Its D2's bday and we decided to pay a visit to this park, situated near Holland V, just beside Buono Vista MRT Station, an area which exudes the aura of an unhurried world. There aint many restaurants in Rochester Park and I quickly set my mind on the most-spoken Fusion restaurant- ‘Graze’, an offspring of the award-winning OPIA (the famous restaurant in the 1st in Asia boutique hotel designed by Phillippe Starck - ‘JIA’ @ Hongkong), brot to us by young enterprising Singaporean - Ms Yenn Wong who made her name by making success in both establishment in HongKong.
Housed within a classic pre-war B&W colonial style bungalow, credit has to be given to the Aussie designers who made good use of the garden pavilion. With the romantic candlelit pathways and the water features all around the compound, the whole settings humbly created a attractive and inviting air to the guest. Its contemporary style reminds me so much of PS Café, another well-known Aussie-Meet-Tropical Restaurant @ Harding Rd. (Well… I shall talked more abt PS café next time, I promise!) 
One can either choose the small, casual indoor dining or set ur foot to the well designed garden pavilion for a captivating alfresco dinning experience. Those who came for drinks and snacks will definitely like the idea of its outdoor lounge featuring a large screen with 70s & 80s B&W classic movie playing mutely. It caught my eyes immediately and I m darn sure I shall be back juz for this.
While the place itself is aesthetically gaze-worthy, the menu is also equally graze-worthy. The menu created by Aussie Chef Matthew Lawdorn-who is also the mastermind behind Opia featuring not only an extensive list of appealing simple, home-made fare but also a bbq menu of choice cuts and seafood. For small eater who enjoys a wide variety of choices, one should try their ‘Grazing menu’. Oh my. Did I mentioned already their newly-designed weekend healthy and hearty breakfast/brunch menu?? I gotta jot it down in my weekend to-do-list.Not wasting any seconds, lets start dishing the sleek nite out!
For entrée, King Prawns 3 ways (@ SGD18) is a must try for Prawn lover!! Tiger Prawns prepared in 3 different ways (chilled, pan-tossed and tempura-fried), served with coconut coriander sorbet. Suggest you eat according to the sequence mentioned above, I personally find that’s the best way to savor the best of 3 completely different style of cooking. 
Being a seafood lover, and the outdoor ambience is so conducive to bbq food, we chose the Asian Seafood House Platter(@ SGD90) from the BBQ menu. Comes with the freshest selection of crab, prawns, oyster, scallop and sea-bass with special prepared chilli-paste by the side, served with green salad, fries and corn on the cob. All tasted heavenly and special note has to be given to the oyster. I am soo totally in love with the oyster! It is so fresh that just a few drops of lemon squeeze is good enuff to bring out the flavor from the sea! Oh my~~~ Its so worth-dying for!!!
No dinner is complete without a good bottle of wine! Our server suggested Aussie white wine - 2003 Brokenwood from Cricket Pitch (@ SGD 86 per bottle). A perfectly smooth and light wine to celebrate the evening of joy!
The waiters served dessert soon after we finish the main course. They fetched out a nicely set Lava pudding Plate with a twinkling candle while humming the bday at the same time. It was a surprise as none of us ordered anything yet, the thoughts was kind however the pudding aint a complimentary gift on the house, we found out that its included in the bill later =P. The warm Graze B&W chocolate lava pudding (@ SGD18) are oozing full of warm bittersweet from within, served together with B&W chocolate by the side. It melts in ur mouth and melted away ur hearts at the same time. It could be the million-dollar-worth dessert for those with sweet tooth but to me, it’s a tad too sweet. Generally it’s still worth trying.As the name suggest, ‘Graze’ it’s a place for a cozy an
d sleek dining experience, encouraging its customers to take their time and enjoy the glassy lawn in the airy ambience. We decided to check out the whole place after the nosh. Besides serving delectable dishes, Graze also hosts a gourmet store selling home-made conserves, imported cheese, chocolates and boutiques wines and beers.
Upstair of the indoor dining area house an indoor lounge bar – Mint. Fitted with a DJ booth playing cool music, adjourned with comfy sofas, flo stools and otto mans, and a unique bisazza mosaic bar with floral motif, offering a list of unique blends and cocktails.
I have this special likings of their adjoining terrace, where there is a large sofa bed and banquette seating overlooking the garden from the top. Perfect for a relax lounging! According to the bartender, they also offers a wide range of cigars for those who enjoy piping a smoke or two.
I requested Apple Martini (@ SGD 18), which is not in the cocktail list, Soro - the bartender kindly prepared it for me. It smells great and tasted heavenly, perfectly added a pitch to the joyous evening tune. Then Soro suggested us to try out his newly invented – Peach Cosmo (@ SGD 20). It is nice but not really my glass of choice. To sum it all.. this is definitely a memorable evening with commendable food, wine & drinks. Ambience and
service wise, Graze is definitely top of the list-of-choice. However, its not a every-day dining type of place as the bill could be rather intimidating. Average expenses with wine is SGD 120 per person. No harm indulge once in a while for some special occasion though. Remember to call up for reservation as it could be rather packed during weekend and certain days during the week. Best to take a cab down as teh parking space is kinda limited.Address[Map]:
4 Rochester Park S139215
Tel for reservation:
6775-9000
Opening Hr:
Breakfast - Sun: 9am to 3pm
Lunch - Sat: 12pm to 2pm
Dinner - Tue-Sun: 6:30pm to Midnite
Bar - Tue-Sun: 6:30pm to 1am,
extended to 2am on Sunday and Public holidays eve.
Labels: 'In' Store, Days of My Life, Lets Tuck In, Singapore
