Basil Alcove

Basil Alcove

Address: 190 Middle Road, #01-07 Fortune Centre
(At the junction of Bencoolen St and Middle Rd)
Operating Hours: Lunch from 12.30pm to 3pm, Dinner from 6.30pm till 10pm.
Tel: 6336 1318
Price: About $20 per person for a main dish, a side dish and drinks.

This is one of my favourite dining places. It's fine food in a not so fine place. Now why do I say that? It's because you dine right by the road side, it's outside fortune centre, the tables are set along the pavement, you can see and hear the vehicles driving past along middle road, pedestrians walking along the pavement walk right beside you as you dine, and the only light you get is from the soft street lights. It's the kind of experience that you all should try someday. I went back there about a few weeks back and the food was as good as it looked.

Pan Seared Salmon ($17.80)

Very elaborate presentation, seems too good to be eaten. Nice crisp salmon skin and it wasn't overcooked. I just like the combination of the colours. More of like what you would see in a fine dining restaurant. Served with mashed potatoes and french beans.

Basilico Duck (Medium-Well) ($16.80)

I had this. Duck is my favourite. I've had a similar duck main the last time I came. Was a totally different experience. This was served without a sauce, but the crisp skin was flavourful enough to be eaten without a sauce. The portions were just right for me, very filling too. Served with mashed potatoes and mixed salad.

This was what I had the last time. There's a tiny spoon with some shallots and bicarbonate of soda. You'll have to pour the contents into the shot glass and it'll generate bubbles. And you could either pour the sauce over the duck or just dip the duck in the sauce individually. Very creative and elaborate and it was only $13.80 at that time.



It was an enjoyable experience overall, didn't have a chance to try their desserts though, they've only just added it in. The sauteed mushrooms were great too since the last time I came before this. Resonably priced haute cuisine with nice cosy ambience. Perfect to bring your date out without burning a hole in your pocket.

My Ambition

To be a successful Chef of course!! As I always believe that "Food fuels the body, Good Food fuels the soul". Nothing tastes better than food for the soul. My ears always perk up when I hear people talking about food. Guess it's a natural instinct. I am very interested in traditional French Cuisine, hopefully I can veer into this area sometime soon. I do not really like fusion food for now, as it's more of confusion for me. I'm also keen in paring wines with foods and curious in gastronomy.

My Five Years Plan

I'll be graduating from SHATEC in about 2 more years with my hotel attachment done. I hope I can get an internship at Swissotel the Stamford, as I think it'll be fantastic to be working at the restaurant on the 70th level. Fine dining at it's best. After getting my diploma, I may consider furthering my studies at Le Cordon Bleu to get more overseas experience and maybe work overseas for a year or two. With my experience then, I hope I would have a chance to work at the IR at Sentosa and hopefully get a membership at One Degree 15. Now that'll be nice wouldn't it?

Goals and Achievements

My goal in life is to be able to open a restaurant of my own, hopefully overseas, maybe even at the Big Apple. Who knows really? You never try, you'll never know as I always say. Nothing much for achievements for now, as I've just ventured into this industry, but I know there'll be lot's of it in the future.

Education and Experiences

To cut a long story short, I went to JC after my O levels, as I wasn't sure about what I wanted in Life. I spent my 2 years in NS to ponder about this and decided a culinary career is what I wanted. It was a big switch for me, but a good one. I've learnt a lot in my time at SHATEC and hopefully I'll learn more in the industry. Didn't have much working experience except for a short stint working at Amara Sanctuary. It was definitely an eye-opener for me, seeing how things works in the real life industry.

There's Always A First For Everything

~Welcome to my humble Alcove~
~Take a seat, chill and soak up the ambience~