Food Review: Colony Dinner Buffet (The Ritz Carlton)

Credit: Colony (Facebook)

Ambience

Colony. An interesting name for this newly refurbished restaurant at Ritz Carlton. This dining establishment was previously known as Greenhouse in previous visits and while the decor has undergone a complete revamp, the menu has also gone through a significant overhaul.  No prizes for guessing why the restaurant is named Colony. The interior of the restaurant has been decorated with pictures and drawings inspired by Singapore's history as part of a colonial settlement of the British empire and this certainly gives rise to a warm friendly setting.  The ambience feels very comfortable yet luxurious, without unnecessary opulence and is certainly a nice place to chill on a quiet evening after work.  This is complemented by the impeccable service which certainly makes the dinner buffet much more alluring and pleasurable.

Buffet Spread

But a nice ambient setting with minimal lighting and a take it easy chillax atmosphere will not satisfy unless the food punches above its weight and in the context of dinner buffet alternatives such as Triple 3 and The Line, it certainly did not disappoint. 

There is substantial variety and quality on offer, ranging from fresh seafood to artisan cheeses and iberico ham to roast beef and lobsters. Of course, being a buffet restaurant, one cannot expect the freshly shucked oysters or lobsters to be on the same level as fine dining establishments such as Waku Ghin or Guy Savoy but then again some wisdom and restraint must be invoked to realize that the abovementioned restaurants do not offer the same amount of variety as Colony and are positioned at a much higher pricing tiers. 

The food at Colony certainly does represent good value for money in comparison to the highly overrated Carousel restaurant at Royal Plaza at Scotts.  The buffet area is divided into 8 different conservatory kitchens which showcase the best of Chinese, Indian Indonesian, Malaysian, Western and local dishes:

1. The Ice Bar – A variety of crustaceans on ice, salads, cold cuts and cheeses

2. The Grill & Rotisserie – A selection of Western and Asian meats grilled to perfection

3. The Steam Basket – Asian noodles, soups and other steamed delights

4. The Wok – Local wok-fried delicacies

5. The Tandoor – Indian meats, seafood and breads cooked in a traditional tandoor oven

6. The Fruit Stall – An assortment of whole fruits and fresh pressed fruit juices

7. The Patisserie – A decadent selection of sweet treats

8. The Bakery – Freshly baked breads, pastries and sandwiches

Indeed, for $88++, you get freshly shucked oysters, clams and lobsters in the fresh seafood bar, salads, artisan cheeses, iberico ham, sushi and sashimi. You are also entitled to a free flow of freshly squeezed juice ranging from fresh strawberries (yes!) to the standards like watermelon, orange and apple. Like little kids, we loved how we could pick the fruits ourselves and see them juiced. We were impressed that they also offer gooseberries, which is certainly unprecedented in most buffets we have been to. We will let the pictures do the rest of the talking :)

For the main course, we loved the good mix of western and Asian delights, such as roast beef, ratatouille, chicken and duck rice, popiah, kueh pie tee, chili crab, lobster bisque, grilled prawns. The standard of the food is pretty impressive if you look at the overall picture. The thing about buffets though, is that you are often spoilt for choice and indulging in a buffet requires an individual to be disciplined in their dining adventure as there is just so much on offer that you want to try a bit of everything. 

What's a Buffet Without Desserts?

For dessert, the restaurant also offers a good variety of cakes, crepes and ice cream. However, by the time we finished the main course, there was little room left in our stomachs for the mouth watering desserts which includes stuff like cheese cakes, tarts, mielle feuille, kueh lapis, sorbets and the like. It has to be said, however, that there are some unique ice creams on offer and one of the interesting ones was the chendol ice cream. Not sure if this is one of their signature items, but it is definitely worth a try!

Overall

Overall, Colony epitomizes the pinnacle of excellence in the world of buffets and this new dining establishment is certainly a rising star and one to look out for when the buffet craving and lust for food sets in. We will be back again, for sure :)

Variety: 9.5/10

Taste: 8/10

Ambience: 9/10

Value for money: 8/10

Overall: 8.5/10

Colony, The Ritz Carlton (website)

Buffet dinner, daily 

($78++ from Sun to Thu, $88++ on Fri & Sat)

6.30 to 10.30pm (last order at 10.15pm)

For reservations, please call +65 6434 5288.

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