Moosehead has been sitting in an obscure corner of Telok Ayer for the past 4 years, but it’s anything but quiet once you step into the place. Founded by a dad and son duo, Glen and Daniel Ballis, who has been constantly on the go, Moosehead has been slowly developing its own style of cuisine. What initially started out as a Mediterranean restaurant has evolved into a place where all sorts of global cuisines and flavours meet, resulting in a menu full of flavourful inspirations hailing from all corners of the world because of all the traveling that Glen and Daniel have under their belts. Even the place itself boasts quirky furnishings to match their eccentrically delicious food.
Unfortunately, we couldn’t try everything on the menu (our stomachs are only that big), but here are our top 5 dishes to try from the latest dinner menu additions. The dishes were designed to be shared, so bring a couple of friends and order loads of things so you get to have a little bit of everything, just like how you would at a tapas bar.
By Michelle Ng
1. Octopus, $30
The one dish which I will always brave the crowds at Telok Ayer for. I love octopus, but it’s not a dish I eat often because most places don’t cook it very well, resulting in tough meat that taste rubbery. Moosehead does a fine job cooking their octopus sous-vide style before grilling them so you get a nice crisp crunch with every bite and a little bit of charring (probably from the use of the grill. Oh, and they only use the tentacles, so you won’t have to worry about huge chunks of octopus that requires a lot of chewing. The cubed potatoes were a fantastic side to pair with the octopus, even though they deserve to have its own dish. Deep fried to perfection, the potatoes are served with a red pepper puree that balances the flavours.
I loved the octopus with a slight citrusy kick by squeezing the lime that came with the dish. Depending on how you like your octopus, you can leave out the lime – but just remember to at least try it before leaving it out!
2. O’Connor Beef Sirloin, $62
How much do you love your meat? This sirloin cut flew in all the way from Ireland, which is not a very common place to get your beef from, but it surprisingly works. If you love marbling, this cut might not be right for you. The beef is grass fed, which means that there isn’t much marbling or fat in the meat. I like my meat done medium-well, and they cooked it just right – not too rare, but not cooked until the meat is too tough either. Dip your meat into the mushroom ketchup, with is blitzed Swiss brown mushrooms in puree form that adds an added layer of flavour to the meat. For those who prefer lamb or gamier meat, the lamb chops might be a better choice than the beef.
3. Fried Artichokes, $12
If you can get me to love my veggies, it means that you are doing something right. I’m really picky with food, especially when it comes to vegetables. Fried artichokes are pretty easy to make, but hard to perfect. These artichokes were basically perfection – shatteringly crisp outside, but tender inside and is exactly like how potato chips should taste like. Paired with the taramasalata sauce and salmon roe, this would make a good drinking snack. I could easily snack on an entire plate of these artichokes all night long!
4. INKA Fried Eggs, $12
Did I just put fried eggs on a top 5 dishes list? Yes I did, and you will love it too. Served in a cast iron pan, the eggs are soft enough to dip the crunchy bread into. A humble but hearty dish, you’ll never tire of this simple dish. Of course, it’s not only bread and eggs – the eggs are served with diced chorizo and garlic aoli that will make you wish you had more bread and more stomach space just so you can eat a mountain of bread and eggs all day long.
5. Burrata, $21
You might be questioning whoever is willing to spend $21 on a plate of cheese, but this will be one of the best plates of cheese you’ve ever eaten. Trust us on this. The unassuming bowl of cheese will arrive, pretty colourless except for the crisp curry leaves sprinkled atop, but the taste will grow on you the more you eat it. It’s also pretty light as a starter or a side dish, considering that Mediterranean cuisine loves using spices in their food. Shoutout to the mini-balls of house pickled zucchini that really elevates the dish from a ‘normal plate of cheese’ to ‘wow, this is a good plate of cheese’.
Bonus: Banana Ice Cream, $10
Technically this was a dessert, not a dish, so the banana ice cream doesn’t count as part of the top 5 dishes! If you’ve still got time for a quick dessert, get some banana ice cream to cleanse your palette. The house-made ice cream is pretty light and is paired with a salted caramel foam to chase away any lingering spices you have left on your tastebuds. Even though it was inspired by jemput-jemput (fried banana cakes, but NOT goreng pisang), it tastes nothing like the Malaysian kueh, and more like a deconstructed banana crumble, no thanks to the cookie crumbles.
Moosehead is at 110 Telok Ayer St, S068579, and is open from Monday to Friday from 12pm-2.30pm and 6pm-10.30pm, and Saturday from 6pm-10.30pm. All dishes are available on the dinner menu.
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