29th June 2012 not only marked the opening day for Pollen at Gardens by the Bay, but my birthday too! Before I start the review proper, I just wanted to say that it was great to have lunch together with you.

The word of the wise has always been to never try a restaurant on opening night (or day in this case), but I thought… why not give it a go anyway? And of course, hotelier and partner, Loh Lik Peng and his wife sat at a table in the corner quietly observing their latest venture.

To be entirely honest, I like Pollen – it’s bright and cheery (for lunch anyway), in the midst of so much greenery and the food served doesn’t over-promise but doesn’t under-deliver either. The strong air-conditioning within the Flower Dome and the restaurant is a huge respite from the blistering heat outside.

Pollen has to be one of the most blogged about restaurants in Singapore since its opening, a quick search on Google turned up more entries than I had expected. That… or there has been a surge in the number of bloggers covering food.

It was at The French Kitchen (Wow.. it’s been 2 years since) that I first tasted the food of Chef Jean-Charles Dubois. The stoves of TFK have since ceased operating and Chef now oversees the kitchen at Balzac Brasserie at the Rendezvous Hotel.

The Rendezvous Hotel is synonymous with Chinese-style Nasi Padang. The Nasi Padang restaurant has, however, since moved to Central, Clarke Quay. I digress.

The key question remains – Was my experience at Balzac as good at TFK — let’s see….

Au Petit Salut used to be my favourite restaurant, in particular for their value-for-money lunches, but to be frank, APS seems to be a mere shadow of its old self. Not only have the crowds dwindled, the quality of the dishes seem to have somewhat deteriorated. But I’m not one to strike them off just yet.

This is largely a pictorial but you may read my previous posts on Au Petit Salut here, albeit from a while back: (1), (2) and (3)