Savour is an annual food event in Singapore which brings together reputable restaurants in Singapore and Asia so that you can try a wide variety of different food at very affordable prices in one place. I went to the Savour event last year and had a great time, went to some wine and sake tasting sessions, a couple of free workshops and demonstrations and tried a lot of different types of food including some from Bo Innovation which is a restaurant in Hong Kong that belongs to one of my culinary idols Alvin Leung. I even got to meet him and take a photo with him so I was well chuffed!
This year, Savour is a lot different. Firstly it has been split up into three separate events spaced out through the year; namely Savour Gourmet, Savour Wines and Savour Christmas. Unlike the past years where it cost around $60 to attend which entitled you to $30 in food credits, this year’s Savour events are all free and you just pay for whatever you eat, drink or buy there. Sounds pretty good and although I didn’t make it to the Savour Gourmet or Savour Wines event earlier this year, I managed to get to the Savour Christmas event last week. It was held over four days from Thursday to Sunday so I went early on Thursday when it started at around 6pm as I heard that the past two events had been a bit of a disaster with a lot of unhappy people due to the crowds since it’s now a free event. It was actually surprisingly quiet for most of the evening that I was there, perhaps because it was a Thursday and it had also been raining during the day so people may not have wanted to come out for this outdoor event.
There were twelve restaurants showcasing their dishes there, ten of which were competing in the DBS Live Your Dream Initiative competition to find Singapore’s next big culinary star. Each restaurant had three of their signature dishes on offer at $6 or $12 each or you could save a little by getting a combination of two of their dishes. Restaurants such as Gattopardo Ristorante di Mare were there serving Italian Mediterranean cuisine, Saveur Art serving French cuisine and Three Buns serving up their very popular burgers.
I tried the Black Truffle Pasta ($6) from Ember which was made from truffles, ribbon pasta and parmesan. To be honest, it was pretty disappointing. The ribbon pasta was hard rather than being al dente and there was only a very slight hint of truffle flavour but that was mostly drowned out by the other mushrooms in the pasta.
My friend’s Smokin’ Daddy burger from Three Buns was big, juicy and packed full of filling and flavour. It had an aged UK Hereford beef patty, black beer and treacle streaky bacon, BBQ sauce, ketchup, smokey mayo, bread and butter pickles, cheddar cheese and fried onions all in a toasted Wagyu fat brioche bun. Sounds yummy? Well it was and according to my friend it was one of the best burgers he’d had in Singapore. The Cheesey Chips n Gravy on the other hand, also from Three Buns, was nothing special and the twice cooked potato chips in it were actually quite hard and there was very little cheese and gravy.
For people that have POSB or DBS credit or debit cards, a 10% discount was given if credits, which could be used for spending within the event, were purchased. However their system was not working for most of the first hour of the event on that day so I ended up using cash instead as they also accept that (last year only credits were allowed and there was no discount either).
After trying the food from the different restaurants you could vote for your favourite so that the chef would have a chance of winning the DBS Live Your Dream Initiative competition.
There were some bars dotted around the venue too so you could get your alcohol fix.
There was also an indoor Christmas market selling loads of Christmas goodies including chocolate, crisps, cheese, cured meat, seafood, beverages and imported Japanese fruits and vegetables which you could sample.
There was a stall selling lavender flavoured soft ice cream from Hokkaido which we just couldn’t resist. It was $5 for a cone or $15 for one with a gold leaf on top! The ice cream was deliciously smooth and creamy with a subtle lavender flavour and they were generous with the amount given too.
Although Savour Christmas wasn’t quite as good as the Savour event that I went to last year because it didn’t have any workshops or demonstrations, it was still enjoyable and had a very festive feel. There were a lot of decorations everywhere, people in costumes on stilts handing out sweets, Christmas music playing (there was also live entertainment over the weekend), a huge Christmas tree in the market as well as a great view over Marina Bay and the CBD at it’s new location this year on Bayfront Avenue.
Hope you’ve enjoyed reading about my experience at the Savour Christmas 2016 event. Please feel free to leave a comment below if you would like to add anything or have any questions at all!
