[Review] Yan Ting @ The St Regis Singapore: The Place For Exquisite Cantonese Cuisine

Yan Ting is one of those dining venues that brings back a treasure trove of fond memories and finer moments. It is one of our favourite places to dine at on special occasions. I recall having celebrated my mum's 60th birthday here a couple of years ago. As a dining venue, this Michelin-rated dining establishment is the cornerstone of many other joyous family gatherings all year round.

It is indeed the ideal place to celebrate life in part because of its intimate, graceful and tranquil atmosphere, which is complemented by the uncompromising service standards of the St Regis.

 

The restaurant has been around for a long time and I reckon that it has not undergone much refurbishment. Nevertheless, it has aged well, like fine wine and still impresses with its artistically designed interiors with contemporary architectural and modern sophistication. The light tones and colour scheme of the furniture, tablecloths and other finishings brings a very tranquil, peaceful vibe to the restaurant, and an intrinsic sense of assuredness, both hallmarks of a fine dining establishment in terms of ambience.

On this occasion, we opted for specific items on the dinner ala carte menu, as we wanted to customise our meal and there were some favourites that we were keen to reminisce and re-experience.

For our starters, we had Yan Ting's Specialty "Kung Fu" soup, one of their signature, award winning dishes presented by their masterchefs. We had the Double-boiled Sea Whelk Consomme with Black Garlic served in Teapot (S$22++/serving) and the Double-boiled Oxtail Soup with Supreme Chinese Tonic (S$22++/serving).

Both were masterfully crafted and I would best describe it as an intense concoction that brings out the essence of each ingredient. It was served piping hot, with very strong, distinctive flavours from the sea whelk and oxtail and a lot of depth to it. We both enjoyed it but we wished that their portions were bigger. A few sips from that little teapot and it was finished. But what a beautiful, nourishing concoction it is!

Highly recommended for diners who need that extra nourishment after a stressful day of work. This is soup for nourishing the soul.

Another soup that we highly recommend is the Double-boiled Baby Cabbage Consomme with Matsutake Mushroom (S$14++/serving).

This is as authentic and faithful to the traditional cooking techniques of Cantonese cuisine as you can get and showcases the cooking excellence of their masterchefs. It is a simple dish, yet it does not taste too one dimensional. A perfect balance and harmony between the artisanal produce of baby cabbage and matstake.

We also ordered the Cantonese-style Stir Fried Venison with Black Pepper Sauce (S$22++/serving) which was both tender and succulent. 

As a dish, I think it is very underrated because the service staff probably would not recommend this ahead of the more mainstream meats such as the Wagyu beef and so on. But we liked it mostly because we got a bit bored of eating beef and not many restaurants are able to bring out the best in the venison meat. This is testimony to the fact that the exquisite Cantonese fine dining at Yan Ting can allure palates to satisfy even the most discerning gastronomes.  

One of Yan Ting's other signature Cantonese classics that we absolutely revere is the Crispy Rice with Alaskan Crab Meat in Lobster Broth (S$28++/serving).

Not many restaurants serve this dish and what we like best about this dish is the medley of natural flavours emanating from the diverse ingredients. It also tasted really nutritious and epitomises their unpretentious cooking philosophy of bringing out the natural flavours from the freshest of ingredients. The crispy texture of the rice also ignited a deeply rewarding contrast to the immensely flavourful lobster broth and crab meat.

Of course, every dinner/ celebration must have a sweet ending. For desserts, we had the Chilled Orange and Pumpkin Cream with Coconut Ice Cream (S$12++/serving) and the chef's signature Chilled White Sesame Panna Cotta with Red Bean Puree (S$12++/serving).