Indian Food Festival Returns to Melt Cafe, Mandarin Oriental Singapore (May 2017)
What: Mandarin Oriental Singapore’s Indian Specialty Chef, Chef Santosh Kumar, takes the limelight again with the return of his wildly popular Indian Food Festival dinner buffet spread at Melt Cafe, available now through 28 May 2017.
What to expect: Look forward to a wide spread of indulgent South Indian fare—including succulent meats and offerings from their Tandoori oven, and a Dora Kabab (chicken kabab with roomali roti) and Chaat ‘live’ station that also serves up both sweet and savoury versions of Appam (a type of Indian pancake made from fermented rice batter and coconut milk)—in addition to their standard buffet lineup.
Personal picks include the Murg Makhanwala, a smokey Tandoor roasted chicken simmered with in tomato gravy, and the hearty Banata Singh De Kukkad Dee of Biryani spring chicken with saffron, Indian spices and a baked cheese topping.
Of course, you can't miss their superb Cheese Naan. When warm, the satisfying cheese layer just seems to melt into a fragrant and creamy flourish in the mouth.
Best enjoyed with a cup of rich Mango Lassi. Also delicious is the Mango Martini ($15), think a mango lasso spiced with vodka and triple sec.
Go also for their savoury Appam, where robust curry pairs nicely with those crisp, light edges and a fluffy pancake center.
End off the evening with some of their classic Indian sweets—Gulab Jamun of deep-fried milk dumplings in syrup, Phirni (rice cake with cardamom and saffron) and Habbsi Halwa (black carrot pudding)—or their gorgeous spread of desserts.
The Indian Food Festival dinner promotion at Melt Cafe, Mandarin Oriental Singapore is available 15 to 28 May 2017, and is priced at $75 per pax (inclusive of free-flow juices) for Sunday to Thursday, and $85 per pax (inclusive of free-flow juices) for Friday and Saturday. Supplement of $20 per pax for free-flow house wines, beer and soft drinks.
This was an invited media tasting session, though all views expressed are my own.
Melt Cafe
Address: Level 4, Mandarin Oriental Singapore, 5 Raffles Avenue, Marina Square, Singapore 039797
