Decided to celebrate our anniversary at Estuary as I was quite intrigued by it's seafood-forward offerings as well as their generous weekend happy hour. Particularly, what caught my eye were the dishes that had Sarawakian influences; with my father's hometown being Kuching, Sarawak, I was immediately drawn just to see what this 'Sarawak-ness' was.
Stepping into the restaurant felt like entering my home's games room - dim mood lighting with pink hues, soft and comfy sofas, accompanied by the soft chatter of diners scattered around. Intimate, yet casual. Service was also warm and friendly, and the open kitchen also made for an interesting spectacle as the chefs did their good work.
We started off with their signature cocktails, which were $14 each during happy hour 5-8pm (and at lunchtime too). The Ambrosial was sweet and tangy, bursting with fruity elements from the dragon fruit ferment, pear, Yuzu sake, grapefruit, and Muscat grapes. A refreshing palate cleanser. The Smoke & Blanc also packed a punch, with notes of sweet vinegar, EVOO, and celery bitters atop the base of applewood-smoked brunt buttered rum.
On to the food! We started off with the Prawn Ravioli ($24), which was a trio of prawn+meat chunks encased in a thin dough - sort of a shrimp dumpling, if you will. The skin was soft and the firm prawn gave it a nice bite, but above all the sauce of prawn bisque with specks of sage butter was what brought this dish together. Complex, umami, and briney flavours encouraged me to drizzle spoonful after spoonful with every bite of the ravioli. Delicious! If there was one thing I missed, it was the freshness and crunch from perhaps scatters of water chestnut or carrot, or perhaps even breadcrumbs. That would have given an interesting play in textures.
Next was the Grilled Cabbages ($16) - a huge wedge of cabbage boiled and then charred on the grill, placed atop a nest of herb cream cheese and drizzles of peanut chilli. The rosemary cheese beurre blanc was what kept us reaching for slice after slice of the cabbage, so deliciously creamy and savoury with a touch of heat it was. However, we did feel that the cabbage could have been a tad more tender as it was too moist and limp on the inside which made it tough to cut through.
The pièce de résistance was finally here: the Sarawak Charred Claypot Rice ($28) - a mound of crabmeat, ikura, asparagus stalks, and rice crispies atop a bed of sweet-savoury rice that the staff said hails from Sarawak and hence the name of the dish. The seafood gave every spoonful of the rice a distinct unami and briney taste, with the rice crispies and asparagus providing a nice crunch. Was suitably impressed by this zhng-up sa po fan, but what's missing was the charred rice bits to scrape off the Claypot at the end; that experience is arguably a key part of the soul of Claypot rice, lest you might as well call the dish a don, a rice bowl, instead. Pro tip: ask for a saucer of chilli padi in soy sauce to accompany the rice. The soy sauce they used is imported from Sarawak and was so deliciously sweet-salty and flavourful, I couldn't help but just sip dab after dab with my spoon (It's Mu Artisan First Draw Soy Sauce if anyone's wondering).
Ended off the meal with a trio of their Mochi Churros, given on the house to celebrate our anniversary. Crisp on the outside with a soft and gooey inside, pair this with the rich and decadent salted caramel for a sweet ending to the satisfying meal.
Thank you @Estuary for the delicious food and a very memorable experience!
