Chef Otto Weibel’s latest restaurant White Marble is his comforting and delicious gastronomic tribute to the Mediterranean.
Some names fit its restaurant perfectly.
White Marble, for one.
White Marble, the latest restaurant concept by the illustrious and venerable chef Otto Weibel in collaboration with F&B group Far Ocean, is a newly-opened Mediterranean restaurant located within Orchard Rendezvous Hotel.
Conceived as his personal homage to the Mediterranean, his newest restaurant pulls together cuisines from the many cultures surrounding that body of water. Many nations in this region, particularly the Greek and Roman civilisations of antiquity, employ white marble in their architecture. Think the Parthenon in Athens, Rome’s Pantheon, St. Peter’s Basilica in the Vatican City; all feature white marble.
Just don’t expect the restaurant to be clad in expensive white marble. It’s more of a casual, family-friendly eatery.
Here you’ll find some familiar, iconic dishes from cuisines ranging from Spain and southern France, all the way past Italy and Greece to the Levant, and back round the lower Mediterranean to include the Maghreb. In that sense it differs greatly from Chef Otto’s earlier concept Black Marble, which is more of a contemporary Western-style steakhouse.
Chef Otto Weibel’s protege Chef Kenneth Loke runs the kitchen here, and does a good job.
We enjoyed the Mezze Plate, a bountiful platter of familiar Levantine favourites – falafel, tabbouleh, and hummus, among others. Less common is moutabal (similar to baba ghanoush but made with tahini), and fattoush, a Lebanese salad. We’ve always loved Spanish pulpo, so the Octopus was an automatic favourite. This is Galician octopus that’s charcoal grilled to perfection, and served with crispy shredded potato and garlic cream that reminded us of patatas bravas.
Those who can’t live without pasta can opt for the Prawn Bucatini Puttanesca, a classic Napoli favourite that gets a luxe treatment with the addition of tiger prawns. The vegetarians among us might opt for the Roasted Butternut Squash, which sees chunks of roasted pumpkin with sweetness contrasted – and enhanced – by a creamy chilli yoghurt.
And then head back to the Levant for your main courses. The Seafood Skewer, Australian Lamb Skewer, and Black Angus Skewer are – in honesty – nothing to shout home about, but are very competently executed. What sets them apart are the sauces they come with – Catalonian salbitxada, lemon garlic cream, and harissa aioli all help to accentuate the flavours of the meat and seafood.
It’s the Maghreb in White Marble that truly enchanted us. It’s not easy to find a good tagine in Singapore, and the Moroccan Chicken Leg Bone-In Tagine here is simply divine. We espied and tasted preserved lemon, even; a key ingredient far too many restaurants leave out in their tagines. The melange of flavours here will make your heart clamour for a visit to Marrakesh or Casablanca.
If you come to White Marble expecting a fancy, contemporary take on Mediterranean cuisines, chances are you’re likely to go away sorely disappointed. Instead Chef Kenneth offers comforting, hearty cuisine that – while not gastronomically cutting-edge – strives for execution and great flavours.
Chef Otto is perhaps one of the most respected individuals in Singapore’s F&B industry, having spent over five decades honing his culinary skills here, and then those of many generations of aspiring young Singapore chefs such as Chef Kenneth. But he only became an entrepreneur at age 70, when he first opened Otto’s Deli Fresh in 2016 (which became Black Marble in 2020).
With White Marble joining Black Marble as part of Chef Otto Weibel’s growing food empire, you can now truly say the 74-year old Swiss-born chef-entrepreneur certainly has marbles.
White Marble
Address 1 Tanglin Rd, Orchard Rendezvous Hotel, #01-09, Singapore 247905 (Google Maps link)
Opening Hours 11.30am to 10.30pm Tuesdays to Sundays; closed on Mondays
Web www.whitemarble.com.sg
Facebook WhiteMarbleDining
Instagram @whitemarblesg
