Singapore Airlines has always been one of Singapore’s greatest pride; and SQ’s Business Class was ranked No. 3 in the World’s Best Business Class Airline in 2019 (I know people will ask “Why not No. 1?”)
I am here to talk about the food.
Interestingly, for the
One of the key features of the Suites, First Class and Business Class bookings (other than the seats and service), is the “Book the Cook” (BTC) selection.
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How BTC works is that you can choose from a selection of meals, including creations inspired by SQ’s International Culinary Panel, up to 24 hours before your flight. Sometimes people do forget about this, or are too late.
What you can expect to have include 6 oz. Rib-Eye Steak, Grilled Beef with Balsamic Onion Sauce, Seared Nut-Crusted Veal Fillet, Grilled Angus Beef Burger, Seared Lamb Loin, and Oven-Roasted Chicken Breast. This is also a “Deliciously Wholesome” selection.
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I was very keen to write a BTC food review, but this needed a certain time period and I had to be sure to order different items during business trips to and fro.
The disclaimer is: I was keener to try out the Singapore local food so this guide is more Asian-food skewed; and the same dish can be quite different when being served on another flight (eg Chicken Rice). And yes, #notsponsored.
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Classic Lobster Thermidor
Lobster tail sautéed in butter, flambéed in brandy, sprinkled with cheese, and served with creamy mushroom sauce, garlic and spicy mustard, and buttered asparagus.
This is probably BTC’s most famous dish; the item to order if you are a first timer to Business as it is often seen to be most ‘value-for-money’. I mean, why not?
For airline standard, the Lobster Thermidor is always well-presented, almost as though you are having a fine dining meal (especially with all that champagne.)
While occasionally you may get dryer lobster meat, most of the time the lobster is rather chunky, buttery, though can be on the saltier side. Accompanying rice is tasty.
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Nasi Lemak
Fragrant rice cooked in coconut milk, accompanied by spicy sambal prawns, fried chicken, fried anchovies with peanuts, an omelette wedge, and grilled fish cakes (otah) (inclusive of Breakfast service)
My personal to-go-for dish if I am not ordering the Classic Lobster Thermidor. This is somehow very consistent.
While the rice may not be as aromatic as what you get at the famous hawker stalls, the side ingredients are noteworthy, from the juicy chicken, moist otah, crunchy ikan bills to delicious sambal chill with a tinge of sweetness.
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Nasi Biryani
An Indian specialty, fragrant Basmati rice, cooked with aromatic spices, herbs, tomatoes, saffron and milk, is served with tender chicken simmered in gravy (inclusive of Breakfast service)
While I consider myself as a ‘noodle person’, I found the rice dishes on BTC to be stronger.
If you need something really flavourful and Asian, then go for the Nasi Biryani for its rich and mildly spicy curry. And the chicken can be quite fork-tender.
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Singapore Chicken Rice
Poached chicken, sliced and served on long-grain rice cooked in chicken broth. Accompanied by dark soya sauce and fresh chilli and lime sauces.
I had good and not-so-tasty ones. Usually it is because the chicken meat is not marinated enough or dry. The rice may not be as fluffy (and oily) as what you get in the hawker stalls.
The saving grace then would be the combination of sauces, from the thick dark soy sauce to chilli with a touch of tanginess. With that said, a not-bad dish to order.
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Singapore Laksa
Rice noodles in a rich, coconut cream seafood gravy with prawns, fish cake, deep-fried beancurd and bean sprouts (Only available on flights with flight time above 4 hours)
A safe choice. While it lacked that coconuty-fragrance and not as spicy as expected (perhaps because we are so used to Katong Laksa), the gravy is still slurp-worthy and there’s a lot of ingredients.
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Singaporean Style Chicken Satay
Marinated, skewered and grilled chicken slices. Served with cucumber, ketupat rice cakes and spicy peanut sauce.
A lot of people say they look forward to having SQ’s satay, and I can understand why.
The meats are usually tender and chunky, and there is that element of classiness when the peanut sauce is slowly poured over.
However, I am hesitant to order this alone for BTC, as it is sometimes served complimentary on flights (I can’t verify, but it’s those 5-7 hours flight.)
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Peranakan Hokkien Mee Soup
A rich pork-prawn broth with pork, prawns and vegetables on top of egg noodles and rice vermicelli – a Peranakan version of a popular Singaporean hawker dish (Only available on flights with flight time above 4 hours)
If I need to order a noodle dish on BTC, this will be it.
It’s for the soup with the slight umami-ness coming from the seafood broth. The noodles are tad limpy though.
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Bak Chor Mee Dry Style
Thin noodles with seasoned vinegar sauce, garnished with sliced and minced pork, pork ball, braised mushroom, fried pork lard and dried sole. Served with chilli sauce and additional black vinegar on the side (Only available on flights with flight time above 3.5 hours)
You may be imagining a bowl of vinegary mee kia, but this was served on a plate with a mee pok like noodles. Didn’t’ work that well, I thought.
The noodles were slightly overcooked till soft, and pork slices had a funky taste. You can add vinegar on your own, but it is not that brand that is often used in hawker stalls so doesn’t have that addictive ‘spike’.
Note: You can also order the soup Bak Chor Mee.
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Straits Chinese Chicken Curry
Tender chicken and potato simmered in spicy coconut milk, served with bread rolls and steamed rice (Only available on flights with flight time above 3.5 hours)
If you need something spicy and rich on board.
Perhaps because I am so used to rich and fragrant home-cooked curry, this lacked of that comforting flavours, but at least the chicken is cooked tender and potatoes soft.
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Keisuke Miso Tonkotsu Ramen
Noodles in creamy miso pork broth garnished with sliced pork, cloud ear fungus and spring onion. (only available on flights with flight time above 4 hours)
Well, I am generally a fan of Keisuke’s Ramen, though I felt that the noodles didn’t do the original ramen any justice.
Also, the sliced char siu had a funky taste that I did not appreciate. I need my ramen to be piping hot.
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Dim Sum Selection
Selection of dim sum with steamed radish cake.
Actually, I didn’t even know why I ordered this on BTC, perhaps I ran out of things. Dim Sum not steaming hot, just doesn’t cut it.
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10 Must-Have Curry Puffs In Singapore
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