Lawry’s The Prime Rib (Singapore) @ Mandarin Gallery

Once in a long while, you will forgive yourself for indulging in a little luxury. Rachel and I have not had a nice romantic dinner together for a long while since Asher was born. Last Tuesday, after a tiring day taking care of Asher and sending him to KK Hospital for his medical check-ups, we decided to dine at Lawry’s The Prime Rib (Singapore) restaurant at Mandarin Gallery as a long-deserved “reward”.

My parents kindly took care of Asher at home while we were out for dinner.We arrived at Lawry’s at around 8pm, way past dinner time, exhausted, hungry and ready to eat a cow each. Somehow, a giant slab of prime steak seems to be our common comfort food in situations like this.

Rich in heritage (via the official website), the original Lawry’s The Prime Rib was founded on La Cienega Boulevard in Beverly Hills by a Lawrence L. Frank and a Walter Van de Kamp. Much of the splendor of the meal was in the way each part of the dinner was prepared and presented. Lawrence designed the famous “Silver” carts so the beef could be carved at tableside.  Through the years, the basic elements of Lawry’s The Prime Rib have remained virtually unchanged. It is still a family business, with the second and third generations of Franks and Van de Kamps working side by side in the restaurants’ operation. Modifications and improvements have been made to meet today’s demands, but the meals served remain timeless.

The Lawry’s restaurant in Singapore is no pushover either, having picked up a slew of awards since it begun its operation here in 1999:

* Wine & Dine – Singapore’s Top Restaurant 2001 to 2009
* Excellent Food Award 2002 & 2004
* Singapore Tatler – Singapore Best Restaurants 2002 & 2004
* HSBC – Singapore Top 100 Signature Dish Award 2006
* American Express – Singapore Best Restaurants 2005
* Simply Dining – Singapore Top Restaurant 2008
* Singapore Business Review – Top 50 Restaurants Award 2009
* Citibank Gourmet Pleasures – Citibank & The Business Times Gourmet Choice Awards: Winner American / International Category 2009
* Singapore Tourism Board – Singapore Service Star 2009

Once we were settled at a cosy window-side table, Rachel and I both ordered Lawry’s signature USDA Prime Rib Dinner set which comes with the following:

– The Famous Lawry’s Original Spinning Bowl Salad
– Yorkshire Pudding
– Idaho Mashed Potatoes
– Whipped Cream Horseradish

Rachel ordered the The Lawry’s Cut (250g, Lawry’s traditional and most popular cut) for her main while I ordered The English Cut (200g, Three thin slices of beef, deftly carved to heighten the rich beef flavor).

While Rachel’s order cost more and was chunkier in portion, mine was the one which tasted better. With thinly cut slices, the gravy soaked into the meat better and you get more flavor from the grill as well.

For just these two orders, the bill came up to around S$180 after GST and service charge. Pretty steep by our standard as Rachel and I are more comfortable with dining at around S$30 to S$80 for 2 pax at restaurants in Singapore.

Nonetheless, the service was really excellent (although the waitresses look really cheesy and medieval in their French maid costumes), ambient was fantastic and food was great.

It felt good to splurge a little once in a while.

On our way out, we were presented with a Christmas goodie bag. There is a S$50 discount voucher inside for our next visit, with a minimum spending of S$100. I am unlikely to visit Lawry’s anytime soon. If anyone wants the voucher, drop me a reply to this blog post leaving your email address (so that I can contact you for your mailing address to snail mail the voucher). I will do a random draw and give it away. 🙂

Address: 333A Orchard Road, #04-01/31 Mandarin Gallery, Singapore
Tel: +65 6836 3333
Opening Hours:
Sundays – Thursdays: 11.30am – 10.00pm
Fridays / Saturdays / Eve & Public Holidays: 11.30am – 10.30pm

10 Dec 2011: Update on Contest Winner 

A total of 8 readers left a comment to win the $50 Lawry’s voucher. Using Random.Org to generate a random number between 1 to 8, the winner is…

Congratulations to Zuriel! I will be contacting you via email to get your mailing address to mail the voucher to. 🙂