Fancy a romantic night-out or a specially created Valentine’s day dinner to impress your other half without breaking the piggy bank?
One of my favourite Indian places where I would come for my Briyani and Tikka fix is offering a one day only Valentine’s Day (not an intended oxymoron) special menu for lovebirds.
Occupying one of the many charming Black & White colonial bungalows along the long stretch of Scotts road and set amidst a huge compound of green lushes, The Song of India is one hidden and often overlooked restaurant that serves contemporary Indian cuisine, despite its proximity to the country’s biggest shopping district.
As we were ushered to our seats in the scarlet-lit room, Chef Mural was quick to showcase his rendition of the famed Maharashtra dish Wada Pav. Wada Pav is a popular street snack of spiced potato relish with coriander sandwiched between two unsweetened breads eaten on the streets of Mumbai and normally 10 times bigger than this. As an Amuse Bouche, this petit size fellow which came with simulating pesto mint sauce was a winner in its own right.
With a topping of caviar, the Fish Masala was perhaps the most luxe version I have seen. This was however oddly paired with the Lamb Chop Wazvan, a creation synonymous with Song of India and the Roasted Quail Avocado Chat.
I guess the idea of mixing the three different kind of meat on a single platter was a good intention; to add a myriad of tastes to tantalise the palette. To make things less complicated, I would prefer the meat to be separated especially when mixing curries and sauces can get a little tricky at times.
Other dishes shine in comparison. Quinoa is rarely used in Indian cuisine, so it was definitely invigorating to see the quinoa replacing the ubiquitous basmati, then spiced, cooked with flavourful ground nuts and accompanied the Chicken Deedar main.
An assorted Naan basket was also dutifully served to conclude the savouries.
Valentine’s day is really about sweets, a.k.a. the desserts.
The Saffron Chironji Panna Cotta was exacting for royalty. Nicely roasted Indian pine nuts gave the dessert a punch and the sequential kick from the briny aftertaste of the saffron packed an equally formidable impact. The lychee and pistachio kulfi, meanwhile provided a lighter, refreshing contrast to the dessert combination.
As we were hankering for more sweets, we had the additional Rasmalai ($14) from the Ala Carte Menu. Rasmalai, which is homemade Indian cheese dumplings in creamy milk, is by far the best I have ever had, and I rest assure this will give you a whole new perspective on Indian cheeses!
A few hits and misses for an experimental dinner. The lack of execution of some of the non-traditional dishes were more than made up for by Chef Mural’s thoughts, creativity and ingenuity.
Set at $89 per pax, this is definitely a steal to swoon!
*parking is also complimentary
The Song of India
33 Scotts Rd Singapore 228226
Tel: +65 6836 0055
Operating Hours: Daily 12pm to 3pm,
6pm to 10.30pm
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The above article is written by Guest Writer @ramenking2016. You can find him on instagram where he shares his love for food and travel.
