Town Restaurant, Fullerton

On thursday, Jimmy and I paid a visit to Town Restaurant, Fullerton and spent close to three hours savouring the Gourmet Seafood Buffet.

The restaurant was reasonably full for a Thursday night and the crowd was mostly made up either suit-&-tie business associates or casually dressed hotel guests, who probably thought, "Hmm, I am only going for dinner at the hotel lobby.. I will slip on my flipflops.. Never mind that it's a six-star hotel lobby..."

This being one of Singapore's premier hotels, the buffet spread was inevitably marvellous.

In the name of image, reputation and service. Amen.

Near the entrance, there was a Japanese Sushi and Sashimi bar where the both of us paid many ceremonious visits to. I noticed the nigiri sushis were slightly smaller than what you would normally find and I wonder if this is the right size since it looks appropiately "gone in a mouthful". The time round, I enjoyed the salmon sashimi more than the mekajiki and this is probably due to the thicker and fatter cuts here in Fullerton.

Salad-wise, there was a TIY (toss it yourself) section with at least four different types of dressing and other salad varieties such as roast chicken, penne, marinated octopus, duck wraps etc. Although the only soup offered was lobster bisque (not my favourite), I wooed the bread selection with much enthusism. How predictable?

The love-it-or-hate-it cheese selection was accompanied by tablewater crackers and (a surprise) dried fruits. Jimmy yes, me no. The inviting cold seafood selection echoed sentiments of the government: Don't stop at two (plates).. TWO IS NOT ENOUGH!

Jokes aside, the hot food was a sumptious spread and off my mind, I can remember Unagi, Garlic Fried Prawns, Steamed HK Snapper, Seafood Risotto, Sauteed Clams, Oyster Fritter, Seasonal Vegetable Gratin and a Pasta Bar. Presentation and taste-wise, all were definitely above averagen (like you would expect anything less from Fullerton?) and stand-outs include oyster fritter with sweet chili sauce and my-palm-sized garlic prawns.

From the pasta bar, I had Tagliatelle Alio Olio with bacon. Can't say they were the skinniest bacon but my virgin fling with the tagliatelle proved a sustainable match made in carb-heaven.

Despite the palatial spread, it was by no means was it about to outdo the dessert spread anytime soon.

Yeap, you can roll out the red carpet now.

Seriously, can a dessert spread do anyone any harm? Naturally deserving a paragraph of its own, the Fullerton's desserts were well-trained in the Art of Seduction.



Members of the clan include:
Assorted bite-size french cakes which aimed to delight you senseless, Handsome bread and butter pudding, Beauteous fruit palova, Captivating creme brulee (whose caramelized facade cracked under slightest pressure), Delectable blueberry cheesecake, Dreamy pandan panna cotta, Decadent chocolate mousse, Sprightly Apricot tart and a variety of nonya kuehs for those who can't say 'no' to anything coconut-infused.



You got to got to got to try the Chocolate Hazelnut Gateaux: a double layer praline-chocolate cake of smoothest , intermingled with crisp idunnowhats.. If loving you is wrong, then I don't wanna be right..

We were thinking of a 101 ways to embarass ourselves in the six-star "masterpiece of understated comfort and elegance" (quote from The Fullerton website) establishment. So far, we only managed to come up with 4 ideas but they are sure-fire ways to get yourself a couple of dirty looks from the service staff.

1. Hand a plate of seafood fried rice to one of the chefs and get him to "add extra egg"
2. Act like you have zilch clue on what risotto is and when the chef hands you one made on the spot, look at him despontantly and say, "Chey, it's only porridge". Add "whattt.." for effect.
3. Aggravate him even further by asking him to make it "less watery"
4. From the cold seafood buffet bar, pick a plateful of fresh oysters, prawns, lobster and scallops. Walk smugly over to the pasta bar and tell the chef, "marinara can?"

That being said, we were anything but ill-behaved patrons! Hey, I couldn't even bring myself to snap any pictures of the buffet spread because that would have been plain disturbing. I realise for a buffet, the most important thing to have (apart from a nearly-empty gut) is a rare-breed dining companion: One who would go through thick and thin waistlines with you, laughs in the face of challenges and see you to the end of the dessert spread. With a partner-in crime, it just turns the buffet into an incredible rebellious ride down Guilt Lane...