SOURCE is the latest restaurant by funky celebrity Chef Melvyn Lee, best known for his cooking travelogue show “Accidental Chef” (and perhaps his bulging biceps).
However, Chef Melvyn is not just a TV persoanlity; but is a bona fide chef that worked his way up as an apprentice in an Italian restaurant, to further honing his culinary skills in the kitchens of renowned Al Forno and Il Lido.
Having successfully started up 2 takeaway joints, Chef Melvyn now helms his own kitchen and restaurant, located at Technopark @ Chai Chee.
SOURCE is Chef Melvyn’s philosophy in life materialized.
Everything from the decor to his food is about returning to the origin; the source of food and the basis of having a meal together.
The decor is simple and functional with an industrial feel.
The offerings are also a reflection of Chef Melvyn’s belief that food should be unpretentious, using ingredients sourced locally or around the region.
The meats, fishes and vegetables are brought locally at the neighbourhood wet market or from Malaysia, “Just like how the people use ingredients found in their own backyard in the past”.
We started the meal with their Spiced Bacon Lollipops ($8 per stick), found on the bar menu as it was designed as finger food.
That is 5 slices of bacon stacked together on a stick by the way.
When I first took a mouthful of the bacon, I had a silly grin on my face as the saltiness and smokiness of overwhelmed my taste buds. Then, the sweetness of the honey kicked in, leaving you with a close-to-heavenly flavour.
Well at least for those who are crazy about bacon, this would be a heavenly starter.
Before you order, you should ask the waiter what is the Fresh Catch ($23) of the day, as Chef Melvyn will go down to the market daily to get the freshest fish.
The fish that we had was seasoned simply with just salt and pepper with grilled broccoli and their own freshly made sun-dried tomatoes on the side.
The salt and pepper only served to heighten the taste (though we thought it was still a tad salty at certain parts).
Depending on the type of fish available, Chef Melvyn will season the fish according to what best complements the taste of the fish. So you never know what you are going to get.
The Carbonara Truffle Wagyu ($24), supposedly one of the most popular items on the menu, was bathed in a light cream sauce with truffle wagyu salami, egg yolk and parmesan cheese mixed into the spaghetti.
It was not too heavy, and the overall taste… decent.
I generally do not have a sweet tooth and would not usually crave for desserts. But the Dark Chocolate Lave Cake and Honey Ice Cream ($14) was simply out of this world!
According to Chef Melvyn, he does not use sugar in the cake and ice cream; instead incorporate honey in its place. The honey which infuses longan within is from Thailand, farmed by his team.
As a result, the cake had a light and spongy texture that helped to mob up the luxurious creamy dark chocolate. A must try if you have a sweet tooth.
The other highlight of SOURCE is OFFSIDE, a social sports area where diners can enjoy eDarts and automated baseball batting while waiting for their food.
Great place for a group outing or just to chillax with your friends and if you have a chance; do have a chat with Chef Melvyn as he has a charismatic personality and he really embodies all that he believes in.
SOURCE
750A Chai Chee Road, #01-03, Viva Business Park, Chai Chee Estate, Singapore 469001
Opening Hours:
Lunch 11:00 am – 2:30 pm, Dinner 5:30 pm – 11:00 pm (Tues – Thurs)
Lunch 11:00 am – 2:30 pm, Dinner 5:30 pm – 12:00 pm (Fri)
Lunch 12:00 am – 2:30 pm, Dinner 5:30 pm – 12:00 pm (Sat)
Lunch 12:00 am – 2:30 pm, Dinner 5:30 pm – 11:00 pm (Sun)
* Written by Benjamin Chia, edited by Daniel Ang @DanielFoodDiary. Benjamin has been using a wheelchair since young. Despite the challenges, he has never let it stopped him from enjoying life. One of the most enjoyable things to him is to eat and share about GOOD FOOD!
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