Arbite @ Serangoon Gardens

Arbite has been up and running in Serangoon Gardens for two years, but today was my first visit (and also the first time I knew of its existence). While it is located at a rather central area of Serangoon Gardens, it was on the second floor of a row of shophouses, above Guardian Pharmacy - and Guardian Pharmacy's bright and attention-grabbing signboard stole the limelight from Arbite easily. The only reason why I visited this place for dinner was because my gf chanced upon a review online.

We arrived at around 630pm, and the place was only one-third filled. It was quite small and cosy, but the walls were so sound-reflective that even at one-third full, the noise level made it feel as if it was almost full. I liked the layout and the furniture though - clean, well-lit, and simple.

A quick glance at the menu showed that the prices were actually quite reasonable. 

Mushroom soup, $4.50

This was a blend of four types of mushrooms - button, shitake, eryngii, and honjimeishi with a touch of cream. They added a bit of truffle oil too, as seen in the picture. The soup was quite light and not too creamy, but I felt that it wasn't sweet enough. Still, for $4.50, it is still pretty worth it.

Smoked Duck and Foie Gras Risotto, $29.90

This was a very special and unique dish. Arborio rice was simmered with smoked duck, porcini mushrooms, semi sun-dried tomatoes and foie gras, and a drizzle of white truffle oil was added to finish it. Each and every bite bursts with a variety of flavours, and if you were to pay attention, you can actually make out all the different ingredients used. However, I felt that using foie gras this way was a bit of a waste, as the foie gras was chopped into very small pieces and its full potential was not released. 

Asian Spiced Lamb Shank, $22.90

This was a piece of lamb shank stewed in a melange of Asian spices, and served with mashed potatoes and seasonal vegetables. The lamb meat was quite tender, and there was a noticeable lack of the gamey flavour, which is the main reason why some people avoid lamb (like my mother). Although the dish claimed to use Asian spices, I honestly couldn't taste any Asian flavour in the dish at all, and it felt like a pure Western dish. Still, the sauce was quite good. The mashed potatoes were creamy and smooth, and went down easily. 

My Wife's Chocolate Cake, $8

A simple piece of chocolate cake served with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. I am not really a desserts person (except for ice cream!) but I must admit that this was really good. The layer of chocolate on top of the cake was delicious, and went quite well with the ice cream (Movenpick). There were some chocolate cookie crumbs served too (beside the ice cream) but I found it a bit too sweet.

In conclusion, Arbite serves pretty good food at reasonable prices, and I look forward to my next visit here for brunch. By the way, UOB cardholders enjoy a 10% discount until 31 Dec 2012.