PS.Cafe Palais Renaissance — Restaurant in Singapore

Despite the hype (word-of-mouth & Google reviews), our dinner experience here was pretty disappointing. Reserved a table & visited on a Friday evening for dinner and the restaurant was almost full. Atmosphere was nice, as per what you'll get from a somewhat high-end restaurant.

We ordered the truffle shoestring fries ($18), barramundi ($31), spicy king prawn aglio olio ($32) and a seasonal special Pistachio & Chocolate cake ($14). Fries were really disappointing (lack of truffle taste) even though it looked good, you're better off getting truffle fries from nearby bars around Orchard. Furthermore, service was really slow, from the time of ordering till we got our fries, the wait was nearly 30 minutes... We actually noticed that the fries were already sitting at the kitchen counter for service crew to pick up for quite some time, but the staff conveniently proceeded to serve finish the mains that were waiting to be served (which continuously grew from 1 to about 4 or 5), and left our fries to the last... Food wise, for the price range, you're better off eating elsewhere. The aglio olio came with 4 prawns and was way too oily, you're better off heading to Saizeriya. Barramundi was cooked pretty well. For our dessert, after requesting for dessert to be served, we waited over 20 minutes for the slice of pistachio & chocolate cake. At the 15 min mark, we asked another staff about our dessert again, and turns out, the initial staff who attended to us thought we were already served the dessert and came over. She then went 'didnt you all already get your dessert?' after we told her no and seeing no trace of dessert plate on our table 😶, she went to check in with another staff @ the dessert kiosk. Turns out, they forgot about our dessert 🌚 when our dessert finally arrived, no apology or what not was given and can you believe it! We waited close to 30 minutes for a slice of a 'very typical and meh' cake that costs $14! 🌝 You're definitely better off getting a slice of Lady M / Coffee Bean / Star bucks cake for a cheaper price. Total damage for 2 pax - $112.86

Overall, will not recommend and will...

It was my first visit back with a colleague after a year. Previously a regular customer of this outlet for over 10 years given the service levels are better than Dempsey. Still great ambiance and food. Service left a little more to be desired. We were accommodated at the entrance as a walk in with a caveat that we had to vacate the table at 730pm. Which was fine. The filipino guy who took us in and took our order was very nice and accommodating. A reason why I return to this outlet. Bug I suppose his shift ended and left us in the hands of a guy named Jeremy.

Jeremy was unfortunately sub par to say the least. He obviously wanted us out as the time approached and kept returning to clear our table, and didn't even bother to ask if we were finished with our plates in front of us. Before I could say anything the plate was lifted and he went off.

Towards the end, he bluntly told us that the table is needed for another guest and if I can settle the bill. There was no politeness to the request, no apologies. As if I am just being a nuisance.

I think the manager needs to better train such employees because we certainly don't come to pay 40bucks for a piece of fish and some soba, but the overall experience.

I have been a regular here, and I knew the staff at one point quite well and 9 of 10 times, always accommodating and nice. Those people did their jobs well and valued customer satisfaction. People like Jeremy don't, I think he does the job because it is a job and he may not have the passion to be in a service industry.

A shout out to the proprietors, this is not the only staff you have who is like this, it is a reason why I don't go to all your PS outlets and preferred this one. There are many other places one can visit and have polite service, even if one is overstepping the timing boundaries. So if Palais continues in this way, well why should I pay the extra expensive parking in a little corner of inaccessible orchard road to visit this outlet.

I would have rated this 5 of 5 but this chap, gets a 1 of 5, so it's a 3 to...

Summary: I was expecting the food to be good but it was on the whole average. Service and ambience were on the other hand good. So was it worth it? it's hard to say le...ok la. Due to the cost you neo, I won't be coming back on my own, maybe with a friend, and also if I get my bonus, haha.

Food: Ordered Garlic Chicken Breast Penne, Truffle Oil French Fries, and Chocolate Cake.

The Penne ($26) 'liao' consisted of mushrooms, rocket vege, sprinkling of cheese, chicken breast, and penne. The 'liao' serving size is ok but i'd like more. Carbs a lot more and texture-wise, a little chewy for me but my friend was ok with it. Tomato sauce was good.

French fries ($16) was a disappointment. Truffle flavour was good and I liked the cheese sprinkling on top. Let down was in the texture consistency department. Some were crispy on the outside and soft and fluffy on the inside but it was 50-50. Other half was crunchy all the way in, a no-no for me. My benchmark is Mcdonalds fries and its texture is better.

Chocolate cake ($16) was excellent. I liked that its flavour was deep, enough moistness, and balancing the deep chocolate flavour was the vanilla ice cream.

Service: The service staff were polite and helpful. I managed to change seats to a more windy and private spot with their help which made conversations with my friend nicer.

Ambience: We came at night and first impression was that it is nice and cosy. The place was appropriately lit with the focus on the food. There's a strong smell of flowers if you are inside. If seated outside, then the ceiling-to-floor sized windows makes your dining experience breezy.

Bill: $68...