After making its rounds across the world, immersive dining experience Banquet of Hoshena finally finds its way to Singapore, bringing with it the magic and wonder of a mystical land. Through clever 3D projection mapping and interactive aspects, a seven-course menu is elevated with a storyline that will transform dinnertime into a whole fantastical journey.
If this brings to mind Le Petit Chef, you’re not entirely mistaken – it’s the same team of people behind both experiences. While the former brings patrons and their taste buds on a voyage around the world, Banquet of Hoshena will have you entering a realm of fairies and folklore, as you partake in an adventure to help the queen of Hoshena restore love and life back into her fallen kingdom. We tried it out for ourselves and here’s our review.
Banquet of Hoshena: Singapore location and menu
Banquet of Hoshena has had various pop-up locations globally, including Theater Hof in Germany, Raffles Hotel in Dubai, The Ritz-Carlton Jakarta, and plenty more. Right now, this unique experiential dinner has made its home in Luce, an Italian restaurant that dishes out brunch buffets, drinks, and a la carte dinners at InterContinental Singapore.
The menu differs across each location. For Singapore’s version, you’ll be sitting down to a seven-course European fusion meal with some Asian influences, and a non-alcoholic palate cleanser drink in between. There are no alcohol pairings that come with the meal. There’s a vegetarian menu too, and patrons with seafood allergies can request for certain items in the standard menu to be swapped out for their vegetarian equivalents. View the full menu here.
Our experience at Banquet of Hoshena
Without revealing too many spoilers, here’s what you can expect at Banquet of Hoshena; You’ll be dining in an otherwise dark room, illuminated with projections appearing directly on your table, dinnerware, and screens that serve as backdrops. The scenes shift as the story unfolds, transforming from scattering autumn leaves to dancing flames and lush flowering gardens. There are portions of audience participation, but it won’t involve interaction with other diners or anything crazy that will have you going out of your comfort zone – so introverts can heave a sigh of relief.
There were some surprising moments during the meal, and many a smartphone was whipped out for that money shot at pretty much every stage. The specially-composed music also helps set the appropriate mood for each scene, so all your senses are engaged at once.
However, we find the storyline narration a tad draggy and repetitive at certain points. The ‘talking head’ (a mannequin hat stand) that is the queen is rather disconcerting too; Perhaps it’s due to the fact that it remains stationary, with very slight projection-geared movement of lips when speaking – which causes a bit of disconnect with the diner compared to, say, having a live host or at least a more personable virtual figure that appears more dynamic and lifelike.
Prices and whether it’s worth your money
At a staggering $198 per person, pre-GST and service charge, Banquet of Hoshena is best kept for a special occasion. It’s certainly pricey for what it is – a multi-course meal with projection mapping – but if you’re one who loves an extra sprinkle of pizzazz in your life and have the cash to splurge, why not? It is, after all, an experiential dinner, so what you’re paying for is more than just a meal – it’s all about the vibes.
Taste-wise, the food turned out pleasant enough, though we can’t say we were majorly blown away. The raviolo aperto in particular feels a tad uninspired. It’s dubbed Rage Unleased, served while hell-like flames consume the table, and comes with Sichuan pepper, Timut pepper, and chilli oil on the side. But ironally, even a large heaping of the condiments doesn’t pack on any hint of spice, so it was quite the non-fiery anticlimax.
That said, we have praises for the cocoa tuile mille-feuille dessert, which comes with a strong coffee chantilly and rich chocolate ice cream to round off the meal perfectly.
As a small eater, I was adequately full by the end of the dinner, but my male colleague was understandably yet to be satiated due to the relatively tiny portions and lack of hearty meat dishes. Each diner is also limited to a single slice of brioche bread with the soup dish – a horseradish vichyssoise – which is pretty scanty considering how the other dishes are also mostly low-carb or carb-free.
If you can do without the flashy theatrics and prefer to focus solely on the food itself, you’re probably better off having a less dramatic, and perhaps more filling, high-end dinner elsewhere for the same price.
Find out more about Banquet of Hoshena and make a reservation here.
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