Tangerine – Light and Healthy Spa Cuisine

Food plays a vital part in our well being. At Tangerine, celebrity chefs Sam and Forest Leong draw inspiration from Asian and Western cuisines to create a unique and inspiring menu of innovative spa cuisine with light, healthy and nutritious dishes.

It is my privilege to be one of the judges for Restaurant Association’s Epicurean Awards 2013. Together with my co-judge Moses Lim, we went to 10 new restaurants in Singapore as a secret diner to review their food and service. Tangerine is one of them and it has been awarded the Best New Restaurant in Casual Dining. I went to the restaurant again for lunch as a paying guest, after judging the awards. And below is what I had!

Comprising whole grains, fresh fruits, vegetables, sustainable seafood, premium free-range poultry and grass-fed beef, each dish is designed to be well balanced and easily digestible, providing the body with an optimum amount of energy. Tangerine’s menu aims to introduce a wide range of whole, natural foods to guests, along with recommendations from ESPA’ in-house nutritionist.

We started our lunch with Chef Sam Leong’s Asian-Inspired Pomelo and Coconut Salad with Prawns ($16) which is a refreshing plate of protein-rich salad. A Thai-inspired dish, the crunchy, refreshing savory salad is a perfect marriage of juicy pomelo and coconut meat. I love it that each dish in the menu comes with calories, saturated fat, carbohydrates and protein amount in the dish. Not that I really care but it is good for healthy conscious people.

When I was learning food photography and food styling, I was told that green is definitely not the best colour to pair with food. Indeed, when Baby Spinach Broth with King Crab and Enoki Mushroom ($14) arrived, I paused for a moment to blame myself for making a lousy decision on ordering. But after taking the first sip, I took the whole bowl by myself. LOL! Brimming with omega-3s and anti-oxidants, delicious king crab and Enoki mushroom is perched in this light and mild baby spinach broth. It is said to restore iron to your body. Don’t worry about the bitterness of the baby spinach because it is non existent. You get a savoury bowl of soup instead.

Very bold colours! Chef Forest’s Sous Vide Salmon Fillet with Red Capsicum Coulis and Tamarind Sauce ($18) is indeed intimidating because I thought it would be very spicy. Of course no lah! This omega-3-rich salmon fillet is sous vide to the right texture, soft and tender yet retaining the moisture. It is enriched with an antioxidant-packed red capsicum coulis and a piquant tamarind sauce that awakens the senses.

I like the Grilled Beef Salad with Grapes and Mint Garlic Dressing ($26) which offers a feast of flavors and textures with every bite. A compact, balanced meal of protein and iron derived from perfectly grilled beef strips with fresh grapes and a drizzle of mint garlic dressing. A bowl of salad full of freshness and crunch, when mixed together, it is the umami bomb that transforms salad into more than just a bowl of salad.

Lemongrass Jelly and Wild Forest Berries in Chilled Coconut ($14) brings a sweet ending to the meal. This lemon grass and pandan leaf-infused jelly is very aromatic. It is topped with antioxidants-packed strawberries, blueberries and raspberries and served in a high-fibre coconut to promote weight loss.

Lovely place for a quiet lunch. Frankly it looked expensive on the outside but the dishes are pretty affordable. But don’t expect yourself to eat until 100% full here, the portion is just nice for 70% full for me. Which is good lah, I have been stuffing myself with too much carbs, coming here for a meal once in a while cleanse the palette. I would think spa cuisine means super healthy and tasteless but Tangerine has proved me wrong.

Unfortunately, the service is really slooooow here and they looked really shorthanded. We came into the restaurant and there was no waitress in sight. So we stood at the entrance for a long time, until a staff came out from the kitchen to greet us.

Tangerine
Address: Level 1 ESPA Resorts World Sentosa
Tel: 6577 6336
Opening hours: 10am to 10pm