Les Amis in Singapore is one of the few remaining French restaurants in the world that stick to proper French haute cuisine. And what better place is there to spend an important evening with the one you love.
Unlike other French restaurants in town, Les Amis is the only one devoted to classic French haute cuisine, which is easily misunderstood by the younger crowd as staid or old-fashioned. Right now, there are only very few restaurants in the world that still do haute cuisine: Michel Guerard’s Les Pres d’Eugénie, Alain Passard’s L’Arpège in Paris, Le Normandie in Bangkok, L’Osier in Tokyo, and our very own Les Amis.
Les Amis, the French translation of ‘The Friends, is the sophisticated first-born of the Les Amis Group, founded by four partners who wanted to bring the finer aspects of French cuisine to Singapore. Over the years, the restaurant has earned itself the reputation of being one of the best classic French restaurants in Asia, hence attracting food connoisseurs from around the world since its inception in 1994.
Designed by local architect Tan Kay Ngee, the 2-storey restaurant exudes an air of sophistication and grandeur with its high ceilings, lush velvet walls, beautiful chandeliers, and the prized artworks by renowned Chinese artists such as Wang Kun and Tang Zhi Gang adorning the walls.
Born in France, Executive Chef Sébastien Lepinoy is a protégé of legendary chef Joël Robuchon. Widely recognised as Chef Robuchon’s right hand man, Chef Sebastien first joined the Les Amis Group in 2010 as the Head Chef of Cépage (closed in 2013) in Hong Kong. Chef Sebastien uses classical French technique with modern aesthetics when he cooks. He always tries to incorporate elements of what he has seen and tasted during his stay in Asia into his menus so that it will complement the local climate and palates.
La Carte Printemp Dîner (The Springtime Dinner Menu)
Influenced by pure Parisian haute cuisine, Chef Sebastien’s Spring menu features a selection of the finest ingredients sourced from France. Every element presented on the plate is prepared with finesse and a highly level of technicality to give guests a taste of France.
The first test of the Michelin star is the bread and is usually the first thing that is served after you have placed the order. Le pain au levain (sourdough) is made fresh in house with just a hint of sourness as most Asians are not used to eating sourdough.
Most other places have flavoured butter, Les Amis used very good unsalted French butter from the artisanal cheese and butter maker, Beillevaire. The butter was softened to ease spreading. The taste evokes the rich flavor of cream, with the hallmark of tradition conveyed by the wooden churn. I asked for some sea salt as I wasn’t used to spread natural butter over my bread. No shame in that.
Le Canapé & L’amuse-bouche
The first bite was a stick of young Comté cheese wrapped in viande des Grisons ham. Comté is a premier French hard cheese produced from unpasteurised cow’s milk in the Franche-Comté region. Aged for at least 4 to over 30 months, it features a firm yet flexible texture, a pale yellow colour, and a rich, nutty, and slightly sweet flavour profile. Bündnerfleisch, aka Viande des Grisons, is an air-dried meat that is produced in the canton of Graubünden, Switzerland.
The next amuse bouche was a small espresso cup shot of morel velouté with foie gras Royale and black truffle coulis. We were advised to dig deep into the cup to have the foie gras and the velouté in every scoop. The nutty taste of the morel mushrooms and the black truffle oil made this one of the best mushroom soup I have tasted, and the savoury foie gras Royale (ethically harvested foie gras from Germany) bits complimented with the animal fats.
Les Amis has never disappointed when it comes to bread. Everything is made daily and meticulously. These mini croissant with a dusting of Comte cheese was spot on little bites.
Les Entrées Froides
After the amuse bouche came the cold appetisers. I picked a duck liver terrine with black truffle while Princess picked a crab and lobster mouse with caviar.
Le foie gras terrine maturé 21 jours, en demi-deuil et sa gelée de truffe noire
The 21-day dry-aged foie gras terrine with black truffle jelly is an ultra-premium, deeply intensified, and nutty interpretation of the classic French delicacy. The extended dry-aging process, while unusual for liver, concentrates the natural sugars and fats, creating a more intense, nutty, and umami-rich flavour profile compared to traditional, fresh terrines. The foie gras is set in a delicious black truffle gelee.
It came with a piece of toasted sourdough and generous topping of shaved black truffle cut to perfect disc shape. This course is the perfect example of French haute cuisine decadence. Princess and I had a couple of spoonful and we felt totally overwhelmed by its richness. It was delicious but way too much as a full appetiser even though it looked small.
L’araignée de mer au caviar, sur une mousse coraillée
Princess had the spider crab with caviar on a lobster coral mousse. Lobster coral is technically the eggs or roe, bluish in colour and are distinct from the liver (tomalley, greyish.) They were incorporated into a lobster mousse that sat under the shredded spider crab meat and a generous serve of Kaviari Oscietre caviar.
Les Entrées Chaudes
Princess picked the soufflé while I went for the langoustines for our warm appetisers. Another small bite was provided together with the warm appetisers, or was it still part of the amuse bouche I wasn’t sure. It was a cheesy chewy dough with a bacon (or salted meat) filling with a single leaf of sweet basil. Nice.
Le soufflé au jeune comté, à la truffe noire et sa galette croustillante
The appetiser came in two parts. Underneath the potato chips sized slices of black truffle (can truffles grow so big?) was a savoury cheese soufflé made from young Comté sitting on a bed of morel and foie gras infused black truffle sauce. Very rich, and if you are a truffle fan, you will be satisfied.
The crisp black truffle tart was a homage to Chef Sebastian’s days in L’atelier. Made famous by Joël Robuchon, the black truffle tart, aka Le Truffle Noire, was filled with sweet confit onions and smoky bacon finished with generous, paper-thin shavings of black truffle on a crisp filo pastry base. It was a one bite, we had to do it in two.
La langoustines de Loctudy, voile de courgette et sauce à l’huile d’olivee
For my warm appetiser, I picked a classic of Les Amis – Langoustine from Loctudy & emulsion of olive oil from Chateau d’Estoublon. “Demoiselles de Loctudy” (“Young ladies of Loctudy”) is the affectionate French nickname for high-quality langoustines (aka Norway lobsters) landed at the fishing port of Loctudy in South Brittany. Their flesh is delicate and they are a real cocktail of sweetness and umami. Château d’Estoublon produces premium, organic extra virgin olive oils in the heart of Provence, known for their elegant, award-winning, estate-grown blends and monovarietal oils (Picholine, Grossane, Bouteillan, Salonenque).
The langoustine cooked a la minute was wrapped in courgette and a sauce made with emulsion of olive oil was then poured around the crustacean. It sounds very simple but the flavours were incredibly rich and the whole dish was absolutely divine. The emulsion of olive oil was very light, with the consistency of a sabayon. It was almost a neutral sauce that neither add nor subtract from the natural sweetness of the langoustine. Additional savouriness came from the dollop of Kaviari Oscietra caviar.
Les Plats Principaux
Next, the main course and at this juncture the bread trolley made its way to our table side. The Bread Trolley of Les Amis consisted of the standard baguettes, sea salt brioche, buckwheat mini baguettes, Japanese milk rolls, pumpernickel and gluten-free bread. All the bread were made in house daily from scratch. We were spoiled for choice.
The waiter picked a selection for us, and emphasised that if it wasn’t enough, he would be happy to replenish the basket. I considered the brioche the best among the batch, fluffy inside with a slight crunch on the outside and delicious crystals of salt hanging on randomly .
La tête de veau « ile-de-France » en ravigote, aux simples
Usually found in the humble kitchens at home or small town bistros, I was surprised that this dish was available here. I could not resist when I saw ox tongue and calf’s head in the same sentence. I have a penchant for the weird stuffs. Ox tongue stuffed in calf’s head, balanced with fresh herb salad and veal jus – one was reminded that this nevertheless is still a haute cuisine restaurant, with a ring of meticulously placed beads of vegetables that make an OCD patient proud.
French cooking is historically rooted in a philosophy of sustainability and efficiency, where “wasting any part of the animal was unthinkable”. This approach, often found in both country kitchens and city bistros, transformed humble offal and tougher cuts into gourmet, nutrient-dense meals.
This exquisite French delicacy brings together the tender calf’s head, creating a unique texture that’s both succulent and savoury. The ox tongue adds a rich and flavourful element to the dish, creating a harmonious blend of flavours. The ravigote sauce, a classic, tangy French sauce, designed to “revive” (ravigoter) dishes with its bright, herbaceous, and acidic profile, perfectly balances the richness of the meat. To complete this culinary masterpiece, a fresh herb salad provides a refreshing contrast.
Le filet de bouf aux aromates, jus court et pommes soufflées
For a little more, Princess opted for the wagyu beef with aromatics, natural jus and was accompanied by the pomme soufflé and beads of vegetable on the Australian Snakefarm wagyu tenderloin. The potato puffs were made from finely sliced discs of potatoes that were fried and made into puffy little heavens. You could stop at three, so if you asked, they would bring out more. I was a bit disappointed that the Japanese wagyu wasn’t available that evening.
For the main courses, they came with a side of caramelised carrots infused with clementine orange juice. The carrots came from the South-West region of France (Aquitaine) and La Manche in a tiny coastal area in Normandy, often grown in sandy soils (carottes de sable), are known for their sweet, delicate flavour and fine texture. It was a refreshing side dish, never thought that a citrus like clementine would go so well as a flavour for the side dish. For ones that didn’t like carrots, we finished all of them.
Les Desserts
And before the dessert course, there’s a pre-dessert. I was expecting a palate cleanser of sort, but instead was presented with an espresso cup sized dessert aptly named frozen cappuccino.
You scooped into the cup and you can get layers of texture – head of foamed milk covered the espresso foam underneath it, with a scoop of coffee ice cream at the bottom. Tasted like a tiramisu without the liquor-soaked ladyfingers. And there I had an aha moment – it reminded me of a cold Irish coffee that needed more whisky.
Le soufflé aux citrons de Menton, glace au citron
Princess always order anything that has soufflé, even though she isn’t a fan of warm dessert. Menton lemon soufflé, toiled with lemon biscuit and served with quenelle of lemon ice cream on the side. Menton lemon is named after a town found on the French Riviera. Hailing from Côte d’Azur, this famed lemon is sweeter and famed for its fragrance and mild acidity as compared to its classic cousin.
It was a perfect soufflé, fluffy and moist inside that stood firm delicately about to collapse anytime. A nice crusty head with cut-up pieces of lemon biscuit to remind us of the slices of citrus, and accompanied by a lemon ice cream that is not too sour and not too sweet. She regretted and said that she should have settled for the rum baba.
La clémentine givrée, sur une fine gelée au thé noir
A creation of the renowned pastry chef, Cheryl Koh, La Clémentine essentially combines three classic desserts into one: sorbet, panna cotta, and crème brûlée. The different flavour profiles are remarkably well-balanced and create multi- dimensional flavour that isn’t overly sweet.
The inside of a clementine is scooped out and the leftover clementine skin is then crystallised to form the candied exterior of the dessert. This spherical shell is filled with a refreshing clementine sorbet and a mildly sweet panna cotta which balance the slight bitterness of the skin remarkably well. The dessert is then placed on top of a layer of earl grey jelly and caramelised sugar and finished with freshly squeezed clementine juice from the earlier extracted fruit.
Dark Chocolate Cake
To celebrate Princess’ birthday, we ordered their famous dark chocolate cake. Decadent dark chocolate cake made with layers of chocolate ganache, hazelnut feuilletine, chocolate sponge and coated with a silky chocolate glaze. The base is a carob tart shell, adorned with chocolate coated almonds and a caramel sauce. Every slice is packed with rich, chocolaty goodness that’s sure to make any moment better.
Le Fromage Au Chariot Ou Au Plateau
If you are not into sweets, you can replace the dessert with a selection of artisanal Spring cheeses from the Cheese Trolley. And unlike other French restaurants I have been to that served only 3-4 types for every order, they would pick a bite size piece of everything for you to try and then a proper serving of the ones you like.
Mignardises
We’re always a bit sad to see a great meal come to a close, but we can count on the arrival of mignardises to lift our spirits. This parting gesture from the kitchen—usually an artful arrangement of confections like gemlike pates de fruits, say or tiny macarons—is a tradition that dates back to 18th-century France. Miniature sweets were de rigueur then: Once pastry chefs had finished their work for the day in their brick ovens, they placed small treats inside to bake in the low, residual heat;
Les Petits Fours
The name mignardise comes from the Old French word for “precious” or “cute.” Nowadays, chefs dazzle us with their stunning array of after dinner sweets: It’s a chance for them to show off their skills, create a final impression that embodies the spirit of the restaurant, and more important, extend the pleasure of the meal. Tonight’s petit fours (mini oven) included the classic canelé and pineapple palmier, and surprise surprise, my favourite dessert, Mont Blanc (chestnut mousse).
Les Chocolats Au Plateau
The chocolate bonbons came in three flavours – coconut white chocolate, regular peanut milk chocolate (that reminded my of Reeses), and dark espresso chocolate.
The restaurant boasts one of the most extensive wine lists in Asia, with more than 3,000 bottles housed in a temperature-and-humidity-controlled wine cellar. The restaurant’s award-winning wine list, made up of both Old and New World wines mainly from Burgundy and Bordeaux, is designed to complement the classic French cuisine at Les Amis.
Lemon-Basil Olive Oil Cake
The zesty lemon-basil olive oil cake is prepared entirely without butter, and was given to everyone as a gift to remember the meal with. This delightfully refreshing cake is packed with flavour. Made with lemons, limes, thyme and basil, this moist extra virgin olive oil cake is perfect for these balmy days accompanied with a cup of hot tea.
It may seemed to be a heavy dinner with so many courses. It was around $250 pax for dinner, now with the Michelin stars prepare to pay around $600++ per pax excluding the drinks for a proper experience. But I had to be fair that this was around the price back in 2019, so they have not raised much in terms of prices even though everything else in Singapore has.
Les Amis has been tour de force among the French gastronomy establishment in Singapore. For me, I knew it not only for its classical French cooking, but its impeccable service. We had a lovely evening at Les Amis, three hours of fine dining pleasure and excess. If you’re looking for the ultimate authentic French haute cuisine experience, this is the ONLY place to get it in Singapore.
Les Amis
1 Scotts Road, #01-16 Shaw Centre, Singapore 228208
(Opposite HSBC Bank, Tanglin Branch)
Tel : +65 6733 2225
Visited Feb 2026
Michelin Singapore Guide 3 Stars 2019-2025, 2 Stars 2016-2018
No.28 on Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants 2025
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