The place is much spacious and brighter, providing ample space for people to move around. With the glass panels framing half the restaurant, it provides ample lighting and allows a view of street life along Bras Basah Road with SMU as the background.
The design of the restaurant adopts a very open concept, allowing people to see the hotel chefs at work and the sight of hot piping dishes been churned out does send my salivary glands working.
Cold seafood station is always the highlight for buffet dinner and one will not be disappointed with the spread of fresh oyster, snow crabs, scallops, and poached tiger prawns.
The appetizers and greens offered at the dinner buffet is pretty extensive and one can enjoy a wide variety of salads such as mixed green, seafood, caesar and asparagus. Smoked Fish Platter and even Korean Kim Chee are available to suit individual's preference.
In most buffets, Japanese section is one that screams attention but Straits cafe presents a humble spread with Soba Sauce, Chilled Japanese Noodle and Sashimi.
With refrigeration of the sashimi, the sashimi is fresh but the salmon is of a lower grade when compared to higher end buffets. How good are the sashimi depends on how picky one taste buds is to lay the verdict.
The highlights of the buffet would be the local favourites and Peranakan-styled cuisines. Local favourites such as satay and grilled seafood steal the show for the night. To enjoy Singapore delights at hotel comfort is something which not most hotel buffets gets to offer.
For seafood lovers, Straits Cafe is creative to presents seafood in different cooking style, from chilled on ice to grilled seafood. The extensive hot savoury delights will not disappoint further as it includes Stir Fry Jumbo Prawn in Classic XO Sauce, tender Steamed Seabass Fillet, succulent Deep-fried Squid with Oatmeal and Curry Leaves and tasty Baked Whole Sting Ray with Sambal Chili. Non-seafood lovers will be pleased with the rest of the selection which includes Char Grilled Lamb Cutlet, Beef Stew, Stewed Pork Belly with Sliced Yam, Sayor Lodeh and Ayam Pangang.
My only complain would be the lack of rice or noodle dishes to even out the amount of meat offered at this buffet.
Award winning laksa, also the hotel's signature, is one dish that is most commonly mentioned in blogs and forums. However, we thought that the taste was ordinary as it has neither the hay bee hiam, cockles nor coconut richness. On the other hand, I thought the mee soto steal the show for this live section for its richness in chicken stock and rempah.
Though there is no chocolate fondue nor chocolate mousse, durian pengat and durian cake are the signature items of Rendezvous. The durian pengat is rich with durian pulp but we personally preferred Goodwood Park's durian pudding. Somehow or rather the replacement of coconut milk with milk makes the taste lighter and more addictive.
The durian cake has alternating soft vanilla sponge, durian cream and a kueh like layer which resembles durian dodol. The entire combination is unique from the conventional durian mousse cake but this "king of fruits" may not appeal to the non-durian lovers but not to worry, the extensive dessert spread ensures there is something for everybody.
The spread offered by Straits Cafe is slightly different from a regular International buffet. Instead of focusing on Japanese cuisine and European dishes, Straits Cafe presents a wide array of seafood and local feast.
Many thanks to Marketing Communications Manager of Rendezvous Hotel, Ms. Christina Tan for the invitation to try out the buffet dinner and the warm hospitality given by F&B Operations Manager, Mr. Terrence Lam and the staff at the Straits Cafe. Lastly many thanks to Rendezvous Hotel for the complimentry meal.
Buffet Lunch (noon to 2:30pm)
$35++ (Mon to Sun)
Buffet Dinner (6:30pm to 10pm)
$42++ (Mon to Thurs)
$45++ (Fri to Sun, Eve of PH and PH)
High Tea (3pm to 5:30pm)
$32++
Children aged 10 and below pay 50% adult price.
For the buffet dinner, there is currently 20% discount for UOB card holders and 15% discount for OCBC card holders at all time. For DBS card holders, there is a 3 for the price of 2 promotion but this is not available for Friday and Saturday buffet dinner.
Straits Café
Rendezvous Hotel Singapore
9 Bras Basah Road
1F Rendezvous Hotel
Singapore 189559
Tel: 6336 0220
Website for dining @ Rendezvous
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