Cuisine: Italian

Address : 1 Fullerton Square, Singapore 049178

Nearest MRT: Raffles Place

Perched on the very top of The Fullerton Hotel Singapore, The Lighthouse Restaurant & Rooftop Bar occupies the exact location where a beacon once guided mariners into the safety of the Singapore port in the 20th-century. The Italian restaurant commands one of the most mesmerising views of Singapore’s skyline and Marina Bay waterfront. In the kitchen, Chef Carlo Marengoni prepares authentic Italian cuisine with specialties and quality produce from Campania, Sardinia and Sicily.

Since we arrived around 7pm and the sun was setting, the waitress recommended us to go up to the rooftop bar to enjoy some drinks first and to admire the sunset. I had the Temasek while she had the Singapore Sling. We enjoyed the drinks, not too much syrup and there was a decent amount of alcohol. We enjoyed the sun setting as well as the breeze. There were quite a few families, with excited kids using the binoculars on deck. It was a nice ambience, with the view of Marina Bay Sands that I have seen over a thousand times, but it still mesmerises me.

The Singapore Sling ($23 ) at Lighthouse bar is as good as the one at Raffles hotel in my opinion. The other drink is Temasek ($24), a cocktail with local flavours such as lemongrass, cinnamon and some tropical fruits. The Singapore Sling was served in a nice glass.

After drinks, we went down to the restaurant. It is a cozy restaurant with around 20 tables. Many couples were on their date there. We were not very hungry, so we did not order the set menu $108, which includes appetiser, entree, main course, dessert and coffee/ tea. It is worth it to order the menu if you would like to sample the full Italian tasting menu. For us, we had already tried the full Italian course over at No Menu restaurant in Tanjong Pagar, so we decided to skip it this time.

The Lighthouse is one of Singapore’s most highly regarded Italian restaurants. Classic dishes are given a fine-dining twist with luxurious seasonal ingredients.

I ordered the slow-cooked beef cheeks ($49) while she had the lobster meat with angel hair pasta ($39). For mine, the waitress told me that I would have to wait for around half an hour for the dish to be prepared. I went ahead with the option. However, it took only around 20 minutes for my dish to be ready. While waiting, we were served freshly baked bread with extra virgin olive oil and cheese crisps.

As for her, even though the pasta was in the entree segment, it was quite a sizeable portion. There were chunks of Boston lobster meat and the pasta was presented in a curled formation, probably using a fork to achieve such a shape. The pasta was al dente and the lobster meat tasted fresh. The bisque sauce used was just enough for the pasta.

The beef cheek was really tender as it was cooked in red wine, served with carrots puree and liquorice on the side. Even though there was no carbs for this dish, I still felt quite full after finishing it.

The view of Marina Bay Sands from the restaurant was impressive. It is a popular place to celebrate birthdays or anniversaries, or just to have a romantic dinner. Apparently some of the window seat tables are so popular that they are reserved by customers up to six months in advance. Service was impeccable as well, the waiter walked to our table to check on how we were doing throughout the meal. He recommended some wine to pair with our dish, but we declined politely. Overall, it was an authentic fine dining experience. Even though the dress code explicitly stated that it was smart casual, the restaurant did not turn away those who came in slippers or sandals. I guess they can afford to pay the meal after all and should not be turned away.