Review: Maison Shuko, a Japanese-French omakase restaurant shining the light on local food producers, Lifestyle News
With the start of Maison Shūko late previous month, Zouk Group completes its trinity of urban Japanese concepts in Clarke Quay‘s The Cannery. A stone’s throw from their famed nightlife flagship brand.
Situated on the exact degree as sister venues, cocktail lounge Here Kitty Kitty and vibey Japanese omakase experience Sushi Ichizuke, Maison Shūko enhances the combine with a great deal of local culinary star ability.
It delivers together three local cooks you may well be common with. In simple fact, “Shūko” is an amalgam of two of their last names – Earth Connoisseur Summit MKN Chef of The Year 2018 and 2020 winner and Zouk Group’s Chef Patron Angus Chow, and nearby tv normal Justin Foo, who has worked in the kitchens of Restaurant Par Andre, Le Saint Julien, Senso Ristorante.
Completing the trio is former chef-proprietor of Le Binchotan, Jeremmy Chiam, who also provides the hospitality game to their personal eight-seater cafe with his past working experience stewarding with Singapore Airlines.
The yearlong runway of Maison Shūko begun with Cooks Angus and Justin seeking to showcase Singapore’s have producers while crafting their possess narrative as Singaporean cooks who trained in French culinary strategies, and we get just that with their initially eight-course menu, which shines with intention and the considered processes at the rear of just about every program.
The initial style comes in the kind of two amuse bouche that established our expectations up for the night: Fish Puri and Potato “Chip”. Riffing off Indian street food pani puri, the crisp flatbread shells maintain seasonal fish tartare (in our scenario, tuna) with tomato confit and white wine shallots.
The latter provides an nearly reverse flavour combination with its maximalist interpretation of patatas bravas. Smoked with applewood in advance of serving, its aroma perfumes the air as you tuck into layers of mille-feuille potato, bafun uni, and smoked avruga caviar.
Right after the snacks are cleared, lights are turned down reduced for Maison Shūko’s documentary-design featurettes. Directed by Chef Justin, who is also an completed producer for digital platform FTTG Media, the first small film usually takes us to Long Kuang Hung Crocodile Farm for a glimpse of their working day-to-day.
This audio-visible immersion just before each individual study course achieved its objective of heightens connections in between us diners, the cooks, and our difficult-working farmers and food producers.
Normally served in soups and lauded by regular Chinese medication practitioners for its health gains, crocodile meat gets zesty with a larb-style dressing of ponzu, soy, and black garlic in Crocodile & Crackers.
Visually extraordinary with its means to evoke the lush impression of the reptile’s natural habitat, it doubles up as a fantastic vessel for taking pleasure in the tender and somewhat chewy tail meat that was pounded and marinated in lime.
Our screens then zip more than to Lim Chu Kang for the subsequent course’s inspiration – Singapore’s only goat farm Hay Dairies.
Watching the goats feed tranquilly on GMO-free alfalfa hay and particular feed from Australia, we’re happy that the foundation in this article is freshly designed goat’s cheese.
Balanced with a texture of tomatoes, the tomato and pineapple sorbet with balsamic vinegar was a contact too sweet for us, but we appreciated the slight gaminess of the cheese just good with basil oil and heirloom tomatoes.
We delight in fish from Ah Hua Kelong where ever we’re eating, however Maison Shūko’s binchotan Grilled Grouper could one particular up most of them.
To contrast the fattiness of the fish is the French-style fumet – a base for soup, sauce, and seafood dishes – made with grouper bones and uplifted with dashi and the slight creaminess of soy milk.
With a sprint of earthiness from matsukake mushrooms, we’re joyful, especially with a cup of dry sake to pair.
Next, we head west to Jurong Frog Farm, which supplied our favourite course of this meal, Har Jiong Frog Legs & Papaya Sambal Sorbet.
Their chonky bullfrog legs are marinated for a working day in Chef Justin’s key prawn paste recipe and get there piping hot from the deep fryer though the sambal sorbets provides a fruity chilly element on the plate.
Incredibly hot and chilly, savoury and spicy – delicious!
We cross the halfway mark with Au Japon by Chef Jeremmy, inspired by his practical experience functioning for a Japanese chef in France – a time when luxuries have been hard to arrive by and convenience-store oden was a brief, comforting meal.
Frivolously grilled more than binchotan, the sake, mirin, and miso glazed foie gras is layered on sweet nashi pear silvers and simmered daikon. You’ll want to slurp up all the fatty goodness of the dashi broth.
Never combat the decadence of Chef Angus’ signature Truffle & Rooster Yolk Somen. Served chilly, he pairs chilled somen with freshly shaved Australian Perigord Truffles, truffle oil, and an incredibly loaded egg sabayon produced from the eggs of kampung chicken from Ang Seng.
Toppings of crispy sakura ebi, tobiko, and shio kombu add umami and texture to the lavish sauce and silky noodles.
Japan’s the last savoury location on this gastronomic journey, specifically to the prefecture of Miyazaki. Evoking the aroma of very hot tea with a dusting of earl grey tea and leek charcoal more than grilled A5 Wagyu quick rib, we completely get pleasure from its pairing with Yen Cha, a teapot-brewed toasted oolong tea with mineral notes and a extensive end.
Its tannic mouthfeel can help to slice by the beef’s rich, buttery marbling and the flavourful sauce of beef jus and emulsified Wagyu fats.
For dessert, we return closer to house with the Calamansi Blanc Manger, inspired by Singapore’s city backyard garden landscape and knowledgeable by flavours of vital lime pie.
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Calamansi and thyme parfait sit on a mattress of frozen shortbread shavings, almond sponge and calamansi gel, whilst the raspberry coulis loaded white chocolate bonbon provides a sweet-tart counterpoint.
There is a champion in its ending of micro cress much too, which are sourced from local social enterprise Green Cube, which trains men and women with disabilities in the urban farming of microgreens.
Immediately after ending up the nth pot of Yen Cha with matcha madeleines fresh new from the oven, we leave seeking to return for the trio’s “Asiatique cuisine” that bends boundaries with intention, regard and a perception of area.
Maison Shūko is positioned at 3E River Valley Highway, #02-02, Clarke Quay, The Cannery, Singapore 179024, p. +65 9489 8357. Open up Tuesdays to Saturdays with just one seating at 7pm. Closed Mondays and Sundays.
This posting was initial published in City Nomads.
