Walking into this unassuming café is like entering a French mise-en-scène – red plush seats, wooden interior, pendant lamps, dim lighting, checkered tiles – a homely, welcoming Parisian charm enshrouds Taratata Bistrot.
True to their French origin, chefs and co-owners Bertrand Raguin and Philippe Nouzillat, share an intense passion for wine which is evinced by their strictly French wine list of more than 65 labels.
A must try on their Sunday Brunch menu is the classic French Onion Soup ($16). Tender, caramelized onions worked brilliantly against the mushy croutons and melted gruyère (Swiss cheese) topped it all off. It was a wonderful volley between different sorts of textures and brininess – all smoothed and united by a distinctive onion after-taste.
Hitting the right notes was the Omelette Souffle with Mushrooms, Emmental and Ham ($14) which kept my tastebuds riveted with a skillfully tossed, airy omelette oozing creamy and cheesy goodness. Equally impressive were the oysters. At $4 a pop, the French Oysters were an explosion of natural wonder, simply dressed with a spritz of lemon and inviting red vinegar.
Roasted Lamb Leg with Garlic Potatoes and Rosemary Scented Lamb Jus ($38) was of a sizeable portion stewed with great conviction which resulted in a gamut of unexpected flavours. It was truly a riot with braised potatoes paired alongside succulent pinkly tender morsels, colourful vegetables and wine jus which radiated so much flavour that the intensity of this dish just wafted off the metal pan.
But wait – there’s more. The savoury and sweet crêpes provide stunning value! I recommend the La Pecheur, with Shrimps, Mussels, Mushrooms and Morney ($9). Not only was the flavour distinctive, young and fresh; the portion was generous. You’d think that a simple wheat crêpe would be lost under the noisy parmesan – this was not the case, in fact, the the savoury parmesan and pasty flour flavours were amplified by the contrast between them.
Satiated at this point, I succumbed to the Caramel Rum Raisin Ice Cream and Whipped Cream crêpe ($10) and thankfully so – as the glorious rum raisin ice cream lavishly drizzled in caramel sauce easily topped my list of ‘favourites’ for dessert crêpes in Singapore. For a wider selection of crêpes, do return for their tea time crepes on weekdays from 2.30pm – 5.30pm.
There were no futuristic gels nor foams, no chi-chi waitstaff nor gleaming silverware – nonetheless Taratata Bistrot passed the taste test and did so with flying colours by providing authentic French cuisine at affordable prices. Grab your flute of French fizzly bubbly and check yourself into an indulgent Sunday morning of belly nourishment.
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This was an invited tasting.
Taratata Bistrot
35A Keong Saik Road Singapore 089142
Reservations: (65) 6221 4506
Email: taratata@taratata.sg
Website: http://www.taratata.sg
Opening hours:
Tuesday-Friday & Sunday: 11.30am – 2.30pm; 5.30pm – 11pm
Saturday: 5.30pm – 11pm
Closed on Mondays
