WOOD is currently one of Singapore's hottest new restaurants.

And, simply because of that, I would usually stay away. More often than not, the hype is just that - hot air. But I was intrigued by what Wood has to offer.

This 176-seater restaurant offers food that is prepared with wood: Wood roasting, grilling and smoking.

I'm happy to say my first visit was a good one. It left me gushing, and I wasn't the only one. Janet Eu was so impressed, she returned to try more dishes.

She said: "It is a good place to eat as it uses only natural foods in its cooking. It gets the thumbs up from me."

Adrian Koh liked the ambience.

He said: "It wasn't over the top and a good balance between formal and informal."

The location of the restaurant - at a corner of VivoCity nearest to the Sentosa entry point - may be a minus for some.

Still, while it means a longer walk from the centre court, it also means a quieter place to dine.

For even more privacy, there are a few private rooms within the restaurant, the most intimate being the private two-person room.

How's this for privacy: The room even has its own entrance!

WHAT WE LIKED:

The cherry wood-smoked scallops with sweet corn puree ($24) was a clear winner.

It had a smoky fragrance that enhanced the sweetness of the scallops.

Said Lee Kee Keong, who credited the corn puree for making it special: "I'm not a seafood person, but this dish made me rethink that."

Janet added: "The wood chips used to cook the scallops made them aromatic and delicious."

Another winner is the five-spiced Kurobuta pork belly ($38), which I loved. The skin was crispy (you'd have thought a Hong Kong master chef had a go at it) and the meat was juicy.

Janet said: "The pork was moist and it didn't have a ?porky' taste."

We also enjoyed the smoked foie gras pizza ($28), whole roast fish ($32) and stone-grilled clam rice ($28).

Overall, we were impressed.

Said Adrian: "I haven't been wowed for a while, but the uniqueness of the food is remarkable, given the simplicity of the ingredients used."

WHAT WE DIDN'T:

I asked a few people about the restaurant, and a colleague told me that while he had two great dinners there, his friend had only an average lunch.

For the record, the lunch for the Table For 4 crew was great.

The only dish that didn't knock our socks off was the wood-roasted spring chicken ($28).

Kee Keong said: "The presentation was nice, but the taste didn't stand out."

I found it ordinary too. When compared to the other more flavourful dishes, it came across as rather dull and uninspired.

REVIEW IN 4 WORDS:

You must try this!

WHERE:

Wood Restaurant & Bar
#01-53, VivoCity
(opposite HSBC)
Tel: 63759663

This article was first published in The New Paper on Feb 22 2008.

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