Woobar, W Hotel

W Hotel estates around the world are known for their vibrant contemporary designs, in-your-arty-farty face looks that defy the cookie-cutter design setpiece. That said, I wasn't taken with W Singapore Sentosa Cove (www.wsingaporesentosacove.com/), which seemed a little too try-hard. 

Most of the service staff, though overwhelmed, were earnest and helpful. Unfortunately, one particular waiter had neither the warmth nor the intelligence of the heated Kohler toilet bowls found within the hotel itself.

Phew, now that we have gotten the naggity negativities out of the way, onto the meaty stuff.  

Note: Leave your Unsullied Army at home as the seating area is not conducive for a party bigger than four.

One of the reasons why I picked Woobar was because it was one of the few places that offered tea sets, instead of a buffet. Better yet, not everyone needs to have a set and we could order off the ala carte menu (which you absolutely should). 

Sidenote: Within five minutes, I spotted two simple mistakes on their website - 

1. "Find our more" instead of "Find out more"

2.  "Strawberry and Blueberry Macaroons" ... Macaron vs. macaroon, for your information, reference and action. 

The birdcage is gimmicky but it works on a frivolous occasion such as high tea. Yay!

Most of the nibbles were pretty good and you get to wash them down with a free flow of Dilmah tea or coffee. 

The smoked salmon and soft goat's curd roll was easy to love. 

I didn't bother with the smoked chicken brioche and noone said anything about it so I guess I didn't miss out much.  

I thought it was a serious case of deja vu when I saw those dark brown tarts. Turns out, they were foie gras ganache tarts. Absolutely stinkin' fabulous! The foie gras was intense and the tart shell was a mere edible cup holder for the decadent pâté. 

Egg mayo sandwiches, topped off with Japanese shichimi, were surprisingly light despite the ample filling and triple stack. 

These marshmallow paus reminded me of a Sanrio live gig. Seemingly harmless and cutesy from afar, yet unbearably and one-dimensionally sweet up close. 

The lemon meringue tart was as delightful as the one we had at Fullerton Bay Hotel. A meringue crown sits above the molton lemon curd and thinnish buttery tart shell. 

Brittle and crisp as can be were these mango katafi rolls. 

Unfortunately, the cranberry and plain scones were as dry as biscuits. I should have taken them home and instead of slathering them with passionfruit curd and clotted cream, we could have fried chicken and gravy. Now that would be something, yeah? 

The strawberry and pandan macarons were identically and delectably plump, with luscious buttercream sandwiched between crisp and chewy shells. Not bad for a place that isn't known for their confections. Not bad at all. 

Similarly, the vanilla and chocolate fudges were bearable in small doses but I would keep kids away from them unless all of you plan to run back to the mainland. 

 

Yes, we got greedy, and order a pizza and a club sandwich from Kitchen Table's ala carte menu. 

There was but a smattering of chorizo sausage and roasted peppers on the pizza; the base was pretty thin so I guess that kind of saves us from being carb-bombed. 

On the other hand, W Hotel's club sandwich was colossally awesome. Though I'm not certain it's the SAME SANDWICH Adam Richman raved about, I can imagine his euphoria when he bit into one of triple deckers. 

Yes, it is bigger than your face, heck even your head but you would wanna face-dive into this mammoth sandwich with reckless abandonment. 

It's the kind of sandwich you pick up with both hands and half of it will fall back onto the plate when you try to take a bite; any self-respecting gourmand will pick up the remaining scraps and shove them into their mouth with little regard for decorum. 

High tea was pleasant enough but I wouldn't hurry to cross the bridge anytime soon... But wait, I hear the club sandwich calling out to me.