Alma By Juan Amador, Singapore Review

Link to Alma by Juan Amador Website

Alma by Juan Amador is located within the historic Goodwood Park Hotel on Scotts Road just on the right side of the main entrance. Currently, holding 1 Michelin Star, Alma by Juan Amador is led by Chef Yew Eng Tong since late 2023 after Juan Amador's departure. Chef Yew has worked under big names like Christian Bau at Victor's Dining as well as The Jane in Antwerp and is now bringing modern European dishes and infusing them with Asian ingredients and techniques to Alma by Juan Amador.

There are 2 options at Alma by Juan Amador, a 6 course Entice menu for 198 ++ or an eight course Excite Menu. Our menu for the night was the Excite menu and this is what we had:

• Takoyaki Potato Gratin, Brie

• Nori Bun

• Bruschetta, Avocado

• Cauliflower Pie Tee with Seafood Sashimi

• Blue Fin Tuna with Edmame Tofu, Seagrass, Soy, Cucumber Sorbet

• Arctic Char with Radish, Watermelon, Passionfruit, Sturion Caviar

• Egg with Veloute, Cep and Hollandaise

• Glacier 51 Toothfish Roulade with Crustacean Cream, Caviar Vinaigrette and Green Vegetable Remoulade

• Yukimuro Snow Aged A5 Wagyu with Aubergine, Potato Terrine and Truffle

• Strawberry Sorbet with Balsamic and Coriander

• Poached Peach with Soursop Sorbet, Sakura, Salted Buttermilk Sago and Red Shiso

• Sunchoke Biscuit, Spiced Ganache, Seasalt

• Yuzu Semi Gummy

• Tartlet

We were a little shocked when the dishes came to us, each with more of an oriental, japanese influence than a spanish one. It was only by the 3rd dish, where we realised, perhaps we were not getting a spanish tasting menu under Chef Yew Eng Tong. The dishes were beautifully presented and the team did a good job explaining the progression. The stand outs for us were the Cauliflower Pie Tee, Egg with Veloute as well as the A5 Wagyu.

Our 5 course wine pairing was:

• Philipponnat Extra Brut champagne

• 2018 Von Winning Deidesheimer Paradiesgarten Riesling Trocken

• 2017 Domaine Rollin Pere et Fils Pernand Vergelesses Les Cloux

• 2020 Alberto Ballarin, Barolo DOCG

• 2008 San Felice Il Grigio Chianti Classico Riserva

The wine pairing was average. We thought the selections were either too crisp or were a little too young for the meal. Overall, we didn't think the pairing did the meal justice. One detail which I thought was missed was not having a very clear description of the wine pairing. The bottle was only brought out to us upon request and so for the bulk of the time, we were unsure what we had on the table. For those who love their wines, Alma by Juan Amador has a lovely selection. DRC, Petrus, Vega Sicilia UNICO, Lafite Rothschild, all on the menu by the bottle. The owner is a Napa Valley lover, so if you like them, there is a very nice selection available as well.

Service at Alma by Juan Amador was great. Upon arrival, the team gave us some complimentary Philipponnat Extra Brut champagne which was a very lovely gesture. During our 2 hr dinner, there were only 3 other tables, so that meant we were very well taken care of throughout the meal. The team was friendly and even brought us around to the private Whiskey room after our meal. Let's just say, it was a treasure box of rare whiskeys and Maotais. We learnt that the owner has several ventures, including their own line of whiskey as well as their own alcohol distribution company. That actually was quite odd for us, because we would have thought that with your own company, you would be able to select an exceptional pairing to go with the dinner. Point to consider, Alma by Juan Amador?

Booking

There is availability at Alma by Juan Amador one week ahead and reservations can be done directly through their website.

Accessibility

Located at Goodwood park, it is most easily accessible through Orchard MRT and a 15 min walk. Alternatively you can stop at Far East Plaza Bus Stop which is slightly closer. Do note that it is up a slope from the entrance at Scotts Road on the right of the main hotel lobby.

The Damage

Total damage for the night was 300 SGD (tax inclusive) per pax for food only, which is about standard now for a 1 Michelin Starred restaurant. There are a selection of wine pairing options ranging from 3 glasses to 5 glasses, so we opted to not include the wine pairing price into this review.

Would We Recommend?

Unfortunately, it is a no for us. I wanted to like Alma by Juan Amador but personally think that Alma by Juan Amador would benefit from a rebranding. We went in thinking we would have a full spanish experience, just by the name and the brand it had always been associated with. But we had dishes after dishes of asian influenced modern cuisine. It was probably only three dishes in that we finally came to the conclusion that a spanish degustation was not something we were going to get. In general, there were a couple of stand out dishes like the Cauliflower Seafood Pie Tie and Egg with Veloute, cep and hollandaise. However, the rest of the dishes had muted flavours and in some part lacked character. I don't know if this was because the team was trying too hard to stay in line with the Alma by Juan Amador name or this is the style moving forward.