Monday, November 23, 2015

boCHINche - Another Meal of the Year

boCHINche has just about the right ingredients for the perfect dining experience. A superb atmosphere, great food and one of the best looking and charming chefs in town.

If you seriously want to have a great time, why bother reading further. Get yourself there this evening for a truly gorgeous gastronomic experience.

Alright then, if you insist, I will give you the full lowdown then. boCHINche is located at Martin Road, just above Common Man Roasters.

The restaurant is spacious and is only opened for dinner during weekdays. Weekend brunch is available and it also boasts of a great menu. It was, however, my first time there for dinner.

Decked out in mostly wooden tones, the spacious area has both indoor and outdoor seating. But what you want is the bar seating where you can see the chef and his team cooking in the open kitchen right in front your eyes.

Seabass Ceviche

Their cured meats are brilliant, but what might start you off on the right note is this elegant Seabass Ceviche. Besides the usual suspects of acid and fish, this dish is further punctuated by the sweetness of freshly made lemon curd.

That little sweet addition helps to temper the tartness of the acidity and gives it a really wonderful balance of flavours and textures. Colourful to look at, and a perfect appetiser to begin.

Crab and Humita Croquettes

The Crab Croquettes have very little to fault. Perfectly breaded batter of crisp balls, the seasoning is pretty much on point and hitting the right palate nerves. The tomato criollo sauce on the side provides just enough of sharpness to extinguish some of the extraneous greasiness. A great way to pair with some of their excellent cocktails.

Classic Provoleta

This amazing dish of provolone cheese, almonds and honey will make you absolutely weak at the knees. The intoxicating aroma of freshly baked cheese will have you at hello, but the added playful crunch of almonds and the toasty sweetness of honey will just leave you lip smacking yourself for ages.

Eaten with some fresh bread, this tantalising cheese concoction will make you so addicted that this should be labelled as "Addictive as Crack".

Grilled Octopus

Another colourful and visually attractive plate, the grilled octopus has gone though a sous vide process prior. Despite that, the main drawback is that it is slightly tough. However, everything else just shines.

The smoky exterior has a nice char and flavour to it. The pea and mint puree works like a subtle perfume to the protein and the addition of mussels gives it an extra ocean depth of flavour.

Chimichurri Steak Burger

Hands down my favourite burger so far. Where should I start? Maybe the thrice cooked fries, as these are the best chips yet. First boiled, then fried before its grilled. It has so much texture and flavour to the hand cut chips that you will never look at fries the same way again.

The brioche bun is nicely toasted, and seeing them assembled the burger with such great care and precision, it is no wonder this is such a sublime burger. The patty is made with bone marrow and it is as perfect as a patty can be.

Moist and beautifully seasoned. No, make that perfectly seasoned, in an industry where seasoning is almost lacking. And caramelised onions executed as they should be, nicely sweet and still slightly crunchy.  Sundried tomatoes and more provolone cheese to complete the perfect burger picture.

Grab your hands and bite into the whole mix to savour each and every single element, and boy does it all come together! Greasy burger flavours exploding every which way endorses the best burger tag.

Creamed Spinach

More like cheesed spinach if you ask me, but there is that classic rich luxurious level of cream and spinach notes. It is the addition of savoury and aromatic baked cheese that elevates it to a level of deliciousness that should be outlawed as well.

boCHINche Mess

This simple but tasteful dessert is anything but messy. Lovely shards of meringue almost obscures the delicious and refreshing champagne strawberry sorbet underneath.

Lemon curds populate the surrounding bowl and this is the perfect citrusy yet sweet end to a rather full meal. The simple colours betray the effort and techniques employed to pull off this dessert.

Chef Fabrice is more than suave when you are sitting at the bar counter, served almost Omakase style. He will present each plate with an exuberant smile and warmly engage his diners in a light banter as he cooks his food.

Each plate is also thoughtfully planned out, and there is a lack of pretentiousness as well. Rather, it makes sense every time and the proof is in the taste. Each plate from Chef Fabrice has mountains of flavours and prowess of skills and techniques.

Marvellous Cocktails

But more than just great food, the wonderful cocktails and spirits really do make the ideal accompaniment. And with such great vibes and service, I doubt you will have anything to fault when you are here.

I have had great meals this year, but honestly? Very few meals are as memorable as this one.

boCHINche
22 Martin Road

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