I’m glad to report that I’ve found another restaurant that serves really good food!

This is quite a unique restaurant for the Singapore dining scene in my opinion. The restaurant is small and unpretentious with only counter seats and you’ll have full view of what’s cooking, mainly on the charcoal grill where they’ll do the smoking, slow roasting, hot roasting, baking and grilling.

There’s no fixed menu and they offer different dishes every day. In a way, it’s kind of like trying your luck because you’ll only find out on the day itself. For lunch today, the menu looked like the above. This menu reminds me of Jamie Oliver’s Fifteen! They go by small plates and large plates. It’s kind of hard to visualise the amount to order but you can always check with the server. Ala carte is offered for lunch and a set menu is offered for dinner if I’m not mistaken.

Charcoal grill – the secret for smokey flavours and nice textures.

Sourdough – $5.00+

Bread is not complimentary here. It was quite disappointing that it wasn’t served warm but it’s still useful to pick up the remaining sauces from my subsequent dishes (which was the essence and I neglected the butter).

I ordered steak and this was the portion weighed out and cut in front of me.

Kingfish, Mango and Pepperomia – $15.00+

My first small plate for this meal. It looks like Thai mango salad but it tastes way better. However, it wasn’t super special. It’s a dish nice to have but not a must have.

Squid, Pico De Gallo and Feta – $18.00+

Seeing Pico De Gallo in the description made me want to have it. I was expecting to see some Mexican salsa but it turned out completely beyond my imagination (positive way). I don’t know how to describe the taste – it was kind of smokey and not something I anticipated, but in a good way of course. The sauce was so tasty, I had to save every last drop by picking it up with my bread

The squid was cut in noodle shape and this wasn’t something I expected either. The texture was very tender and overall this is a fantastic dish, a must try!

Lamb and Harissa – $18.00+

The lamb was grilled on the charcoal to a very nice medium doneness. The meat was tender and fragant. The Harissa (a Tunisaian spice made from peppers) was spicy with a kick and it matched perfectly with these lamb ribs! If you enjoy having lamb, I highly recommend this.

Mayura Cube Roll – $60.00+/ 100g

The minimum order is 250g for this Australian wagyu steak. It was really tender and done perfectly. Mayura is supposedly full blooded wagyu but it was totally different from the Japanese wagyu I’ve had (Kobe, Hida etc). The Japanese kind  is fattier and feels oily in the mouth, melting with every bite, to the extent of having more fats than actual meat. This one tends to be less marbled and meatier, but the meat definitely more tender compared to regular beef. Still, it was very good and probably credit goes to the well executed cooking with the charcoal. As a steak lover this was very satisfying.

I love the food and concept here and Burnt Ends is a rare gem in Singapore in my opinion. Expect nothing but well executed and unpretentious dishes, but if you’re looking for a fancy place to celebrate a special occasion or for a date, this may not be idea because the setting is meant to be casual, communal and not really private, unless of course you’re a true foodie and don’t really care about ambiance.

*****

Ambiance: 7/10
Food: 8.5/10
Value: 8/10
Overall: A unique restaurant worth trying

*****

Burnt Ends
20 Teck Lim Road
Singapore 088391

Tel: 62243933

*****

Lunch:
Wednesday to Saturday: 11:45am to 2pm

Dinner:
Tuesday – Saturday 6:00pm to Late