A hearty Monday Dinner at So France.
Ah, this bistro dinner brought back memories!
Back in 2014, I was forced to stay two additional days in Nîmes during my visit to Southern France, no thanks to SCNF vagaries.
There wasn’t much to do after visiting the main attractions, and so I spent both evenings sulking in bistros. In the end, those hours sipping wine and struggling to photograph my meals now count among my fondest travel memories. These memories also, in a peculiar way, developed a fondness for French bistros in me.
In turn, this fondness led to me immediately noticing So France at Duo Galleria when I passed by the building last year, right after visiting Atlas Bar. Since then, I’ve dined there twice as well as bought a couple of goodies from the épicerie.
On Monday, I decided to head there again for a solo dinner because … it’s the first week of October and this is special to me. As before, the lovely food and experience didn’t disappoint. On another note, I’m also glad to see that the pandemic hasn’t affected this bistro too badly.
Ambience and Menu
To give some background information, the bistro is helmed by Executive Chef Vijayachandran Balaji, who was previously part of the team at DB Bistro Moderne (MBS) and Artemis Grill. His culinary philosophy is to showcase the best of French cuisine, through presenting everyday classics in a modern and refined manner.
The Food!
I’m not really fond of eggs, but I decided to make an exception this time with the starter.
Turns out, this was a good decision as the dish was, well, most appetizing. The eggs were perfectly poached and once “poked,” the yolk mixed wonderfully with the Bordelaise sauce. The tangy pearl onions additionally added a great finish to the rich taste.
Duck confit is my favourite French dish, and so I’m quite fussy about it. Overall, I’d say So France’s version is superbly prepared, with the roasted meat juicy and tender, and the serving just the right size for me.
There was also no sauce drizzled on the meat, which I thought was great since that preserved the crispiness of the skin. Lastly, the accompanying Mesclun Salad was refreshing and generous in amount. It was a great complement to the gamey freshness of the duck.
Okay … I didn’t have this for dessert on Monday; there was no “room.”
But I did return on Wednesday and ended up ordering the Rum Baba instead of the Floating Island. In all, I’ll say, the yeast cake is fluffy while the all-important syrup is strong! Not overpowering but definitely with an enjoyable kick; exactly the way I prefer this classic dessert to be.
So France Épicerie
Some pictures from the grocery area, which I’ve loved since discovering it last year.
Part of So France’s effort to replicate the experience of France in Singapore, the épicerie is always stocked full of imported and artisanal French food products. Might just be me being silly, but I never fail to get a kick from gawking at the colourful and artsy packagings when in here. I’ve also collected a few of the containers since last year!
So France is at 7 Fraser Street Duo Galleria #01-51/56 Bugis MRT, Singapore 189356.
Do check out their online store when visiting their website too.
Read my other Geeky Restaurant Adventures posts.
