As I stepped into Madam Q Steakhouse on a lazy Mon afternoon at about 1:30pm, it felt as if I had booked the whole place. My friend and I were the only customer in the 3-months-old restaurant, leading me to wonder if it was because the food was bad or the service atrocious? I was about to find out.

The waitress promptly arrived with the menu – 2 sheets of coloured paper sandwiched inside a clear plastic sheet. Hmm, not the kind of presentation you’d expect from a place that charges you $26 for a rib-eye steak with mushroom sauce, which I ordered, or $18 for the pan-fried fillet of salmon with barbecue sauce my friend asked for.

The waitress, however, was experienced, trying hard to assess what I would have liked by asking me questions such as whether I wanted something light or heavy, etc.

When the food arrived after 20 min, the portions appeared small on the 10-inch plates with everything in the centre. Which isn’t to say everything was casually tossed there, because the steak was carefully placed above the stacked potato wedges, which seemed slightly burnt. The garden vegetables were also nicely arranged and added a burst of colour to the otherwise plain looking white plate through the use of the boiled carrots, cauliflower, broccoli, pineapples, tomatoes and onions.

But of course, it’s useless to have food that looks aesthetically pleasing, yet fail miserably in the taste department. Thankfully, the 220g medium well rib-eye did deliver, and proved to be relatively tender.

Chef Sarabanan credits this to the steak’s New Zealand, rather than Australian, origins. When cut, a thin pink line showed through the middle part of the slab, which is acceptable for a medium-well steak. And as I took my first bite, the meat juices oozed out. I felt that the mushroom sauce definitely added to the steak’s juiciness, but the button mushrooms used in the sauce were a little too salty for my liking.

The Norwegian salmon that was presented the same way was so soft that you didn’t even need the knife. Just using one’s fork was enough to break it up into huge flakes.

The salmon tasted fresh and, although a slice of lemon was provided, the spicy home-made barbecue sauce was already doing a good job at masking any fishiness.

The golden brown potato wedges initially appeared unremarkable, with a crispy texture on the outside and a soft centre. But what made it special was that somehow, it reminded me of curry puffs, which led to me to conclude that curry powder was added to give the wedges that extra zest. It sat well with me, and I’d definitely want to try it again.

The restaurant, seems to be targeting couples going by the soft instrumental music playing in the background. The romantic mood is enhanced in the evenings, according to the waitress, as a candle and a small vase with a flower are placed on every table to allow diners the chance to enjoy a candlelit dinner. That’s not all. There’s also a table set in a special corner, which is perfect for that 1 couple who wants more privacy.

Kathryn Quek, the friendly owner who was probably in her 40s, joked that if a couple gave her their photos, she could help them put these inside the small clear pocket on the 2 heart-shaped pillows attached to the wall.

Talking about pillows, the restaurant, which has been decorated by the owner, also has square pillows stuck randomly around the walls. Initially, I thought these blue, white and yellow pillows were just for decoration purposes, but I later found out that they actually help to absorb sound waves and make the place less echo-ey.

To liven up the restaurant, the ceiling fans were painted bright yellow. Further, there are paintings, mostly of buildings and sceneries from the owner’s private collection, being displayed.

Overall, the prices and quality of the food at Madam Q Steakhouse are quite reasonable, but, being a new restaurant, it’s still working on improving their menu to offer diners more choices.

UrbanWire gives Madam Q Steakhouse 3 out of 5 stars.

Madam Q Steakhouse is located at:

12 Jalan Leban (Off Upper Thomson Road)

Telephone number:6552 1407

Opening Hours:

Mon -Sun
Lunch: 11am – 3pm
Dinner: 6pm – 10pm

Note: Prices above are not inclusive of the 10% service charge.