Angelina

More than two years ago, French patisserie Angelina arrived in Singapore at the then-newly-opened Capitol Piazza. Of its 8 branches in France, 6 are in Paris. Established since 1903, the French tearoom can also be found in China, Japan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Qatar and United Arab Emirates. Another will be opening at Ion Orchard soon. Chanced upon its $13.80++ lunch set and decided to give it a try, on a weekday. My choice of appetiser is appetising, pun intended. The salad was a perfect balance of taste and texture – crunchy nuts, sweet-yet-tart dressing and orange slices, bitter raw greens and red radish thins. Loved the sweet potato fries in my seafood main course, which I could neither rave about nor fault. Have also tried its signature Le Mont-Blanc in Paris before, and was pleasantly surprised how light this delicate dessert could be with the chestnut purée vermicelli on top going very well with the not-too-milky-or-cloyingly-sweet whipped cream and meringue base beneath.

Naughty Nuri’s

Naughty Nuri's is an Indonesian grill house famed for its ribs and martini in Ubud, Bali. It has since expanded to more than 10 locations including Australia, Malaysia and Singapore – Capitol Piazza and Tanjong Katong. Its décor at the former looks nothing "Warung" as it took over the 1st floor space vacated by Japanese restaurant Zaku beside Dazzling Café.  I have been wanting to visit the restaurant for a while and finally dropped by recently, for lunch on a weekday. My dining companions and I ordered a Christmas Set consisting of its Signature St. Louis Full Rack, Crispy Pig Ears and two bottles of Bintang beers as well as an Orang Dua Platter for sharing.

Equilibrium

It was an impromptu decison to join in for lunch at Equilibrium, located on the 1st floor of Capitol Piazza between Dazzling Café and Ryu's Dining & Bar. From the outside, the décor of this duplex space looks nothing like a modern Italian bacaro and ristorante. By The Crea8 Group who founded Demand & Supply at Esplanade and Orchard Gateway, and is also behind The East Bureau at Marina Square. I chose Aglio Olio with Shrimps from the Executive Set Lunch menu that comes with lovely handmade bread and trio-of-the-day – assaggio piccolo, petite antipasto and cheese. Could neither rave about nor fault the al dente pasta with fresh and succulent shrimps tossed in hot olive oil, splash of homemade broth, sprinkle of chilli and pepper. With both minced garlic bits and thin garlic slices in the dish topped with parsley, the amount of garlic was copious as aptly described and would seem like overkill if you dislike it. While I loved the aroma, it was a tad overwhelming.

Ryu’s Dining & Bar

Walked by Ryu's Dining & Bar many times, almost always after meals but never when I was looking for food. Reminded myself to try this Japanese restaurant, located on the 1st floor of Capitol Piazza beside Taiwanese Dazzling Café and Italian Equilibrium, and finally remembered last weekend. Made reservations for dinner, not that it was necessary but we did not want to make a wasted trip down. Started with a complimentary cold soup, followed by three types of sashimi from Tsukiji Market – thick slices of chutoro, long tail fish and sakuramasu (grilled) were fresh and succulent. While a dining companion was disappointed that the swordfish sashimi was not available, I loved how the charred taste accentuated the sakuramasu or cherry salmon. Tsunami Tree, an assortment of Japanese bites, was lovingly presented on a two-tiered display. On the upper wooden tray were seaweed with minced ginger in a lacquered cup, bacon potato salad in a square container and mackerel with onions.

Kaiserhaus

Singapore Restaurant Week is back this year, from 19 to 26 Mar, with set lunches and dinners at $28++ and $38++ ($40++ and $58++ for restaurants awarded with DiningCity Star) respectively. No different from previous editions, I decided to try a participating restaurant I have never been to before. This time, my choice was Kaiserhaus on the 2nd and 3rd floor of the refurbished Capitol Theatre. According to its website, the restaurant-café-bar offers authentic culinary delights from the former Habsburg Empire extending over Austria, Hungary, Northern Italy, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Slovenia and parts of Poland, Serbia, Romania and the Ukraine, at the end of the 19th century. With a supposedly exquisite dining menu fit for an Emperor, items on the menu include handmade pastries and cakes by renowned Austrian pâtisserie Zauner founded in 1832, craft beer and unique boutique wines from Central Europe.

Four Seasons Chinese Restaurant

It has been almost a year since Four Seasons Chinese Restaurant opened on the 2nd floor of Capitol Piazza, which has seen the closure of Phô Tai and Zaku. Within a month of its opening, London Fat Duck opened at Scotts Square, another quiet mall where Crystal Jade Pristine and Marukin Ramen have since closed while Sushi Ichi moved next door. Both claim to be serving the popular roasted duck from London's Four Seasons though only the former is by the original eatery. With presence in Shanghai and Bangkok (at Siam Paragon) too, it was brought in by the Royal China Group. According to its website, the ducks are "thoroughly dried before being marinated with a special mix of herbs and spices". They are then air-dried, roasted and air-dried again.

Oriole Coffee + Bar

Tucked away in a corner furthest from the restrooms on the 2nd floor of Capitol Piazza, Oriole Coffee + Bar was quiet. Too quiet, in fact, considering it was time for dinner on a weekend. No signs of wait staff to show us our seats or menu on any table. With no lack of available tables, we had the luxury of choosing where we wanted to sit. Sat at a cushioned bench seat and got the menus from the counter. Upon deciding, we went to the counter to order and pay. While waiting for our food and drinks which took ages to arrive, we helped ourselves to the complimentary water. Could not fault my order of Cubano Sandwich – well-marinated tender slow-roasted pork collar and seared sous vide pork belly with pickled cucumber, green chilli mayo and mustard between grilled Panini bread. Loved the Oriole-spiced fries, crispy on the outside, but not the tossed greens, both served on the side. My dining companions' opinions on their Fully Loaded All Day Breakfast were divided though.

You may also be interested in Oriole Café and Bar at Pan Pacific Serviced Suites or Oriole Espresso and Brew Bar at Republic Plaza.

Dazzling Café

A queue started at 8.30am even though Dazzling Café was supposed to start operating from noon. As the only tenant opened on the first floor of Capitol Piazza, there were hoardings all around as its neighbours were still undergoing construction/renovation works. Yes, this is the hype of the Taiwanese café known for its instagram-worthy thick toast. With no intention of sniffling glue and eating dust, I waited 'til this month to finally drop by. It was for lunch on a weekday and we could be seated immediately. Ordered a main course each as well as an appetiser and two desserts for sharing. Pleasantly surprised that most of the dishes were better than expected – could neither rave about nor fault The Usuals (poached eggs, cream spinach and parma ham on brioche toast with hollandaise and micro herbs) and the recommended Mentaiko Spaghetti in Cream Sauce.

Phô Tai

One of the first to open at Capitol Piazza, Pho Tai is a family-owned Vietnamese restaurant located at B2. Originated in Paris more than 10 years ago, it is opened by a Vietnam-born Chinese family who moved there. Though the menu does not boost an extensive range of items, everything here is supposedly homemade. For example, the broth is freshly boiled with bones, meat and herbs for hours every day. Visited twice, both times for dinner on weekdays – ordered beef steak slices phô on my 1st and dry vermicelli (or bùn) with marinated pork during the 2nd. While the phô was silky smooth and herbal soup rich yet light, the tender beef slices tasted too gamely for my liking. The latter was served with a glass flask of flavourful fish sauce, atypical of commercially available ones, which accentuated the dish. I loved the aroma and crunch of crushed peanuts atop the well-marinated tender meat and springy vermicelli, reminiscent of local thick mee hoon in laksa.

Update: The restaurant has closed.