Restaurant Week – Private Affairs

C says:

By the time we got our act together this week to make Restaurant Week bookings, all the good places had been snapped up. And by good places, I mean those that are a bit too rich for our blood, like Ku De Ta. Luckily, cousin L was a bit more diligent, and managed to get a table for the 4 of us at Private Affairs, a restaurant in a little shophouse in Joo Chiat serving Modern European food.

Being a ‘premier’ eatery, the Restaurant Week dinner menu was $55 for 4 courses, with only an option for the main course. We started with the restaurant’s signature starter – cured duck carpaccio with granny smith apple and scallion gel. I thought the duck was sliced a little too thinly to have much substance, but otherwise the dish wasn’t too bad.

The chef also had a special a la carte creation for Restaurant Week – wagyu beef carpaccio. We ordered a portion for all of us to share, and a mouthful of this turned out to be the best bite of the evening. The beef was sliced rustically, not paper thin, so we could actually taste the beefy flavour of the wagyu. It was paired with just the right amount of truffle vinaigrette, rocket and shaved parmesan, creating a perfectly balanced bite where no single element overwhelmed.

Next up was seared foie gras with a buttery piece of brioche. This was a decent portion of foie gras and pretty well seared, but I think it could’ve been seasoned slightly more.

The main course was Kurobuta pork cheek with blood orange jelly, and for $8 more, you could change the main to striploin with truffled mash. We decided to try one each. The pork was nice and tender, with a tasty sauce that had a hint of Asian spices. Between the two, I think the striploin was just slightly more memorable.

The meal ended on a pretty good note, with a nice caramel parfait with malt crumble and a malt tuile. Not mindblowing, just a nice sweet end to the meal.

Overall it was a perfectly decent meal, but portions were pretty small. The boys weren’t particularly satisfied, so we ended up heading to Two Fat Men where we proceeded to stuff our faces with 2 burgers and a plate of grilled pork neck. Maybe it’s the comfort food element, but I actually found our impromptu supper more satisfying than our chi-chi dinner.

So in conclusion, while Private Affairs was pretty good, if I were driving all the way to the East, it’ll be for Two Fat Men instead.

A says:

Very good. But is it worth a trip to Joo Chiat? Nope. Portions are too small and the price is too high. I’d only come back if I lived in the area.

Private Affairs

45 Joo Chiat Place

Tel: 6440-0601

Lunch: Tues to Sat 11.30 am to 2.30 pm

Dinner: Tues to Sun 6.30 pm to 11 pm

Brunch: Sun 11.30 am to 3.30 pm