Poisson in Bukit Pasoh is Singapore’s latest all-seafood dining concept, a swanky European eatery offering a menu built around the premium bounty of our oceans.
Specialty fish restaurants – especially in the premium dining segment – are generally the domain of the Japanese. But Poisson, 159 atas restaurant group’s newest dining concept, aims to change things up a little. The F&B group – which is behind modern steakhouse Boeuf on Telok Ayer Street and Cochon, a contemporary pop-up bistro in Geylang offering a pork-focused menu – similarly goes literal with Poisson, offering an entire menu built around premium seafood.
Poisson is the brainchild of award-winning chef and restauranteurs Geoffrey Weckx and Pierre Bolly, whose idea was to bring together influences from iconic maritime cuisines of coastal cities around the world into one singular menu. It certainly looks the part. It is awash in teal, aquamarine, and cyan, a contemporary version of a swanky eatery you’d perhaps find in Santorini or Amalfi.
Weckx worked with Executive Chef Ma Yee Khang to curate a fish-led menu with ingredients sourced from certified sustainable fish farms and independent international seafood suppliers.
Which means, of course, that there’s absolutely no meat option on the menu. Sorry, carnivores.
Instead Poisson is perfectly poised as an option for a fancy night out particularly if you’re a pescatarian. Here the menu is split into two sections: ‘Hot Stream’ and ‘Cold Stream’ – essentially cold appetisers and hot mains – alluding to the cold and warm currents of the earth’s oceans.
There’s a caviar selection – Kaluga Queen, La Tsar, or Giavery – if you’d like to start off your meal lavishly. But we went for the Amber & Jack instead, a hamachi (yellowtail) crudo delicately dressed in a citrus vinaigrette and garnished with pomegranate and ice lettuce. Nothing particularly innovative, just clean, simple flavours on a plate the way some like it.
Then there’s Smoke Uno, supposedly a chef’s signature. This is a cracker of the most indulgent ingredients including negitoro, Kaluga Queen caviar, salmon roe, Bafun uni and surprisingly, a slice of tamago. It’s decadent and indulgent, and what you order to impress your date as it arrives at the table encased in a glass dome of smoke, delivering a ridiculously luxurious medley of flavours and textures in a single bite.
My top pick of the cold stream, however, goes to Ama (Blue Ebi), a tartare of blue prawns, lightly cured with spring oil and embellished with decadent Bafun uni and Kaluga Queen caviar. Raw shrimp can easily acquire a slimy texture if it’s not sufficiently fresh; too many restaurants try to hide such flaws under a ton of seasonings. Poisson intentionally doesn’t do much to the shrimp in order to let the sweet freshness of the seafood shine. And this is exactly what makes it so impressive.
Now on to the hot stream.
Game came highly recommended, and we can see why. The marinated squid is tender and the roasted garlic bits adds a nice textural contrast. Our only criticism is the squid could use more char for a stronger smoky note. Us Asians love our “wok hei”, after all.
There’s also Gadus, the chef’s take on a Thai red curry. It is listed as a main with steamed Atlantic cod, but ours came with aged salmon which Poisson chose to break out the day we visited. That’s a perk of being such a seafood-centred restaurant – you might be lucky enough to get something “off-menu”. The salmon was exquisite and melted in the mouth. However, the curry was overly spiced to the point of being unbalanced, and threatened to overwhelm the flavours of the fish.
Toff is a must-order. It’s one of the more expensive options in the hot stream and not the most innovative – but it is utterly sublime. Al dente trofie pasta and a generous helping of sweet hand peeled mangrove crab swirled together in a creamy sauce, topped with an additional touch of luxury with bottarga shavings creates a perfect dance on the tongue. A seafood devotee on death row would ask for this as a last meal.
A good way to experience Poisson is through its omakase platter, where Chef Ma selects three items each from the cold stream and hot stream selections (for two persons) on your behalf. But an even better way is to visit on the weekend for their Sensational Saturdays champagne brunch. For $148++ per diner, you get the Chef’s selection of ten items on the menu and free-flow Delamotte Brut NV champagne.
Speaking of which, accompanying the food menu is a rather extensive beverage selection curated to pair swimmingly well with your more delicate seafood dishes. Here group sommelier Jean Baptiste Voisin put together a range of primarily French wines for your pairing pleasure, otherwise there are some sakes and cocktails for variety.
Poisson is certainly a fine addition to the Bukit Pasoh F&B enclave. If you’re pescatarian or simply love your seafood, this must be on your to-visit list.
Poisson
Address 48 Bukit Pasoh Rd, Singapore 089859 (Google Maps link)
Opening Hours 12pm to 2pm and 6pm to 11.30pm Tuesdays to Saturdays; closed on Sundays and Mondays
Tel (65) 6223 2131
Web www.poisson.sg
Facebook Poissonsg
Instagram @poisson.sg
