M
y memories of Taste Paradise are good. A standout dish that I remember is XO carrot cake which has now been proudly claimed by Taste paradise in the menu now as Taste Paradise XO carrot cake. So when a representative of Taste Paradise reached out to me, I was curious to know if it was still as good as I remembered it.
Taste Paradise ION looks different from its original one at Temple Street. The dragon inspired gold ceiling feature, the paintings of the emperors and rich colour palette that invokes opulence. No expense was spared, no detail overlooked - gold leaf ceiling feature, hand picked fine porcelain, tableware and chairs, the custom made menus… It is a little over the top but I still like it to a certain extent. Much like the ION building itself, it is not my favourite style but at least it is something interesting to look at.
The new menu here is longer. It now does dim sum lunch and I anticipate that it will continue to grow to incorporate other new dishes that they continue to innovate and reinterpret classics. One of the reinterpretation that we tasted was the Peking duck served with a their very own formulated rice roll, an interesting alternative that is equally smooth but add more of a bite as a opposed to the regular crepe.
Part of the new dim sum menu is their lux version of the
xiao long pao – steam shanghai pork dumplings with foie gras. It is a juicy morsel, most of the foie melts in the heat so, don’t lose your soup! Following that was another foie gras number, this time pan-fried foie gras with Peking duck reduction, very rich and a cute celebration of the duck on the plate.
Their classic shark’s fin soup that can be enjoyed as a green version comes seething on a Japanese stone pot and accompanied with a lengthy crispy spring roll that is to be dipped into the soup. The hot idea of the stone pot, I love; the crispy spring roll, I’m not such a fan, too much of a distraction for me.
What we had last of the savouries, braised vermicelli topped with simmered crab meat, was my favourite. Deceptively simple looking, the delicate strands noodles were coated gorgeously with
wok hei and a gentle sweetness from the crab, delightful mouthfuls and this is just me, but I like it with drizzle of vinegar.
The dessert was surprising, the winning factor that gave them the winning edge was their cloudlike bun that encased the salted egg yolk custard, think soft and imagine softer. a nice concluding note.
Taste Paradise at ION Orchard
2 Orchard Turn
#04-07 ION Orchard
Tel: 6509 9660 Labels: taste paradise
