La Cala @ DUO Galleria

Once again, we met at the designated place. This time round, a jug of Sangria was already placed on the table with a quarter of its content finding its way into the wine glasses held by Ivan and Elle. Of course, in no time, some of those fruity grape juice made its way into mine as well. Hoong Ann of course, eventually had his glass filled as well. Cheers to our wine dinner!

Sangria (Red) @$65

The Sangria was adequately fortified and it came with plenty of fruit slices. Of oranges, strawberries, pineapples and pears. Enjoyable but a tad too sweet. Go slow on this as one might consume too much if goes unnoticed.

menu

Work situation was chaotic this week and was actually quite famished by dinner time. Ivan suggested the tasting menu which consists of appetisers, tapas, main and dessert. Minimum two to order and each costs $98. The friendly service captain suggested to do the regular mains and a couple of tapas in order to enjoy slightly bigger portion (relatively) for the mains.

tasting menu

After a short consideration, we opted for the ala-carte selections. Freedom to choose! And, we chose pigeon paella, crispy suckling pig and roasted octopus as the mains. For tapas, we ordered the jamon croquetas (one of the specials on the board), Tsarskaya oysters No. 2 and Foie gras terrine cookie. We were informed that each mains feeds around 2 pax.

olives

Where's my bread? In the oven, they said. The bread came after some time as it was heated up in the oven prior to serving. Warm and toasty mini baguette. Yums.

bread basket (extra basket @$3.50)

Let's start with the oysters. Tsarskaya oysters are from France and is a type of farmed oysters. Tasted clean, mild and plump. Two is never enough.

Tsarskaya Oyster No. 2 @ $36 (2 piece for $18)

Next, was the foie gras terrine cookie. Presentation was rather pretty. Looked like a dessert. The puff pastry was light and inside there was a spread of duck foie gras terrine. The 'cookie' was placed atop of the apple compote which was still stuck to the plate after the cookie was lifted. Interesting piece but somewhat acquired taste.

foie gras terrine @$18

As for the jamon croquetas, it came in a two-bite size with a lovely piece of cured ham. Flavours were good and creamy. But all those tapas, did nothing to satiate the hunger within. The pigeon paella came just at the right time. Something that's piping hot with stronger flavours.

Pigeon Paella @$38

The grains were just right for me. Loved that it was nicely moist and well coated with flavours. Each grain was savoured with maximum satisfaction. Though the pan was large, the rice covered only a shallow depth hence, the fastest spoon wins. After the few scoops, the pan was almost empty.

Crispy Suckling Pig @$35

The suckling pig looked tempting with its thin crackly skin that beckons with its light sheen of oil. The meat itself was fork tender. Not too gamey and we had fun trying to figure out those accompanying sauces. Nice presentation but it wouldn't satisfy any cravings for suckling pig.

Roasted Octopus @$32

Am glad that we ordered the roasted octopus with potatoes crisp and romesco sauce. So so good! Flavours were mild and while it lacked that charred flavour, I liked that it was so tender. Couldn't believe that I was chewing on a piece of octopus that was really so enjoyable to bite. Lovely texture. The sauce was of nut and red pepper-based sauce that originated from Tarragona, Catalonia.

Good company, good food and good mood. All Fridays should be of such.

Cheers, and see you guys again!