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.

Made a dinner reservation for the weekend and was brought up the lift to the 2nd floor. Was shown to a table at the balcony with views overlooking the 1st floor of Capitol Piazza where Taiwanese Dazzling Café, Indonesian Naughty Nuri's and Japanese Ryu's Dining & Bar were. However, could feel the heat from outside and chose to sit inside instead on plush red armchairs that stood out against black and mostly white tiled floor. While waiting for our orders to arrive, I looked around and could not help raving about its opulent décor with a grand spiral staircase. Even the restroom had marble counter top and floor. Soft lightings, warm hues and lots of wood combined with high white ceilings to give the place a spacious yet cosy vibe. Our meal started with Octopus Carpaccio, my favourite dish of the night. Thinly-sliced octopus drizzled with olive oil and lemon was neither too hard nor chewy, and perfect with the accompanying greens and olive baguette I could not fault.

My main course of Vepřové Pečeně, or Bohemian Pork Roast, was a tad salty and reminded me of Cantonese roast pork albeit with a thicker crackling that was not crispy but hard. Chunky slices sat on a bed of Gabelkraut – Bohemian Cabbage, a sweet variation of warm sauerkraut, and were served with roasted root vegetables (no complaints) and bread dumpling we do not fancy. Topped up $10 for my dining companion's Szegediner Hummerkrautfleisch, succulent grilled lobster tail with the taste of sea on "Szeged-style" braised paprika cabbage with lobster bisque and lemon butter sauce. Last but not least was desserts, a slice of homemade cake or pastry. We chose Kaisertorte – Emperor's Cake, and Raspberry Truffle Cake. The former was cacao cream cake with layers of hazelnut meringue, chocolate shavings and marzipan while the latter was rich chocolate cake with layers of Paris crème and topped with raspberries. Both failed to impress.

Update: The restaurant has closed.