The menu blends French culinary precision with locally inspired elements. A compact menu of 20 dishes features six starters, 10 for the table and three desserts. “For a table of two, I recommend choosing two dishes from each section, leaving room for dessert,” says Aditya.
Within two weeks of opening, the top favourites have been established: the Tuna Crudo has buttery slices of Sri Lankan yellow fin tuna, yuzu, pickled jalapeno, brown butter and coriander stems; the Octopus & Glazed Pork with braised pork belly, charred lemons, capers and garlic chives was packed with flavour. Another hot seller is Smoked Duck, with potato dauphinoise, jus, ginger vin and sauerkraut. The sheer decadence of carving into the stack of thinly sliced creamy potatoes rimmed by a golden crust between juicy mouthfuls of smoked duck is unforgettable. Roasted Chicken features a 12-hour brined chicken with a two-day process of boiling neck and bones in stock to increase collagen and gelatin to make the jus. It’s served with grilled king oyster mushrooms, baby carrots, herb chimichurri and sauce Choron, made by adding tomato to Béarnaise sauce.
Fervor
Fervor is big on sauces, pickles, condiments and fermentation techniques. On the menu is Panisse, a popular bar snack across Paris made with chickpea flour. The wedges are pan-fried so it’s crispy outside, served with mayo, caramelized onions and fermented carrot ketchup. We sample homemade sourdough bread, served with yeast butter speckled with crackly bits of caramelized yeast. A special shout out for the hot pepper sauce made with scotch bonnet soaked in brine for 25 days, which left a lingering sense of warmth.
The desserts are not too heavy or sweet. The Malt Cake features a chocolate and vanilla sponge cake soaked in mango syrup with clotted cream, rosemary caramel and cashew wafers. The Pavlova has fresh fruit, cream, kiwi compote and smoked vanilla ice-cream. Chocolate Mousse, Sam’s favourite, is loosely inspired by Paris chocolatiers, and has 70% dark chocolate, cherry crisp, house-made nougat, lime leaves and fernet to cut through the richness.