The Line, Shangri-La
With the new found delight that our fund still had so much money left (because the team was living such an ascetic lifestyle for the past yr), big boss proceeded to schedule elaborate lunches in order to spend our money… First we had the horrible duck & char siew rice, then nasi padang TWICE, in between the Straits Kitchen but the best of all was….. The Line! (and yesterday, they had chicken rice from that place in River Valley, but I was feeling too sick to eat then)
The Line is one of the new restaurants fashioned after the concept of an open-kitchen ie. food’s cooked right in front of you and replenished in small batches, so u get really ‘fresh’ food despite it being a buffet. (and you get to ogle the good looking chefs, if any). Gotta give credit to the US-based Adam Tihany for transforming this place into such a hip eatery. Plus it’s open 24h and seats up to 400 people!
The Food:
The Line did not earn the name of ‘mother of all buffets’ for nothing, it’s a whole gamut of cuisines here! Your first stop is usually the appetiser / cold foods bar featuring endless rows of oysters, clams, mussels, crabs, lobsters, pretty little servings of appetisers in shot glasses; sushi & sashimi and all kinds of greens.
Next up, you’ve got a choice of Italian (B recommends the pasta which they cook on the spot for u, even if you’d only wanted two spoonfuls of it; pizza), Chinese (dim sum and other Chinese dishes), Western (the salmon fritter in oats and cornflakes are absolutely yummy! the beef slices with mushroom is super tender…), Indian (prata, murtabak, various veggies and curries… the chicken is really succulent, unlike the dry stuff u get at most other places), and this noodle shop (din try the noodles but Boss said it was not bad… they had wanton too).
Finally we’ve got the desserts… There’s a crepe station, a chocolate fondue and rows upon rows of tiramisu, poached pears, cakes, tarts, meringues and puddings in cute little trays/cups. Boss drowned himself in the fondue.
The Service:
Very good, if not a tad over-enthusiastic. They clear off empty plates and cutlery really quickly, once, I was just having my second last mouthful when my plate was whisked off, leaving an absolutely bewildered expression on my face. Then B, who’d left a crayfish on her plate intending to attack if after she’d sampled other stuff, found it gone by the time she got back… I think they clear off plates a little too quickly, such a waste of food. On the other hand, your napkins are always folded nicely by the time you return back with more food, you don’t have to wave your guts out to get them to refill the glasses, and they are absolutely enthusiastic and knowledgeable when questioned about some queer concoction on their dessert bar.
All in all, it was a great experience, both the food and of course, the company!
