Your go-to guide on the latest restaurants in town,new menus cooked up in the friendliest kitchens, and amazing pop-ups by visiting chefs
Mercado Spanish Food Market
Jean-Philippe Patruno, the chef-owner of Spanish restaurant Dehesa, enlivens the local food scene with his latest offering—the Mercado Spanish Food Market. Located in the Central Business District, Mercado, meaning ‘market’, caters to the busy professional with healthy, takeaway-ready Hola bowls ($14.50), comprising rice, spices, vegetables and various meats; and fresh, cold-pressed fruit juice (from $3.90). If you’ve got a little more time on your hands, try custom-making your own Hola bowl ($16.50).
#01-23, 50 Market Street. Tel: 6532 2155
Fat Lulu’s
Lamb Meatballs (Photo credit: John Heng)
From the same owners who brought us Five & Dime Eatery comes Fat Lulu’s. Situated at the same location in River Valley, it is helmed by chef Sam Chablani and pastry chef Pang Ji Shuang. Chablani’s tagline ‘#NoBurnNoTaste’ rings true with his charred, smoky dishes, often laced with spicy sambal. Start with the spicy Iberico pork Sataytay ($12 for five skewers) made from Iberico pork collar marinated in his special sambal sauce, followed by the duh meat board ($28), a platter of wagyu inside skirt cooked in Thai fish sauce, and pork collar pre-trimmings marinated with sambal. End with Pang’s berries and white chocolate ($16) with frozen cassis foam.
297 River Valley Road. Tel: 9236 5002
Long Beach
Long Beach is oft associated with black pepper crab, and for good reason. This Singapore household favourite of plump and succulent crab meat cooked in a rich black pepper sauce was first created by Long Beach chefs in the 1980s. But there’s more than just black pepper crab on offer at the restaurant. Check out premium produce such as air-flown live Alaskan king crab and Australian snow crab, as well as more exotic varieties like deep sea rose gold crab and the burger-shaped calappa crab, both best served in a fiery white pepper sauce. Alternatively, pair your choice of crab with white jade, a cheese-based sauce specially created by Long Beach chefs. Another mouth-watering option is the vibrant orangey-hued claypot XO yellow roe crab with fine rice noodles.
1018 East Coast Parkway (next to ECP Burger King). Tel: 6445 8833
Log on to Long Beach’s website for a list of their branches
Caffè Vergnano
Outfitted with warm cosy furnishings of oak walls, wooden floorboards and brown banquettes, Italian coffee brand Caffè Vergnano opens Singapore’s first 1882 concept café at South Beach Avenue—which, by the way, is the brand’s 100th outlet in the world. For an authentic cup of Italian espresso, order the Caffè Gianduja (from $5.50), made with thick Italian hot chocolate, espresso and whipped cream, or the 1882 Bicerin (from $6), a traditional concoction of espresso and cocoa, topped with cream.
#B1-17 South Beach Avenue, 26 Beach Road. Tel: 6385 5579
Spuds & Aprons
Most of us have probably not gone up to Mount Faber in years. But its F&B offerings have been overhauled, and what sits at the top of the hill now is a restaurant called Spuds & Aprons, a surprisingly charming, casual al fresco restaurant with a stunning view of Sentosa. The extensive drinks menu is one of the most creative outside of the bar scene, with fun cocktails liberally garnished with fruit juice pearls, popcorn coffee, inspired shakes and sophisticated mocktails at affordable prices. The food here is fun and hearty—the chilli crab potato skins ($14) make a good starter, followed by grilled pork belly ($27) and wild rice for mains, or Asian style duck confit ($26). For dessert, its chempedak bread and butter pudding ($12) made with croissants, and ice cream parfait called ‘Jar of Happiness’ ($11)—oh please forgive their names!—are excellent. Built sympathetically into the canopies of two heritage trees, Spuds & Aprons is truly a delightful getaway from the usual restaurant options at lower altitudes. Reservations advised for weekends.
109 Mount Faber Road. Tel: 6377 9688
Latest Recipe
Get away from the crowded mainland to the relative tranquillity of Le Méridien Singapore, Sentosa for some down-time and dining. At Latest Recipe, its all-day restaurant focusing on local eats, treat yourself to the Taste of Discovery Buffet: Seafood and Singapore Flavours ($65 per adult) on Friday and Saturday nights, featuring dishes such as flower chilli crab with mantou, black pepper char kway teow and rojak. Don’t miss pastry chef Edwin Leow’s eclairs featuring local flavours such as pandan kaya to end the meal.
23 Beach View, Sentosa. Tel: 6818 3388
Diamond Kitchen
To commemorate their third anniversary, Chinese seafood restaurant Diamond Kitchen will be offering new dishes at a 15 per cent discount until 31 December. Some treats to look forward to include the Gan Xiang Bee Hoon ($25), a dry bee hoon dish fried with the signature spice paste of hae bee hiam (spicy dried shrimps), curry powder, lemongrass, dried chilli and taucheo (fermented soy bean paste). Another highlight is the ba ba pomfret ($38), featuring a steamed golden pomfret in a lightly spiced tamarind sauce scented with ginger flower. And only at the Science Park outlet, enjoy the Diamond sauna treasures (from $188 for 2 to 4 pax), where a basket of fresh seafood such as lobster, mussels, squid, snow crabs, scallops and clams are steamed over hot stones in a ‘sauna bath’.
#01-22/23 Laguna Park, 5000F Marine Parade Road. Tel: 6448 0629
#01-01 Oasis, 87 Science Park Drive. Tel: 64640410
Hoho Korean, Angels N’ Cowboys and The Catch
Located in the heart of Clementi, restaurant enclave Sunset Lane adds three new restaurants to its line-up.
For a family night out, Hoho Korean Restaurant offers authentic Korean dishes like bulnak-jeongol, a stew of marinated beef, octopus, noodles and vegetables ($42); and jjampon-tang, a spicy broth with seafood and udon noodles ($40) for a truly ‘daebak’ (awesome) experience.
The al fresco area of Western restaurant Angels N’ Cowboys is ideal for casual dinners and beer with friends. Their delightfully tender baby back ribs with barbecue sauce on a bed of crisp fries (from $25) and fried onion rings with tartar sauce ($11)—made from locally-farmed yellow onions—make for delightful bar snacks.
The ever-popular The Catch Seafood Restaurant & Bar has recently located to Sunset Lane from its previous Cosford Road location, bringing with them their signature pig stomach soup ($98). Other signature dishes include glutinous rice chicken ($58), wherein rice is stuffed into chicken and roasted, and Hong Kong-imported mee pok with seafood in XO sauce ($14).
Hoho Korean Restaurant: #01-58/60. Tel: 6250 3908
Angels N’ Cowboys: #01-50. Tel: 6252 6588
The Catch Seafood Restaurant & Bar: #01-54/56. Tel: 6250 3908
Sunset Lane, Blk 106 Clementi Street 12
Cocoa Colony
Furnished in the style of Ecuador’s famed chocolate cafes, chocolate-centric café Cocoa Colony presents a new menu of avant-garde cocoa dishes and drinks. Try their ultimate chocolate waffle with chocolate ice cream and molten chocolate sauce ($16.50); the crab and prawn with honey tomato and herbs in grilled chocolate bread ($9.90); and the signature black velvet cake ($8.50), and Amazonian gold chocotorta ($8.50).
#B1-17, 313@Somerset, 313 Orchard Road. Tel: 6509 0356
Braci
The newest addition in restaurateur Beppe De Vito’s constellation of Italian food and beverage concepts is Braci, which occupies the top two floors of a refurbished shophouse in Boat Quay. Charcoal-fuelled cooking is the theme here, with most dishes cooked in a Josper oven and a Japanese shichirin grill. The Piedmontese beef rib steak ($138 for two) is grilled to perfection at 350 degrees Celsius in the Josper oven, while the duck breast ($38) is dry-aged for about four days before it is cooked. The best way to sample the restaurant’s highlights is via the five-course omakase Surprise menu ($100). As night falls, head upstairs to the rooftop bar for a panoramic view of the CBD skyline. Enjoy bespoke cocktails such as the G&Tea ($25), a deliciously refreshing combination of lemon ginger tea and three gins, Marconi, Bombay Sapphire and Monkey 47. Some lesser-known tipples like mezcals, cachaças and piscos are also included in the extensive bar programme.
#05-01 & #06-01, 52 Boat Quay. Tel: 6866 1933
Wanhao Chinese Restaurant
Wanhao Chinese Restaurant at Singapore Marriott Tang Plaza Hotel returns with a new menu and a new look. The interiors are modelled after the traditional house of a Chinese scholar complete with jewel-box four-seater booths, each representing one of the four traditional Chinese arts—zither, strategy board games, calligraphy and painting. Expect a more premium menu, such as a dedicated section featuring 10 abalone dishes including the South Africa dried abalone with Japanese shiitake mushroom in chef’s secret sauce ($128 per person for 15-head, $98 per person for 22-head). New dim sum dishes on the lunch menu include steamed shrimp dumpling with black truffle and cordyceps flower ($6 for two pieces) and deep-fried taro dumpling with mini abalone and scallop ($10.50 for two pieces).
Level 3 Singapore Marriott Tang Plaza Hotel, 320 Orchard Road. Tel: 6831 4605
Baba Chews Bar and Eatery
Housed in a former police station dating back to 1928, Baba Chews Bar and Eatery is the latest addition to the hip neighbourhood of Katong. Expect creative Asian cuisine with a Peranakan focus and evocative mod-retro interiors. Tuck into head chef Alvin Leong’s fork-tender chilli crab cakes with mantou ($15), and beef short ribs rending ($25). End off with nangka cheesecake ($12) that’s served in a glass jar with pulut hitam ice cream. A counterpoint to largely traditional fl avours are its list of premium craft cocktails—like Katong Sling, or a Hemingway Daiquiri—which tips a hat to Katong’s local flavour and historical ambience. Coffees here come from Common Man Roasters. All in all, an evocative destination for an evening out or just to soak in the magical Katong vibes.
86 East Coast Road, #01-01 Katong Square. Tel: 6723 2025
Montreux Jazz Café
An offshoot of Switzerland’s Montreux Jazz Festival, the Montreux Jazz Café is the brand’s first in Asia. Newly-opened along Orchard Road, the 500-seater café boasts two performing stages, a bar, and outdoor and indoor dining. It will feature music from jazz and rock to hip hop, as well as signature dishes named after jazz greats like the B.B. Burger, comprising aged cheddar, garden salad, Montreux Jazz sauce and French fries ($28); Ella’s cheesecake ($15); and Quincy Jones roast chicken (marinated ‘à la Quincy Jones’, $32).
Pan Pacific Orchard, 10 Claymore Road. Tel: 6733 0091
Fat Prince Kafe-Bar-Kebab
Turkish and Middle Eastern flavours from Istanbul’s trendy Karakoy district comes to town at Fat Prince Kafe-Bar-Kebab, opened by the people behind izakaya Neon Pigeon. At this new ‘bistro-kebabery’ concept, find 10 variations of kebab ($16 for any two) such as Baharat honey chicken with charred leek, sweet Labneh, and preserved lemon. On the drinks menu, try wines and beers from Lebanon, Morocco and Jordan, cocktails with Middle Eastern touches and housemade Turkish sodas. For weekend brunch, there’s a selection of hearty pides, Turkish pizza (from $21); and menemens (from $19), a dish of scrambled eggs, peppers and onions on its menu. The cool blue, purple and mahogany tones of the interior, accented by touches of brass and mahogany, provide the perfect setting for a relaxing weekend out.
48 Peck Seah Street. Tel: 8221 3683
VLV
VLV, a new one-stop lifestyle destination, has just opened in Clarke Quay. Housed in a Chinese heritage building dating back to the 1880s, this 20,000 square feet multi-concept entertainment venue comprises a stylish, modern Chinese restaurant helmed by executive head chef Martin Foo (formerly of Tong Le Private Dining), a club lounge with dance floor and music headlined by rising DJs, an al fresco courtyard bar and riverfront dining area. The restaurant focuses on updated Cantonese cuisine, with dishes such as the VLV Peking duck ($110 for a whole duck), in which 45-day-old ducklings are slow-roasted then served with avocado, crispy beancurd skin or even caviar.
#01-02, 3A Merchant’s Court, River Valley Road. Tel: 6661 0197
Brez’n
Brez’n, a new restaurant named after the Bavarian term for ‘pretzel’, opens at Valley Point mall. Helmed by executive chef Dominik Österreicher, formerly from the founding team of Brotzeit, the restaurant serves up classic Bavarian dishes such as Schweinshax’n, or crispy pork knuckle ($29.50) and Weisswurt, handmade veal and pork sausages ($17). Österreicher also offers a range of pretzel sandwiches such as the Brez’n roll ($14), which packs in meatloaf, sauerkraut, pickles and honey mustard sauce between two pieces of soft pretzels. Chug it all down with draft beers from breweries like Paulaner (from $9.50) and Hacker Pschorr (from $10.50).
#01-21/22/23 Valley Point, 491 River Valley Road. Tel: 6235 1613
Tsuta
Japanese Soba Noodles Tsuta, the first ramen eatery in Japan to have earned a Michelin star in December last year, opened its first overseas outpost in Singapore last month. At the 18-seater, diners can choose from three soup bases—shoyu, shio (salt) and miso. The noodles are made with four types of wholewheat flour, while the base of the shoyu ramen broth for instance is made with a blend of three types of shoyu (one of which is specially brewed by a shoyu shop in Wakayama) mixed with a dashi enriched by ingredients like beef, clam and vegetables. A dash of black truffle oil adds to the taste.
#01-01/02/03 Pacific Plaza, 9 Scotts Road.
Open Door Policy
Tiong Bahru’s Open Door Policy (ODP) launches Singapore’s first gluten-and-dairy-free menu for those with gluten and dairy intolerances, and allergies. Such dishes include vegan macaroni with portobello bolognese gratin and béchamel ($24) and grilled 250g ribeye steak with ODP herb salad laced with hazelnut dressing ($38); and braised veal osso buco with carrot risotto and smoked paprika and watercress ($32). In line with ODP’s environmentally-conscious philosophy, all leafy vegetables served in-house are grown on-site, through indoor vertical farming methods.
19 Yong Siak Street. Tel: 6221 9307
Red Tail Bar
Zouk Singapore’s first restaurant and bar concept, Red Tail Bar at Clarke Quay, is themed after Southeast Asia’s most (in)famous party neighbourhoods, with a menu that boasts a wide variety of cocktail offerings. Try Bae, a concoction of umeshu, pear eau de vie, pear liqueur, peach bitters and prosecco inspired by South Korea’s Itaewon clubbing district; or the Uphill Ding Ding, comprising gin, homemade beetroot grenadine, amaro and lemon, which references Hong Kong with its notorious Lan Kwai Fong nightlife area. Similarly, their bar snacks is a confluence of the contemporary and the traditional, with fusion dishes like Scotch century egg ($9) and yun cheong (traditional duck liver sausage) thin-crust pizza ($25).
#01-04, 3C River Valley Road. Tel: 6738 2988
Usqubar Grill and Whisky Bar
Housed in One Fullerton, Usqubar Grill and Whisky Bar is a quiet mod-European restaurant with a strong focus on whisky and a premium view of the Marina Bayfront. Its menu by group executive chef Guven Uyanik offers updated classics like beef tartare ($25) with roasted bone marrow; Hokkaido scallop ceviche ($25) with horseradish and sea urchin; and a particularly good lamb rack ($78 for two to share) that comes with shepherd’s pie and other sides. All menu items include a recommended whisky pairing—possibly the first such menu in Singapore—by resident whisky expert Fong Chan Tong, who also holds regular whisky masterclasses. Whiskies here include rare single cask Scottish whiskies and independent distilleries, including some exclusive to Usqubar. Expect labels like Glendronach, Compass Box Hedonism and Laphroaig.
#02-03B One Fullerton. Tel: 8723 6378
Just In…
Central Perk Singapore opens at Central Mall at the end of November. If you’re of a certain vintage—before there was Sex in the City or Two Broke Girls—Friends might have been your go-to comfort sitcom. See how authentic the re-creation of the studio set is at this cafe while you walk down memory lane with your close buds.
#01-01 Central Mall, 1 Magazine Road.
Want to meet like-minded Japanophiles while prepping for your next adventure to Japan? Head to Japan Rail Cafe, East Japan Railway Company’s (JR East) first travel-themed cafe outside Japan opening in November. Menus change monthly, and are based on JR East’s offerings at its F&B outlets in Tokyo. You will also be able to purchase rail passes, take part in workshops and shop for Japanese food products and collectibles found at JR East’s train stations in Japan.
#01-20/21 Tanjong Pagar Centre, 5 Wallich Street
Hong Kong’s Kam’s Roast Goose opens at Pacific Plaza this month. Stay tuned for details of its menu offerings.
WORDS: Charlene Chow, Foo Jia-En & Sim Ee Waun
Cover image: Fat Lulu’s Kinder Bueno (Photo credit: John Heng)
The post W&D Restaurants of the Month: November 2016 appeared first on WINE & DINE.