SINGAPORE — It’s hard enough cooking for a market that’s spoilt for choice. But taking over the helm of a restaurant that has, over the past 12 years, done more than survive the volatile market requires gumption and a fair bit of humility.

Restaurant Ember’s new head chef Sufian Bin Zain, who cut his teeth at Les Amis, Iggy’s and Waku Ghin, has both in spades and in perfect balance. The young chef has managed an updated menu that celebrates both a flair for refinement and dishes that fans of former head chef Sebastian Ng have been returning for.

Regulars craving for the restaurant’s signature serving of slow-cooked pork belly with savoy cabbage (S$38) can still get their fix. Even the 36-hour, twice-cooked duck leg confit with mash and caramelised onions (available as part of its value-for-money three-course lunch set, S$42) is still as good — possibly a little more complex and flavoursome, with the addition of thyme, parsley and bay leaves.

In contrast to the restaurant’s more robust signatures, Sufian’s more refined interpretation of contemporary European dining, piqued with just enough Asian inflections, is a welcome addition. For reasons that include the need to keep economy and quality in harmony, these are not the overtly extravagant designs more upmarket destinations regularly proffer.

On the new menu is a starter of steamed egg custard topped with mud crab, diced asparagus and aonori (only available as part of the set lunch menu). It’s one of the new dishes that demonstrate what Sufian does so well in his latest endeavour — turning something simple into something worthy of a pairing with Prosecco. And there’s the 60-hour slow-cooked (first sous vide) Angus shortrib (S$38) served with an attractive smudge of burnt onion puree, tomato confit and beef jus — a lovely, light reduction.

But the dish that perhaps nails this marriage of two worlds is the chef’s reimagined bouillabaisse (S$38). Nothing too showy — it’s simply a mini mount of seared sea bass, Hokkaido scallops, a few clams and just-cooked and delightfully sweet scampi, topped at the table with a rich yet delicately flavoured broth. It’s more like a silky seafood bisque as far as consistency and flavour are concerned.

A standout in the dessert selection that offers further evidence of the chef’s more innovative inclinations is the “texture of pistachio” (S$15) — comprising 40-second microwaved sponge, crumble and ice cream crowned with a little ginger milk foam.

Most of the recent additions point to a progressive change of dishes, and despite what some pundits might say, Sufian’s decision to take his time to wean regulars off its previous staples is admirable. DON MENDOZA

Restaurant Ember is at Hotel 1929, 50 Keong Saik Road. Telephone: 6347 1928. Opening hours: Mondays to Fridays, lunch 11.30am to 2pm; dinner 6.30pm to 10pm. Closed for lunch, open for dinner on Saturdays. Closed on Sundays.