world. Guy Savoy has that element of human touch. Still market forces dictated that Singapore could not afford two extreme high-end restaurants and so one had to go.

Guy Savoy
10 Bayfront Avenue,#L2-01, Casino Level 2
Marina Bay Sands Singapore , Singapore

Date Visited : Apr 2013

Closed in 2014

PS: Joel Robuchon closed in Jun 2018, two months before the demise of Joel Robuchon himself.