A petite bistro located at the first floor of Serene Centre, beside Cluny Court and within walking distance from Botanical Gardens MRT station. La Petite Cuisine is the place to look forward to a heartwarming and affordable lunch or dinner. The French way of course.
Housing a see-through kitchen where diners get to see a French chef whips out dishes after dishes of his traditional hometown cuisine, a few in-door tables that may only hold at most 20 diners? Alfresco style might be the only way to enjoy your meal if you couldn't get a table. Breezy during dinnertime but the unforgiving heat in the afternoons might deter you from dining there as I speak from past experience.
This time, I was there yet again for their simplistic and in my opinion, more than just petite french dishes but with an exception. This time, I've a dining partner who has never heard of the place and naturally hesitant of what it has to offer. At least my partner trust my taste and careful planning like I always invest in all my makan (eating) sessions.
A little walking never hurts right? Don't be lazy if you wanna eat!
A complementary bread to kick start the late brunch *Both of us didn't had breakfast in the morning.* Nothing special but nothing pretentious. Just simply tear through the baked dough with your hands like my partner does, elegantly with raised pinkies alright?
Did you feel curious why did I mention about them serving more than just petite French dishes in the third paragraph? Then Green Salad with French Dressing ($5.00) is your answer. The portion was huge! Being someone who always disagree to ordering salads as they are often overpriced, I daresay this is definitely worth ordering. For my partner, she was shocked when she saw the greens on the table.
As for why she was shocked? That's for the two of us to know and for you to ponder...
This photo hardly do justice to Foie Gras Pan-fried with Orange Confit ($18.50). It's a must have dish whenever I dine at the French bistro. A thin layer of crust is just what keeps the soft and buttery foie gras intact. Bathed in a reduced sauce and orange confit. The portion maybe be pathetic but trust me, you know a good foie gras when you see and taste one yourself. At La Petite, I say it's safe to indugle in such luxurious food.
The only justice we could do was simply to finish everything up which we did wholeheartedly!
Over at La Petite, it's very common for the Chef (The only man in white), A French himself to walk from tables to tables engaging the diners. The Chef's a nice guy especially if you sing praises about his cookings, genuinely.
"How's the Confit?" In the heaviest French ascent I've ever heard. The Chef was asking my partner how she finds the Confit De Canard with Gratin Potato ($16.50). He's a concerned man since my partner haven't really started tearing at her duck thigh. That's my partner, she's a slow eater just like me. We simply love to take our time to enjoy.
Concerned before the conversation but assured after watching my partner starting to work her way into the confit :)
I personally love the fried duck left simmered in its' own fat then doused in a rich reduced sauce upon serving. That's why I dare recommend the confit to my partner. The soft potato gratin seemed to won my partner's attention.
I personally would have gone for the confit but I didn't want to be the spoiler getting the same one.
I wanted something light, something fishy was on my mind and I decided to go for the Filet of Fresh Salmon with Baby Spinach ($15.50).
The pan-seared filet was nothing special by itself but with the white creamy sauce with chucks of salmon lurking in it. It's a whole new story. Just like my dining partner who loves her gratin, I found preference in the herb-infused rice. The grains were chewy yet not overly fragrant which might ruin the salmon to sauce combination. It's all complementary. That's what I call flavors at work.
An additional topup of $3.50 will get you a bowl of soup or a dessert. Knowing how much of a tea person my partner was, I decided to get two cuppa of TWG tea. Earl Gray for me and the Paris-Singapore Tea for my partner.
The word unpretentious has been synonymous with the casual French cafeteria and who could deny? Some may not appreciate the true meaning of being unpretentious. Some may out-rightly oppose the thought of it and some might even reject the notion.
La Petite Cuisine might have leave a few bad impression here and there due to their no-fills service but the fact that they are still operating after many years and even seting up another outlet at Upper Thomson, shows that they have won over others just with their rather affordable French dishes and I'm one of them...
Do note that they don't charge GST and service charge here.
Nets and Visa are also accepted now.
Serene Centre #01-05
10 Jalan Serene, Singapore 258748
Tel: +65 6341 3173
Opening Hours: 11.30am-2.30pm, 5.30pm-9.30pm
Closed on Mondays
227 Upper Thomson Road, Singapore 574359
Tel: +65 6459 0553
Opening Hours: 11.30am-2.30pm, 5.30pm-9.30pm
Closed on Mondays
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