Dinner at The Vault Bistro

I have heard about The Vault Bistro at 23 Circular Road, Singapore 049379 (Tel: 6223 5001) and good reviews about it from different friends - whether one chooses to dine at the bistro on level one or chill in level two's high-ceiling lounge. Which is why when Katherine* suggested going there with Edison* and Zachery*,  I was more than happy to agree.

The Vault has an actual bronze steel-reinforced vault door from a bank vault that weighs a ton and a rather chic interior that boosts a hybrid wine cellar, bistro and relaxed concept-  comfortable and yet stylish. Service was a little slow, but other than that, the comforting ambience was really rather satisfying.

We started our meal with a bottle of red and ended the meal with a round of drinks up at the lounge upstairs. 

Food-wise, we began with a Chicken Liver Parfait - similar to chicken pate except smoother, with hints of butter and salt, and the bottom portion is actually mashed potato, believe it or not. It was rather tasty - smooth, thick and exotic in taste with a slight hint of iron of chicken intestines. It was what I would consider an "acquired taste" if one could get used to it.

Next, we shared the Mussels in a delicious cream sauce - the succulent, chewy texture of mussels soaked in a lightly-flavored but tasty savoury cream sauce left one yearning for more. Paired with the crispy slices of bread roll, this was a teaser for more good food to come, we were sure.

We had the Ribeye Steak, medium doneness, with grilled wedges and a delicious herb-butter to spread over the thick and tender steak. The steak was grilled to perfection and filled the mouth and teeth with pleasure as they work to chew on the juicy meat. The herb butter was rich and fragrant, and the wedges were almost-crispy on the outside and softly on the inside, the way I liked it.

Next in line, we were served the Crabmeat Pasta in Tomato Sauce - another supremely done dish with springy pasta strands infused in a sweet-sour tomato sauce - not too wet, just enough to drench the noodles with a touch of goodness. The crab meat flakes were scattered throughout the pasta dish and tasted lovely in its sweet-sour-saline blend. 

Then the Mushroom & Leek Pie - a healthy combination of button mushrooms and sweet leek within a flakey puff pastry baked perfectly. For this dish, more fillings within the puff pastry would have been more ideal, but nonetheless, for taste we would give it a high score.

Last but not least, the Fish Pie, also for sharing. We were a little disappointed that it was merely tender slices of fish baked with mashed potato under a layer of golden-crispy cheese. Nonetheless, it was palatable and the mashed potato contained tiny chunks of potatoes so for potato lovers, you would love this dish.

A slice of Chocolate Cake - light, fluffy and rich in taste- this pretty creation melted our hearts and fulfilled our required of daily sugar happy dosage.

All in all, we spent around SGD$50.00 on our food, a worthy gastronomical retreat.