Keystone Restaurant

Interior of Keystone Restaurant - Photo courtesy of Alex Ang

In the run-up to the celebrity chefs’ restaurant boom in Singapore, modern European restaurants – with the exception of Restaurant Andre and Fifty Three, of course - seemed to have dropped-off from the radar of many. Perhaps a nod to the concurrent trend towards more casual dining, many bistros, gastro bars and tapas bars have surfaced throughout the island. 

But the recent opening of a clutch of modern European restaurants is, perhaps, a timely reminder to relook at what this segment has to offer.

Stanley Street, off the Shenton Way thoroughfare, is where you may least expect to find Singapore’s latest. Named Keystone Restaurant, for an architecture fixture that signifies resilience, Singapore’s newest kid on the modern European block is owned by a 26-year-old fresh faced Eddie Han who hails from Australia. Instead of opening yet another formulaic modern Australian eatery, Han has boldly tread the modern European line with a cuisine loosely described as a cross between the creative, produce-driven cuisine at Fifty Three and the vanguard-style offerings at Tippling Club. It's charcoal-grey interior, though, is faintly reminiscent of Gunther's.

The head chef, Mark Richards, cut his teeth at various kitchens including Momo’s in Melbourne, Ember, Heart Bistro and The Nautilus Project. And while Richards’ cooking resume has been consistently mainstream, he is now dabbling with decidedly progressive techniques, textures and presentations.

Amuse busche: wagyu with foie gras in dual texture - Photo courtesy of Alex Ang

During our dinner, the amuse bousche of Snake River wagyu arrived with foie gras in dual textures: smeared on the slate as an intensely savoury mousse alongside a monotonous mound of soil. More successful was the lip-smacking blended Kagoshima white corn macchiato served warm in a glass alongside chilled Alaskan king crab salad and a dollop of foie gras jam. The ensuing Asian-accented five-spice soup with shredded duck, which seemed homey at first, took a dive towards gimmicky when we were presented with a tou fu-stuffed syringe that squirted-out oodles of tou fu noodles.

Kagoshima macchiato - Photo courtesy of Alex Ang

Salat foie gras - Photo courtesy of Alex Ang

  

On a more vibrant – and less playful - note, the breaded rebuchon cheese enrobed in a fold of jamon iberico served with caramelized fig and sweet and zesty passion fruit sorbet was artfully plated and had divine balance of flavours and textures; as was the Salat foie gras resting on a crunchy hazelnut sponge with caramelized apple and apple mini macaroons.

Stuffed Berkshire suckling pig - Photo courtesy of Alex Ang

  

While Keystone’s mains are less left-winged, dishes like the Christmassy stuffed Berkshire suckling pig and coriander crusted Norwegian golden trout resting on a bed of seafood escabeche distracted us with an avalanche of ingredients and flavours. 

But there was admirable simplicity in Richards’ 24 hour-sous vide Blackmore wagyu brisket basking in a pool of fragrant Parmesan polenta and the pristine hunk of sea bass, simply pan-roasted with vanilla-scented juniper berry cream sauce and shimeiji mushrooms.

If you want to stay safe through desserts, ask for the mango and apricot clafoutis, a refreshing yoked-souffle with heaps of mango puree, dried apricot and fresh mangoes; though chocolate lovers may be more intrigued with the chocolate-accented nutella bar. But for something a little more offbeat, more daring and more aptly Keystone, black ash pudding with adzuki beans and palm sugar glaze is a good place to start.

Until Keystone proves its worth as a fixture in the local modern European dining circuit, the greatest draw for diners is its price hook. An 8-course dinner tasting menu costs just S$118++ per head. In the wake of out-of-control inflation and skyrocketing degustation menus, Keystone is showing marvelous resilience in its pricing department.  That, with Richards’ unbridled passion for produce and inventiveness, makes Keystone a worthwhile discovery. 

Keystone Restaurant
11 Stanley Street; 65-6221 0046

Bibikgourmand Rating: 13.5/20

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