I was invited to go for the new Chocolate Temptation Staycation @ Studio M package which is available from now until 31 July 2022. This is my first staycay invite, albeit only a 2D1N stay. I was pleasantly surprised and excited to experience the private chocolate making workshop created in collaboration with Chef Janice Wong, as well as the hotel amenities. I also love that the hotel is located at a quiet corner of Robertson Quay - it is very central and minutes away from bars, cafes and restaurants, yet peaceful. I also didn't know this before - Studio M is Singapore's first loft concept hotel, which means all the rooms are double-storey with floor to ceiling high windows.
I was in an Executive Loft (corner loft) on the 9th floor with a comfy bed above and a work/chill space below. There was a sofa bed insert on L1 because I was gonna invite a friend over to stay but she couldn't make it in the end! (I ended up chilling on it very comfortably before I showered).
This was the view facing and overlooking the Singapore River - breathtaking! Despite the sun, the room was not warm either, just filled with light.
I got a canvas bag of welcome gifts from the team, which was super sweet! Wine, popcorn and an adorable teddy to keep me company.
After checking in and having lunch 5 mins away at Tapas24, it was time to start the workshop! Basically how it works is when you check in to the staycay, reception will help to arrange for a time slot for you to have the private 2 pax workshop for 45m to 1h, which is conducted by one of their staff trained by Chef Janice Wong. I was again surprised that the workshop was conducted in a hotel room converted into a lush green space because I had thought it was in some event space or kitchen! But this works as well, or even better, for 2 people. We first learnt about the chocolate making process at the entrance walkway.
It's like entering a Willy Wonka workshop, which was the intention.
We were also giving pieces of pre-made chocolate to taste, from 80% to 50% intensity. There was also some wine to go with the chocolate, which paired very well. The smell in the room was incredible by the way.
Here are some welcome notes and the ingredients which we used to make our very own slab of chocolate from scratch.
This is the small batch chocolate pack that uses the same process but packaged and exclusively for Studio M. I love how it had an Asian country of origin, and tasting notes, much like coffee and wine! The chocolate making process starts from pouring cocoa nibs into a automated stone grinder slowly so the nibs are smashed into a paste, then adding in the right amount of cocoa butter liquid and our own mix of sugar and milk (I think we did 65%). That was it - we then let the stone grinder work overnight to produce a silky smooth chocolate sauce that will be tempered into sheets and broken into shards.
The next morning I headed (rather late) downstairs and around the corner for the hotel breakfast at Memo Cafe. I think if I lived around here, I would come by for breakfast and coffee regularly - it's such a comfortable and easygoing spot.
The breakfast by the way, was so underrated. It was a choice between nasi lemak or the continental set - and this is one of the best I've had in the past two years. There was some fresh cut fruits, a croissant and of course choice of coffee/tea and some juice to start, when this behemoth plate arrived. The scrambled eggs were DIVINE. The sausages were bouncy and flavourful without being overly salty. I struggled a little but managed to finish everything but had to cos everything was so delicious!
I also went back to Memo Cafe for lunch after I checked out the hotel pool and had a quick dip (there's no one, so peaceful). I took the super value-for-money 2 course set lunch which is only S$16++ and had a delish prawn bisque soup with aglio olio to go (because I had to go back to the room for a Zoom meeting!).
Here I am, a very happy camper indeed with my stay at Studio M. It was just the respite I needed to break up the monotony of a Work-From-Home week to try my hand at making something from scratch and waking up in a beautiful room with a view.
I've also done a vlog of my experience which you can watch on YouTube. If you're interested to book your own Chocolate Temptation Staycay @ Studio M, visit this link!
Thanks Craft Comms and Studio M for the invite.
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