Discerning diners can get more out of their dining experience at Marina Bay Sands these days. Providing an alternative to the usual feed-and-forget session, “Craft to Taste” at Marina Bay Sands are casual tasting sessions where patrons get to interact with the chef, see where and how the meal is prepared, in addition to picking off the kitchen table for an immersive experience.
Helmed by celebrity chef David Myers, Adrift was where I got a first taste of this “Craft to Taste” sessions. The menu at the restaurant is modern Asian with a Californian twist. On the lesson planned for the day, I got a sneak peek at how to prepare a Ikura Hamachi salad, a tuna sashimi appetiser and a seared beef entrée. The dishes were interesting for its melding of Japanese and contemporary West Coast flavours.
We were introduced to traditional ingredients and then shown how new ones can be combined to craft a whole new dish. The tuna appetiser, for example, was accompanied by a topping of avocado puree and soaked in an olive oil and sea salt marinade, which is the Californian influence in this dish.
Throughout the session, there was casual banter, and interesting opinions were exchanged. We learnt that sushi was originally served as just a snack and never constituted a compete meal, amongst other nuggets of trivia. I found the hands-on, informal nature of the cooking classes very enjoyable. I also liked that the dishes were not difficult to master and could be easily put into practice in no time at all. For the full session, one can learn how to make Hamachi Shabu Shabu, Mizuna, Ponzu dressing, marinated tuna, Shiso, and wing bean okra salad.
Lucas Swallows, the property mixologist at Marina Bay Sands, conducts his classes at Sky on 57. Hailing from New Mexico and having cut his teeth at various Las Vegas cocktail competitions before moving across the globe, his recipes pull together local flavours to design drinks suited to the local environment.
We were shown the proper technique to extract juices for making cocktails, a process called muddling. It’s not an overly complex procedure, but isn’t as straightforward as it may first seem. The appropriate degree of pressure has to be applied to bring out the best flavours. At his course, you can expect to learn how to make Malacca Mojitos, ginger raspberry Daiquiris, and lemongrass spritzers. We had the opportunity to try an absolutely delicious Pina Colada made from fresh ingredients. It was truly a treat, and made all the more special with a great view from the rooftop of Marina Bay Sands.
Details of MBS Masterclass series “Craft to Taste” can be found here. If you miss the first series of the Masterclass, fret not – Marina Bay Sands will be rolling out a second series from October to November.
