Booking a place at Catalunya, one of the most scenic restaurants right at the heart of the Singapore bay, proved to be quite a challenge for my other half, as he had waited precisely 1 month before 14th of Feb to place a booking with them. Given the importance of this date, it came as no surprise when this romantic spot was quickly snatched up by couples looking to whet both their visual and gastronomical appetite.
Stepping foot into the slightly dimmed setting immediately puts us in a romantic trance. I was also handed a stalk of lovely rose by two lovely ladies who greeted us by the entrance. We reached at slightly over 6:30pm, the time where the sun was just about to set. The ceiling-to-floor windows guided the sunlight gently into the room, giving the restaurant a majestic feel. The ambiance at Catalunya couldn’t have been more perfect!
We were guided to our seat by a friendly waitress who then introduced the Valentines dinner course meal to us. We were also promptly informed by her that there was a minimum charge of SGD120 per person for that night. The dinner course was designed with 3 Tapas, a starter, a choice of 2 main course, and finally a dessert. As the dinner was only slightly over SGD90 per person, we opted for 1 more Tapas and 2 mocktails to make up the SGD120.
The first Tapas that came – lobster meat wrapped with avocado, topped with dollops of salmon roe – was all my favourites wrapped in one dish. I wasn’t a huge fan of avocado, but it provided that tinge of sweetness to the lobster meat that gently unfolds while I was chewing it.
The waitress did not wait for our stomach to settle before bringing in the next 3 tapas: Jaman iberico, Tomato bruschetta, and the yummy mushroom croquets! The jaman iberico was pretty close to the one that my boyfriend had while he was on training in Spain, and when it came, he spared no time in making sure I immediately savour it together with the tomato bruschetta. The saltiness of the jaman iberico blends well with the juicy tomatoes as they melt gently in my mouth.
For the choice of 2 mains, my boyfriend opted for the charcoal grilled beef ribeye, cooked to medium-rare, while I opted for the poached sea bass. The ribeye was juicy, and a match with the mushroom sides. Unfortunately, the ribeye was a tad too charred for my boyfriend’s liking, given that the ribeye was grilled with charcoal. For my sea bass, the choice of SalsaVerde as the dressing turns out to be a wonderful surprise, as I was known as someone who does not appreciate greens in my food.
As we were enjoying our tapas and mains, we were also served our mocktails by the attentive waitress. The drinks menu were spoilt with choices for alcoholics, despite it only having 2 mocktails for us to choose from. I chose the refreshing “Singapore Breeze” (a blend of passionfruit, apple, honey and lime), while my boyfriend had no choice but to go with the “Co-cooler” (a blend of cucumber, mint, apple, and jasmine tea). Singapore Breeze is an aptly given name, with the ingredients truly being gentle on my throat. The Co-cooler is also a well deserved name with the minty feeling that was left on my tongue long after I had sipped the drink.
Finally came the dessert – the chocolate fondue. Dark chocolate was not my fanfare, although it was definitely my boyfriend’s favourite.
I ended up giving him a portion of my share as he was known to love the bitter-sweet that dark chocolates offer. Nonetheless, the dessert served as a nice wrap-up to our romantic and gastronomic getaway at Catalunya, and we would surely visit again.
