Level 1, Goodwood Park Hotel, 22 Scotts RoadTel: 6730 1744 / 6737 7411Operating Hours: Lunch: Noon – 2.30pm Dinner: 7pm – 10.30pm

The Gordon grill has taken on a lighter, more modern decor, whilst retaining its reputation for serving some of the best steaks in town. I started with a wonderfully earthy, creamy and frothy mushroom cappuccino before moving on to the deservedly famous steaks. The US wagyu beef striploin ($4.50 per 10g) – cooked to melting, fatty perfection on the restaurant’s namesake – was ripe with the savoury, foie gras like notes characteristic of good Japanese-style beef, an indulgence that was worth every penny. A less expensive 250 day-aged grain-fed Australian beef striploin, at $2.40 per 100g,  was almost as tender and well marbled, but far more classically ‘beefy’. I wouldn’t have dreamt of not having a steak, but my companion said that the alternative entree of slow-cooked kurobuta was exceptional, and it did indeed look wonderfully sticky, gelatinous and yielding. A lovely selection of wines from the Old and New world were widely sampled – being available by the glass – and much appreciated for their miraculous ability to complement the meat and infuse a sense of well being. Our waitress also impressed, not only with her un-snooty, helpful and ever-so-beguiling manner, but also with her knowledge of the restaurant, menu and produce, and her uncanny – somehow attractive – ability to slice the exact requested weight of beef from the cuts displayed on the trolley. Full to bursting, and always keen to tread the line between gourmet and gourmand, I opted for that classic, oh-so-frilly-and-French dessert: crepes Suzette – flambéed at the table for that extra, Old-world theatrical thrill – silky, refreshing and indulgent, who could ask for more?