SINGAPORE, Nov 26 — On a chic marble countertop sits a hefty chopping board on which a hunk of slow-cooked Australian Angus beef brisket hangs, beside a tray of crispy-skin Duroc pork belly. Right next to these is a platter of proudly burnished Yorkshire pudding.
Behind the counter, in the open kitchen, a chef pulls a whole fish out from the wood fire oven, its skin still softly crackling. Yet another chef sets a beautiful pear galette down, the sweet scent of vanilla and butter trailing in its wake.
Such is the Sunday afternoon tableau at Lollapalooza, where the owners have recently introduced Sunday lunch. The selection is small — four to five roasted and braised meats, four sides, a salad, flatbread, ice cream and a dessert pie — but everything looks divine. Belly up to that kitchen countertop and you’d be tempted to point at everything and say: “We’ll have some of this.” But that, you must be warned, would make for a rather expensive afternoon.
The beef brisket, deliciously tender and seasoned with a whisper of cumin, will set you back S$30 (RM90) for a 180g portion. That is a serving that most of us could easily put away, especially given the meat’s alluring texture, which is like a cross between steak and pastrami.
The 400g portion of roasted Duroc pork belly (S$40) is just enough for two and, like the brisket, is expertly cooked, its velvety meat dripping with its juices and crowned by a layer of impressively crisp-crunchy crackling.
Then there’s the whole-roasted Longnose Emperor fish (S$68) with the drier texture of sea bass. It is plainly flavoured and hardly the most delicious thing on the menu, but it is what you’ll have to order if someone in your party is eschewing meat. Well, that and the fantastic roasted Australian langoustine dressed with seaweed butter, though a single piece of shellfish costs S$21 and is too small to be shared.
As for those puffy Yorkshire puddings cooked in duck fat, they are impossible to resist — and you really shouldn’t. Crisp outside, a little creamy within, and served with a red wine jus flavoured with beefy depth, they are, in our books, the best things on the menu.
Without a doubt, the food here happily satisfies, especially if you want your food wholesome and straightforward, with none of those frou frou foams or espumas that tend to dominate restaurant menus of late. You will just have to be prepared to pay a premium for these pleasurable simplicities. — TODAY
Lollapalooza
1A Keong Saik Road, Singapore 089109
Tel: +65 6221 3538
Opening hours: Monday to Saturday, 11.45am to 2pm, 6pm to 11am; Sunday, 11.45am to 3pm
