Oriole Cafe & Bar
The BF and I happened to be in the Somerset area when the hunger pangs struck. We ditched the original plan to go running and decided to have dinner instead.
We haven't really checked out the new shopping malls along Orchard Road. Mostly because they are all overflowing with shoppers. We've noticed this phenomenon amongst the locals here, whenever a new mall opens, the crowds will throng it because it's novel and new. It takes about half a year to a year, or when another new mall opens, whichever is the earlier, for the crowds to disperse. Since both of us hate crowds, we figured that we'll wait till the IRs open to visit the new malls along Orchard Road.
Since we were at 313 Somerset, we trailed the Discovery Walk in search of a dinner location. We saw Oriole Cafe & Bar across the Walk at the Pan Pacific Serviced Suites and decided to check it out.
We started off with a Spicy Calamari ($13), battered squid rings with pickled chili peppers. This was surprisingly yummy. The calamari was done just right, cooked tender without being rubbery. The piquant chili peppers provided a tangy and sweet twist to the usual calamari.
We got 2 mains to share, the Chicken Casserole ($20), with spanish chorizo, smoked paprika and grilled baguette. This is done in the style of a typical Italian chicken cacciatore. Very rustic and hearty. I liked this, but it does get a little too rich after a while. Luckily, the BF and I were sharing this.
We also got the Beef Cheek Tagliatelle ($15), beef cheeks braised in red wine with mushrooms and shallot oil. This was alright, but there were unusual fruity overtones in the sauce, which left a slightly weird aftertaste on the tongue. Me thinks that a fruity red wine was probably used, I would have preferred a drier, less fruity braising red wine.
Oriole Cafe & Bar
96 Somerset Road #01-01
Pan Pacific Serviced Suites
Tel: 6238 8348
Open Mondays to Saturdays from 11.30am to 11pm, and Sundays from 10.30am to 11pm
We haven't really checked out the new shopping malls along Orchard Road. Mostly because they are all overflowing with shoppers. We've noticed this phenomenon amongst the locals here, whenever a new mall opens, the crowds will throng it because it's novel and new. It takes about half a year to a year, or when another new mall opens, whichever is the earlier, for the crowds to disperse. Since both of us hate crowds, we figured that we'll wait till the IRs open to visit the new malls along Orchard Road.
Since we were at 313 Somerset, we trailed the Discovery Walk in search of a dinner location. We saw Oriole Cafe & Bar across the Walk at the Pan Pacific Serviced Suites and decided to check it out.
We started off with a Spicy Calamari ($13), battered squid rings with pickled chili peppers. This was surprisingly yummy. The calamari was done just right, cooked tender without being rubbery. The piquant chili peppers provided a tangy and sweet twist to the usual calamari.
We got 2 mains to share, the Chicken Casserole ($20), with spanish chorizo, smoked paprika and grilled baguette. This is done in the style of a typical Italian chicken cacciatore. Very rustic and hearty. I liked this, but it does get a little too rich after a while. Luckily, the BF and I were sharing this.
We also got the Beef Cheek Tagliatelle ($15), beef cheeks braised in red wine with mushrooms and shallot oil. This was alright, but there were unusual fruity overtones in the sauce, which left a slightly weird aftertaste on the tongue. Me thinks that a fruity red wine was probably used, I would have preferred a drier, less fruity braising red wine.
Oriole Cafe & Bar
96 Somerset Road #01-01
Pan Pacific Serviced Suites
Tel: 6238 8348
Open Mondays to Saturdays from 11.30am to 11pm, and Sundays from 10.30am to 11pm
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The Oriole Team
www.oriole.com.sg
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