BY THE time we reached Quentin’s, the avenue alongside it was already enjoying a reprieve from vehicular traffic and the skies were ready to turn sunset orange. So when the waitress offered to sit us inside the dimly lit dining area, in one of those elegant tables covered in two layers of cloth, red and black, we opted to dine al fresco. You know, the way people used to in Singapore back when they still lived in proper houses with balconies?

For those who are unaware, Quentin’s first opened in November at a charming shop house along East Coast Road. It immediately attracted a cult following; such is the rarity of restaurants that serve Eurasian food. It is widely believed that the best place to have this type of cuisine is at a Eurasian household. Quentin Pereira, the restaurant’s owner, is said to use recipes from his grandmother.

Quentin’s new location along Ceylon Road is on the ground level of the Eurasian Community House. After placing our orders, we took an impromptu tour of the building. The museum on the first level displays black-and-white pictures of the country’s pioneer Eurasian population, mostly borne out of (but certainly not limited to) intermarriages between the British and Indians. In one corner, you can also listen to interesting recordings of typical conversations in a Eurasian kitchen.

The walk certainly put is in the mood for food, which arrived promptly after we came back to our table.

Meaty cutlet, served warm, was more like a croquette.

We started with the Meaty Cutlets, which weren’t cutlets at all but croquettes. Still, they were very warm and filling, and went well with our other appetizer, the Patchri, or fried eggplant with a sweet-and-sour sauce. Eurasian? You tell us.

Next came the main course: Chicken Stew Kristang-style, Prawn Bostador, and Pork Vindaloo. The stew tasted like a watered-down version of chicken soup; it wasn’t prawns in the bostador but shrimps; and the pork in the vindaloo smelled very pungent and tasted like it went swimming in fish sauce.

The pungent Pork Vindaloo, cooked with fish sauce, according to the waitress.

We asked the waitress if they use fish sauce in the vindaloo and she said yes. Now, vindaloo is traditionally made with tamarind, vinegar and garlic. The Indians do it that way, so did the Portugese from Goa who were the first to bring the dish to Asia. So, either Quentin’s has invented its own recipe or were using lamb instead of pork. We certainly hope we weren’t served pork that was about to expire!

The cheesecake with a surprise ingredient: gelatin.

By this time, our curiousity about Eurasian food had turned into disappointment. So we thought, why not save the night with dessert? Our waitress suggested the Sugee Cake, a popular Eurasian desert, but we thought it looked too plain so we asked for Quentin’s Cheese Cake (“As cheesy as it gets, topped with peaches and served chilled”) and the Chocolate Cake with Ice Cream.

The chiffon in the chocolate cake was so dry it broke into pieces when we tore a fork into it, while the cheesecake was served in a round aluminum tray. It certainly looked homemade, but we were not prepared for the surprise ingredient that wasn’t mentioned in the menu. The cake was topped with peaches wrapped in gelatin. Cheesecake with a gelatin topping? Eurasian? We would have asked the other people in the restaurant but all the tables were empty. You tell us.