A slight delay

Wow, things have really been moving fast. It seems like yesterday that we started construction. After, some ups and downs though it finally look like we will be able to open in the next 10 days or so. While we had hoped to be open by the beginning of March things have moved a little slower than anticipated. But, with every set back it becomes clear that the space is truly special. I am so excited to serve all of you again and to welcome new guests to a really unique and great space. 

With all the delays the one thing that was completed early was the kitchen, which has been great to do some testing and tasting. What has become clear is that I have a great team of passionate and committed cooks whose sole goal is to make the best food they can. The food style is decidedly European with a focus on Italy and France with just a touch of fresh Asian Flavor. The food is bright, fresh and clean with little frying or butter used throughout. 

Our Bakery is taking shape and I tasted some great bread over the last few days and can say that our bread will stand head and above the rest. We are using old world bread making techniques, high quality ingredients and baking fresh everyday. Along with our bread program we will also be showcasing beautiful tarts and cakes in the dining room for everyone to see. They include a gorgeous blueberry and coconut tart with just a hint of lemon, a decadent valrhona chocolate tart on a polenta crust and a superbly sweet/sour whole lemon tart that has just the right amount of bitterness and lemony sweetness. Along with all of that we will be baking muffins, scones, cookies and cupcakes fresh everyday, guaranteed. 

If you have been reading this blog, feel free to drop me a line and say hello. It gets a little lonely when no one says hello. Good eats!

Art

One of the things that I have wanted to do with the restaurant from the outset was to be a gallery for local budding artists. This idea was spawned while I was working in the U.S for a restaurant group that had a world class art collection in every restaurant they operated. They believed that displaying art across a wide variety of disciplines initiated a sense of contextuality in their restaurants. The works they chose  would represent the location geographically or historically and thus add texture to the restaurant as a whole. My aim is similar, to showcase work from local artists across a variety of disciplines to not only enhance the restaurant aesthetic but to offer them a public space that will hopefully engage our guests and expand the exposure of the artists. 

Our first artist is Photographer Felix Hug who is based in Singapore and shoots around Asia focusing on the unique landscapes, people and cultures that may escape the normal eye. His work is truly extraordinary with great depth and clarity. He is currently in the process of choosing his works for display, but I am confident that his work will speak for itself. Check out his site to see some of his past work. Cheers!

Grower Champagnes

As many of you know wine is a big passion of mine. The holidays that my wife Erika and I take almost always revolve around some type of food and wine experience and my trips to Australia's wine country in the last few years have been proof that when you get to meet the passionate people behind the scenes you have an even greater appreciation for the wine but more importantly you get to start a relationship. 

I have been doing a lot of tasting recently for our list and am starting to whittle down my selections for the few spots I have for our first list. One tasting in particular was rather unexpected. I was to taste a few champagnes from growers who not only supply many of the major houses but set aside a small amount of their harvest for their own production. The term in the business nowadays is "grower champagnes" and up until now I have only tasted a few examples of these small production, high quality and extremely terroir driven gems. 

That day I tasted from 3 grower/makers who are making extremely high quality bottlings. The first of which is Nicolas Maillart, from Montagne de Reims, who blew me away with his NV Brut "Platine" with hints of peach and toasted hazelnuts, a medium to long finish and beautiful compact bubbles that would stand up to any of the big houses. I have chosen this as our house champagne, and cannot tell you how excited I am to bring it to all of you. The good news is we are the only restaurant in Singapore to carry it by the glass!

The next producer was my personal favorite, Champagne De Sousa from Avize. This champagne had beautiful minerality with floral undertones and a super long finish that was balanced and pointed. No doubt that this champagne is made from the best grapes and by a winemaker who is a perfectionist. I have also decided to keep this on our list by the bottle because I appreciate its stylistic purity and also because De Sousa is a firm believer and practitioner  in organic agriculture. 

The final pour came from a very small producer who has garnered some international fame of late for his very high quality and extremely well made champagnes. Diebolt-Vallois from cramant makes minuscule amounts but that doesn't mean that each isn't made to exacting standards. The blanc de blans from his Cuvee Prestige brought to mind the term "greyhound" for its lean and muscular body and long finish. This is a wine of great pedigree with balance and just the right amount of acidity to amplify the soft subtle flavors of lemon and cream. This too made the cut and will grace the list. 

I am truly excited to be able to carry wines from theses three great producers. I am sure you will agree once you have a taste, that these champagnes can hang any day with the big guys. This selection and tasting process is another example of our tireless work to bring only the best to table.  Cheers!

Design

Design has always been an amateur interest of mine. When I was in university I took a class in Hotel and Restaurant Design and had a chance to really explore the nitty gritty and sometimes tedious work that goes into designing a space. That experience has helped a lot in conceptualizing the design of Spruce. Danny and I wanted something casual, sophisticated but at the same time a sense that the restaurant wasn't cookie cutter or designed like a shoe-box by which I mean, conventional. This has lead us to sourcing vintage lighting fixtures, one of kind hand made furniture and a really great collaboration with local artists to display their work. All of this was so the restaurant would have a soul with a real story to tell and also because we are concerned with every detail, making sure that every part of the restaurant has the feeling of comfort. 

Some of the items we chose are really special like the 3.9 meter one piece acacia wood table that will grace our private dining room and become the centerpiece of our wine dinner series that will unveil in the middle of the year. 

Our interior design references mid-century modern masters, such as Charles and Ray Eames who are quite possibly the most famous chair designers in history as well renowned lighting designers Achille and Pier Castiglioni. These are just two of our inspirations, but expect a clean, minimalistic space with well thought out features and use of as many natural products and textures as possible. 

                     

Another great feature of the space is the climate controlled Cheese and Wine Cave that we had built from the existing structure. It features exposed brick walls, wide timber flooring and a great space for storing and ageing our selection of wines and cheeses. You will definitely see me in here a lot preparing your cheese plates and assisting in selecting great bottles to make your experience with us truly memorable. Till next time. Cheers and good eating!!

Herb Garden and Veggie Patch

I am very excited to announce that Spruce will have an onsite vegetable and herb garden. When we were first looking at the space we noticed we had the opportunity to do something special and unique. Many of you know my devotion to growing and sourcing great products from around the world, but as we hear everyday on the news, global climate change is upon us. With this in mind we find it opportune to look at fulfilling not only our desire to help the planet but also our desire to put incredibly tasty food on your plates.

Our goal is being supported by Grace Cup, a malaysian purveyor of great vegetables and produce that has been supporting me from the beginning. They also happen to be the growers of my tomatoes that so many of you love. In any event our relationship has spawned us to develop the Spruce Learning Garden. Here, everyone will have the opportunity to see how mother nature takes care of us.  We hope to introduce seed sowing days for children, so that they can see how vegetables grow, from watering the first seed to harvesting and finally eating what they have worked so hard to grow. Of course we will be using the garden to grow great veg and herbs for the restaurant as well and should become a great learning centre for me and my cooks. 

The concept of the garden is to understand where our food comes from. Many people in todays world don't know how the most common of fruits and vegetables are grown. As with most things, bringing it to reality is often more challenging than it seems. I am sure we will have our ups and downs and many days of frustration. But, it will all be worth it when I go down in the morning and pick the days produce right from the ground. I can't wait!