25 March 2017

Lewin Terrace: A Moment of Serenity, Singapore


One year ago, we gathered our families and friends at Lewin Terrace to grace the most important event of our life, our wedding solemnization. I remembered vividly the day we said "I Do" in front of our loved ones at the endearing outdoor terrace, surrounded by blissful nature and greenery; the romantic scene was filled with joy, laughter and happiness. The whole wedding experience at Lewin Terrace was truly magnificent, especially when I could see our guests mingled around joyfully in an intimate and cozy atmosphere. We love our wedding venue so much that we promised ourselves to go back every year to celebrate our wedding anniversary.

Photo by The 12th Storey Picture Room

Photo by The 12th Storey Picture Room

Photo by The 12th Storey Picture Room

Photo by The 12th Storey Picture Room

Photo by The 12th Storey Picture Room

Photo by The 12th Storey Picture Room

Photo by The 12th Storey Picture Room


Lewin Terrace is an elegant black and white bungalow of Singapore date back to the colonial era. In the past, it was the residence of the Chief Central Fire Station on Hill Street and named after Major-General E. O. Lewin, who was the General Officer Commander in Singapore from 1933 to 1935. Today, Lewin Terrace is a Japanese-French fusion fine dining restaurant with a simple yet elegant interior in a beautiful garden setting, and it is also one of the most impeccable venues for a fairy-tale wedding or a romantic date.

Helming the heritage restaurant Lewin Terrace is Keisuke Matsumoto (松本 圭介), the Executive Chef and partnering him is the Chef de Cuisine, Hiroyuki Shinkai. Chef Keisuke Matsumoto came from Sendai in the North of Japan; he gained his culinary experience in Tokyo's established French restaurants and he also spent 4 years in France to master the French culinary techniques in Michelin-starred restaurants. With his French cooking techniques and Japanese culture, Chef Keisuke Matsumoto and his kitchen team deliver its ever changing menu based on season and continues to inspire the refined diners coming back for more.

Photo by The 12th Storey Picture Room








As we have promised, we were back at the Lewin Terrace for our first wedding anniversary celebration. When we walked through the romantic flight of stairs, many beautiful memories of our wedding day just kept flowing through our mind. We were really happy to be back to the scene where we had begun. At Lewin Terrace, everything seems unchanged except this time without the joyous laughter from our families and friends.






Lewin Terrace was serving the January Lunch menu when we were there and we ordered 2 different sets of 3-course lunch for ourselves. Before the course started, we were served a drawstring pouch of warm homemade bread with their signature Yuzu butter, and we were warned by the waiter that there were some heated pebbles inside the pouch to keep the bread warm, indeed it was very hot as I could feel the heat when I placed my hands around the pouch.





After warming up our stomach with the delicious fresh bread, the course started off with LES ENTRÉEs:


1. Prawn Tarte / Salad / Sauce Americane / SHICHIMI Spice (海老の温かいタルト サラダ添え トマトソース)
Prawn Tarte was paper thin crispy layers of tart topped with fresh sweet prawns. This salad dish was served drenched with Sauce Americane (a recipe from classic French cookery) and SHICHIMI spice (Japanese spice mixture containing seven ingredients), which was a fine showcase of Japanese-French fusion.



2. Cold Potato Soup / Mushrooms Sorbet / Mushroom Crambre (冷たいポテトスープ マッシュルームのソルベ 揚げたての海藻風味揚げパン)
The cold potato soup was garnished with thinly sliced mushrooms, drizzle of truffle oil, and it was paired with a small bowl of seaweed flavoured fried bread. The refreshing chilled soup tasted perfectly creamy and soothing, which was an ideal dish for a hot afternoon in Singapore.




Next, LE MAIN, also the main course of the set lunch.

1. Barramundi and Scallop Mousse / KABU / Lemongrass Coconut / Broccoli (バラムディとホタテのムース(紫蘇の実入り)、カブ、ブロッコリー、ココナッツミルクのソース)
The fresh Barramundi and sweet scallop mousse gave a light and airy texture to the taste; and these seafood under the very thin slices of turnip blanket make an exciting combination alongside with the surrounding broccoli and lemongrass coconut milk sauce.



2. Steamed Chicken Breast / Onion / Burdock / Gourmand sauce (鶏胸肉の低温調理、ゴボウとペコロスを添えて)
The steamed chicken breast was beautifully crafted with burdock, asparagus, small onions and a swoosh of gourmand sauce like presenting a piece of art. This was the most perfect chicken breast that I have ever eaten. The chicken breast meat was cooked using a low temperature steaming method to retain all the moisture and prevents overcooking, ultimately it gave the meat a very tender and juicy taste.




Lastly, LE DESSERT, the dessert of the day.

1. Chocolate Brownie / Vanilla Ice Cream Puff
The chocolate brownie at the centre of the plate was topped with a quenelle of vanilla ice cream puff and a piped chocolate decorative floating above. Chocolate sauce was drizzled circularly around the plating to enhance its aesthetic appeal and a specially written "Happy Anniversary" for us.




2. Golden Rum Cake
The cake drenched in the rum sauce was fluffy and moist crumb, a scoop of cream atop and a piece of nut tuile for extra crunch. The plated dessert was decorated with a sprinkling of mixed nuts, fruits and a "Happy Anniversary" writing on the rim of the plate.




At the end of our 3-course lunch, we also received an anniversary greeting postcard from the Lewin Terrace team, and we were truly grateful for their kind gesture. With this, we had a perfect ending to our first anniversary lunch at Lewin Terrace. The whole dining experience at Lewin Terrace was marvellous. The staffs were very attentive and they made an effort to explain what was the ingredients used and how it was cooked for every dish. The quality of the food was fresh, delectable and beautifully plated. Essentially, the restaurant hiding away from the bustling city with an elegant and romantic ambience brought us a moment of serenity that we could hardly find it anywhere else.




Getting There
Lewin Terrace is well hidden and easy to miss because it is surrounded by lush greenery and completely not visible from the street. Access to Lewin Terrace is through the red gates to the left of the Singapore Philatelic Museum at 23-B Coleman Street, Singapore 179807 and the main entrance of the restaurant is located atop the flight of stairs in the Fort Canning Park.






After our lunch, we proceed to the Singapore Philatelic Museum and posted a postcard for ourselves; repeating what we requested our guests to do on our wedding day by sending us a postcard in the red classic letter box at Singapore Philatelic Museum for our wedding memories. We had this special request because both of us love sending each other postcards, especially after our travel. The postcard is an important communication tool for us as we always write down our thoughts, feelings, and also for our travel memories. We will continue to keep this tradition going. #snailmailisthebestwayofcommunication



<< Lewin Terrace >>
Address: 21 Lewin Terrace Singapore, Singapore 179290
Year Visited: 2017 Feb


Photo by The 12th Storey Picture Room


We would like to thank the members of The 12th Storey Picture Room for being our photographers on our wedding day.


Photo by The 12th Storey Picture Room


Written by: Q.J.
Photography by: Q.J. & K.K.
Wedding Photography by: The 12th Storey Picture Room

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