Group Executive Chef David Tang and Chef de Cuisine Ammie Khoo have collaborated to develop an new innovative dinner menu at Rosemead, a farm-to-table American grill restaurant owned by Jigger & Pony Group. Their culinary approach is rooted in the principles of seasonality, ingredient freshness, and enhancing natural flavors.
We last visited Rosemead in June 2022, which coincided with California Wine Month. During our visit, we enjoyed three delightful wines from California and a remarkable selection of dishes. These included the Iberico Cabacero, Coal Roasted Hand Dive Scallop, BlueAcres Farm Salad, and the Wood-Fired Lamb Shoulder “Shwarma.”
“Singapore and California are more similar than people realize, especially when it comes to the style of dining. We enjoy sharing our food and bold, yet comforting flavours that highlight the fresh produce used. With this new menu, we want to deliver hearty meals and a convivial dining experience that truly represents California.”
Chef David Tang
The new menu now features sections including “Starters”, “Farm Vegetables”, proteins “From the Hearth”, and “Desserts”. The Momotaro Tomato features an umami Japanese varietal sourced from Cameron Highlands and served with a medley of fragrant herbs from local farm BlueAcres, parmesan, cured mackerel and olive tapenade and a delicate smoked rice wine vinaigrette.
Sweet potato is slow roasted until creamy and milled then crafted by hand with eggs, flour, salt and nutmeg. Chef Tang adds smoked prosciutto and shio koji for added umami and pairs the Sweet Potato Gnocchi with golden cordyceps from local farm Kin Yan.
The Warm Cheese Puff should be enjoyed while still warm. This savoury delight, filled with smoked cheddar mousse, draws inspiration from the traditional French gougère, where pâte à choux is combined with gruyère and parmesan cheeses. Another appetiser that stood out to me was the Chicken Liver Donut. It puts a unique spin on the beloved American combination of peanut butter and jelly sandwich. The chicken liver parfait is skillfully crafted using eggs, cream, shallots, thyme, black pepper, bacon, maple syrup, and cognac. Due to its milder flavour, the liver pâté doesn’t have an overpowering gamey taste. The sweet Italian-style bomboloni, a fried brioche, is coated with a four-spice sugar commonly used with offal and sweetbreads. These two appetizers are incredibly enticing and difficult to resist, but be sure to leave room for the other delectable dishes available.
The Hispi Cabbage is, well, a Caesar salad that is lightly charred to bring out the sweetness with deconstructed caesar dressing mad from Japanese farm egg emulsion that is blended with olive oil, rapeseed oil and then seasoned with worcestershire and tabasco. A rice-wine based anchovy vinaigrette reduces the acidity in the dressing and brings out the naturally sweet flavour of the cabbage. Refreshing.
In the mood for American steak and eggs? The Miyazaki Wagyu A4 Striploin is Rosemead’s take on that. True A4 Japanese wagyu steak from Miyazaki prefecture is seasoned with house anchovy steak rub and grilled. The fried egg, mushroom bordelaise sauce and smoked mixed mushroom from local farm Kin Yan completes this dish.
The Spanish Duroc pork chop with sweet and sour orange glaze is tender and juicy. The Heritage Pork Chop is served with roasted broccoli from Weeds More in Cameron Highlands. The pork is marinated overnight with rosemary, thyme and bay leaf and then seasoned with a house blend of salt and spice mix and grilled over apple wood.
For desserts, go for Chef David’s favourite Devil Food Cake, a rich, dark and very chocolaty cake made with chocolate ganache, caramel, rye flour and coffee. The Tres Leches sponge cake is soaked in evaporated, condensed and whole milk with a hint of cinnamon. All complete with coconut milk, pastry cream, berries and cinnamon.
Rosemead has a selection of beverages including wines, spritzs, cocktails and others. THere are over 250 wine labels curated by Marcus Tan, Principal Sommelier of Jigger & Pony Group. The Strawberry Spritz is a mix of strawberry infused rum, cherry blossom, prosseco and soda water. A lighter and fizzy, aperitif style cocktail perfect for Singapore’s weather. Or go for a Seasonal Negroni for that spirit-forward nightcap.
