A surprising find: La Sante

La Sante is not your typical restaurant. It's more like stumbling upon a well-kept secret. With only 14 seats, this place is as cozy as it gets. It's so tucked away that even some locals haven't stumbled upon it yet. Lucky for me, I did.

The restaurant only serves a single set dinner menu, so go through the menu to make sure you are happy with it before making a booking. To keep things fresh, the chef owner, who is a Le Cordon Bleu graduate, changes the menu every month. They also offer a small wine list, but should you wish to bring your own bottle, corkage fee is a reasonable MOP 100 (US$12.5) per bottle.

So after a few failed attempts earlier this year, I was finally able to secure a table for a family dinner this month! And honestly, I was impressed.

Wait, hold on. Before we dive into this tale of culinary exploration, I have to give you a heads up. You will not find any over-the-top food blogger drama here. I am just your regular person sharing a cool food experience. So, before you start expecting some Shakespearean food poetry, let's be clear - this is just me, your average human, sharing a fabulous food find.

With that out of the way, let's dive into the August menu!

🦀 To start: Crab salad

Now, I am not usually one to get excited about salads, but this one was exceptional. The presentation was not obvious: a thin, circular jelly disc placed on top of a (very) generous bed of crab meat. I was also surprised by the hint of tom yum flavour in the dish. Overall, an excellent start to the meal!

🐌 Second entree: Escargot puff pastry

The puff pastry was flaky, buttery and perfectly cooked. Inside the pastry was escargot cooked with mushrooms and hazelnuts. The flavour was quite rich and I enjoyed it, but it was a little too buttery for me (if such a thing is possible in a French restaurant).

🐟 Main course: Red seabream · scallop · carrots

Honestly, by this time I was getting a bit full already, so I was relieved when the seabream came out in a manageable size! You can't see it in the photo but the fish filet was partially rolled together with a mystery gel-like layer on one size. Could that be the scallop mousse? I should have asked. In any event, it did not add much flavour-wise to the dish. That is not to say that it was a bad dish. The seabream was perfectly cooked, nicely seasoned and well complemented by the sweetness of the carrot puree. The scallop was perhaps just too subtle for my taste buds! 😂

🍐 Dessert: Poached pear tart · pistachio ice-cream

A warm-cold combo that left me craving more -- of the homemade pistachio ice-cream. Frankly, I was not a fan of the poached pear tart, which was a tad too dry and did not have enough pear flavour. The ice-cream, which was sprinkled with toasted pistachios, was definitely the star. I just wish it would not melt as quickly and that there was more of it! All in all, a strong ending to the meal.

So yes, the food was great. And at MOP 580 (US$72) per person (no service charge required), I think it is excellent value for what you get, which is essentially a delicious 4-course French dinner prepared by a Cordon Bleu chef. Still, that is no small change, but I will happily keep this restaurant in my back pocket for a special occasion.

Since La Sante can only accommodate 14 seats, I strongly advise you to book well in advance. Online reservations for the next month usually open up around the 22nd of the current month. So to book for a day in say, October, I will start checking the online booking page around September 22nd. They also take telephone reservations, but it is handy to be able to first check out the menu on the online booking page.

To wrap up, if you're ever in the mood for a quiet dinner with a surprising twist, La Sante might just be your thing. Imagine it as a little escape where you can enjoy good French food without the fuss.