SIN: Hippopotamus {CLOSED}
"Pour l'amour de la viande"
UPDATE (08/09/2017): The restaurant has closed down.
Service: 8.5/10
Overall: 8.5/10
UPDATE (08/09/2017): The restaurant has closed down.
Having the motto which literally means 'for the love of meat', Hippopotamus was founded in Paris, France in 1968. The only branch in Singapore is located in Marina Square. Despite the name, the restaurant doesn't serve hippo meat. Haha...
Feel free to choose side dishes and sauce to go along with your steak. Before I start reviewing the food I had, I'd like to apologise for the quality of most of the pictures shown in this review. I found the dim atmosphere of the restaurant to be lovely, but not at all conducive for taking pictures.
Bread
The warm sourdough bread made a good start. It was powdery, crispy and solid on the outside, but really soft on the inside.
French Onion Soup S$8.90
Taste: 8/10
The caramelised onion soup was hearty and adequately thick. Even though I was hoping that there'd be more onion slices, I enjoyed the crusty cheese with its distinctively smoky taste and aroma.
Classic Rib Eye S$24.90
Taste: 8.5/10
Having perfect grill marks, the rib eye steak was delicious due to the enough fat content that gave it a robust flavour. Its smoky taste was accentuated when paired with sweet stewed shallots. The baked potato had adequate amount of sour cream and bacon bits, while the thin green beans were crunchy.
Tenderloin 'Chateaubriand' S$28.90
Taste: 8/10
There was no doubt that the tenderloin was really juicy, topped with the creamy, but not-so-thick béarnaise sauce (French sauce made of clarified butter emulsified in egg yolks, white wine vinegar and flavoured with herbs). However, I had a preference for the rib eye over the tenderloin because the latter wasn't as tender as I'd expected it to be. That aside, the potato gratin was painstakingly made layer by layer, and it was milky. The ratatouille, a stewed vegetable dish made popular by that mouse in the movie named after the dish, was unfortunately a bit lumpy for my liking.
Warm Chocolate Cake S$11.90
Taste: 9/10
The warm chocolate cake was heavenly as the chocolate filling was infused with rum. Texture wise, the cake was somewhat crumbly on the outside, but pretty moist on the inside. Topped with vanilla ice cream, it was a dessert to die for.
Lemon Meringue Pie S$10.90
Taste: 8/10
Having a solid buttery crust, the lemon meringue pie featured strong sweet and sour filling which was pleasing. It was a pity that the meringue wasn't executed that well, for it wasn't that light and airy.
Hippo Smoothie S$6.90
Taste: 7.5/10
Being a signature smoothie made of nectar, strawberry coulis, pineapple and banana pieces, it wasn't as exotic as expected. While it was adequately thick, I found that the banana and pineapple flavours didn't really shine.
Melon's Rating
Taste: 8/10
Ambience: 8.5/10Service: 8.5/10
Overall: 8.5/10
I found one of the Eurasian waitress to be attractive. She was efficient too that day. Pika's advice: You can find rare beef cuts here, such as hanger and skirt. If you're looking for something different, do give them a try!
Hippopotamus
6 Raffles Boulevard
#01-204/205 Marina Square
Singapore
(Daily: 11.00am - 10.30pm)
*Prices quoted are subject to 10% service charge and 7% GST.
Have a nice meal,
Cliff(y)
Comments