Synthesis 食拿酒稳

Since I don’t drink as often as I used to in my previous job, I have learnt to appreciate special cocktails a lot more, so when Synthesis kept creeping into my feed, I decided to visit them to try their cocktails as well as fusion food items, since their concept of a TCM-inspired restaurant and bar is fairly interesting

Located at Suntec City Tower 4, the restaurant and bar are concealed behind a Traditional Chinese Medicine shelf with rows and rows of fake Chinese herbs and bottles. For those walking past, it can easily be mistaken for a TCM Centre

On the side is a secret door where you enter the main bar and restaurant, and the corridor is also decorated like an old Shanghai bar street with lanterns and neon signs, which makes it a perfect background for photos. Past the corridor, you enter another door to another space, which gives off a more modern speakeasy bar vibe and live music house station

Firstly, the menu incorporated the TCM theme to a tee with an old Chinese book and scroll as the menu book. Next, some of the signature cocktails also included various TCM ingredients and came served in a fitting container, like the Chinese gourd bottle. The first drink we had was the whiteout, which is made from Nashi pear infused with Ford’s gin, youth formula and yuzu. The next drink was a Pulse, a drink made from Black Tears Dry Rum, Artichoke Liqueur, pineapple shrubs, Watermelon and Citrus. The last one was the Golden petal, which was made with Chrysanthemum Infused Ford’s Dry Gin, Chrysanthemum Blend and Gentiane Liqueur. I was pretty impressed with the cocktails, as they were delicious and not too sweet

We ordered some of the small plates for sharing, which included the Tangerine Peel Seared Jumbo Scallops XO, Truffle Carbonara “Suan Pan Zi” and fried trio mushroom fritters. The mushroom fritters and scallops are pretty decent in flavour, well-cooked, and fried and are perfect as drinking snacks. The tangerine peel sauce gave the scallops a nice tangy flavour, which balances the slight greasiness of the scallops. For the unique dish here, which is the suan pan zi, it is very different from the traditional ones, as you can’t really taste the yam flavours, and the strong truffle carbonara sauce took the main flavour profile. I like the traditional suan pan zi, so this dish was not really to my liking, as I feel the flavours did not do the original dish justice

We also had the Century Egg Tofu, Iberico pork smoked in apple wood and grilled squid. The second batch of food we were served was much better in flavour, as the pork was tender with a smoky flavour, and the tofu was smooth and creamy with a light, non-overpowering century egg taste. The squid was done well without being too rubbery, and it has a nice charred flavour, which went well with the alcoholic drinks

We also ordered the mains like Cured Crispy Atlantic Salmon and Sakura Chicken Poached Rice, Collagen Rich ‘Liu Wei’ Broth. The salmon was well-cooked with a crispy crust and soft, tender flesh, which brings out the natural flavours of the fish. The poached rice was, however, quite underwhelming as the broth was not rich and flavourful enough, and the chicken meat was very dry. We were served a dessert for our birthday celebration, which was ice cream served with traditional Chinese herbal ingredients

Overall, Synthesis is on top for environment and vibes, and great for their cocktails, but a hit and miss for their food. Some items are good, so if you are looking for a place purely for delicious drinks with a great atmosphere, this is the place to visit

Address: 3 Temasek Blvd, Tower 4 #01-643, Singapore 038983

Opening hours: 11.30 am to 2 pm and 4 pm to 10.30 pm