Canton Fair Buffet Dinner At The Line @ Shangri-La Hotel – Orchard Road, Singapore

Winner of “Best Buffet” in The Chope Diners’ Choice Awards 2017, Singapore Tatler’s Singapore Best Restaurants 2016/2017 and TripAdvisor Certificate of Excellence (Outstanding Service & Quality) in 2015 and 2017, The Line has upped the ante once again with Canton Fair featuring a range of Cantonese delicacies, desserts and drinks.

 

The Line at the Shangri-La Hotel Singapore is a 400-seater all-day dining buffet restaurant. The Canton Fair is part of its all-inclusive buffet boasting varied fare from its 16 theatre kitchens hosted every evening (6pm till 10pm) from 10 January to 28 February.

 

Canton Fair Buffet Dinner At The Line @ Shangri-La Hotel - Suckling Pig

 

The Canton Fair was the brainchild of Executive Steven Ng – a 30-veteran in the industry – who used to be the head chef at Shang Palace, a fine dining Chinese restaurant at the hotel. His inspiration for the main dishes at Canton Fair was drawn from the Lunar New Year dishes that he used to partake in Hongkong. Traditionally these dishes are symbolic of abundance, prosperity, good health and happiness.

 

The main meat dishes are cooked between 2 and 3 hours. The piglets are selected when they are still unweaned and about 4 weeks’ old. In this case, the Roasted Suckling Pig looked a little bigger than usual, but the meat was still tender and of course the crispy and glossy skin gave a nice “crack” sound when bitten into.

 

Canton Fair Buffet Dinner At The Line @ Shangri-La Hotel - Roast Pork

 

I was not too impressed with the Roast Pork as I expected a nice layer of fat to counterbalance the whole crispiness of the lean meat and the crackling skin. It was a little overcooked for my liking.

 

The Braised Pork Knuckle, a traditional favourite for its wealth symbolism, was tender and full of flavourwas first roasted before it was braised for 2 hours to retain the knuckle in its entirety.  The result is the meat was tender, flavourful and succulent.

 

Canton Fair Buffet Dinner At The Line @ Shangri-La Hotel - Braised Pork knuckle

 

Chef Ng uses quality ingredients, and this shows in the Braised Bird’s Nest with Lobster & Nameko Mushrooms and Braised Bird’s Nest with Crab Meat & Roe. The first braise had a nice and sweet lobster flavour which blended well with the mushrooms. The Braised Bird’s Nest with Crab Meat & Roe did not fare as the braise did not have the full flavour of the first.

 

Canton Fair Buffet Dinner At The Line @ Shangri-La Hotel - Braised Bird’s Nest with Lobster & Nameko Mushrooms

 

The Abalone Fried Rice was nothing out of ordinary. I believe abalone is best cooked in a sauce or soup to enhance its flavour.

 

Canton Fair Buffet Dinner At The Line @ Shangri-La Hotel - Abalone Fried Rice

 

As part of the Canton Fair, Chef Ng also presented a veritable selection of Cantonese dishes for diners: Hongkong Fried Bee Hoon

 

Canton Fair Buffet Dinner At The Line @ Shangri-La Hotel - Hong Kong Fried Bee Hoon

 

Sliced Beef with Vegetable,

 

Canton Fair Buffet Dinner At The Line @ Shangri-La Hotel - Sliced Beef With Vegetables

 

Sweet & Sour Pork,

 

Canton Fair Buffet Dinner At The Line @ Shangri-La Hotel - Sweet & Sour Pork

 

Wok-Fried chicken with Celery and Cashew Nuts,

 

Canton Fair Buffet Dinner At The Line @ Shangri-La Hotel - Wok-Fried chicken with Celery and Cashew Nuts,

 

Prawn Paste Chicken.

 

Canton Fair Buffet Dinner At The Line @ Shangri-La Hotel - Prawn Paste Chicken

 

For desserts, I tried the Roselle Flower Jelly, reputed to have good Vitamin C and various health benefits, which was citrusy and light, and grass-jelly and soya bean milk, which was quite refreshing and not too sweet.

 

Canton Fair Buffet Dinner At The Line @ Shangri-La Hotel - Canton Desserts

 

If you are here for buffet on Tuesdays and Thursdays for the Canton Fair (until 28 February), you must not miss the Marine Harvest which features a veritable selection of finest seafood sourced from the States, Canada and Japan.

 

Canton Fair Buffet Dinner At The Line @ Shangri-La Hotel - Seafood available only on Tuesday and Thursday

 

For those not into seafood, you can indulge in international gastronomic delights such as the Stanbroke Wagyu Beef Rib-eye Steak, Joojeh kebab (chicken), chicken and beef satays, sashimi and local favourites such as Laksa and Popiah.

 

Families celebrating the Lunar New Year may want to consider this buffet when the young and old can come together to partake in the huge spread including the delicacies from Canton Fair. There is bound to be something for everyone.

 

Canton Fair Buffet Dinner At The Line @ Shangri-La Hotel - More dessert

 

 

NAHMJ Verdict

 

The Canton Fair buffet has enough to satisfy some discerning taste buds. Together with the rest of buffet spread, this is quite a winner at under $100 a head especially for those celebrating the upcoming Lunar New Year.

 

 

 

The Line @ Shangri-La Hotel

22 Orange Grove Road, Lower Lobby, Tower Wing, Shangri-La Hotel, Singapore 258350
Tel: +65 6213 4275

Websitehttp://www.shangri-la.com/mobile/singapore/shangrila/dining/restaurants/the-line/

 

Opening Hours

 

Breakfast Buffet: Monday – Friday  0600 to 1030, Saturday, Sunday and Public Holidays  0600 to 1100

Lunch Buffet:  Monday – Friday 1200 to 1430, Saturday, Sunday and Public Holidays 1200 to 1500

Dinner Buffet:  Monday – Sunday  1800 to 2200

À la carte: Monday – Sunday  0600 to 0000

 

Getting There

 

By Car

  • Hotel Carpark

 

By MRT           

  • North-South Line – Orchard station
  • Downtown Line –  Stevens station

 

By Bus

  • Service 972, 190, NR2, NR3, 105 and 132

 

 

Rating: 7/10

 

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