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| Yakitori Platter @ The Parlour Mirage |
The Parlour Mirage is a craft beer taproom / restaurant that recently opens along Owen Road at Farrer Park neighbourhood. The Parlour Mirage (‘TPM’) is on a quest to serve uproarious fusion cuisine and dream-essenced craft beers where you least expected.
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| The Parlour Mirage |
The craft beers on the tap are carefully curated based on their unique taste profile, brewery and most of them are highly rated in Untappd, App usually used by those beer connoisseurs. To partner, the craft beer is the culinary delight inspired by modern Japanese and Mediterranean cuisine, helmed by all-femme kitchen.
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| Staircase to 2nd Floor |
While the gastronomic adventure is happening on the1st floor, TPM is part of a greater ecosystem. In collaboration with The Parlour Singapore, located on the 2nd floor, a newly opened artist hub that houses music studio, creative studios and more, founded by artist, Jaye. It is a conducive environment for artists to learn, create, produce and share. There is also an Ableton Certified Training Centre and Second Life the flea market. The overall setup is just super cool.
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Music Studio
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Ableton Certifed Training Centre
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| Second Life the flea market |
Back to the 1st floor, we started our tasting with Chicken Karaage ($12). Huge chunks of chicken thigh marinated in sake, sugar, soy sauce, ginger and garlic, then deep-fried to perfection. The exterior is crispy, while the interior is juicy and succulent. I can taste the marinate in the flesh. Though it is served in mayonnaise, I feel the chicken is tasty enough on its own.
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| Chicken Karaage |
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| Chicken Karaage |
Fried Cheese ($10). It looks like tater tots; however, this little bite-size popcorn is filled with aged cheddar. Crispy exterior followed with a strong aged cheddar cheese flavour. If you don’t like the strong flavour of cheese, you might want to give this a miss.
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| Fried Cheese |
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| Fried Cheese |
Yakitori Platter, [clockwise from top left] consist of Eggplant ($4.50), Pork Belly ($6.50), Salmon Belly ($9.50), Chicken Thigh ($4.50), Hokubee Beef Cubes ($9.5), King Oyster Mushroom ($6.50), Quail Eggs ($4.50), Okra ($4.50). US Scallop ($9.50) and Tsukune ($6.50).
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| Yakitori Platter |
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| Yakitori Platter |
The Yakitori is actually a perfect pairing with the craft beer. Alas, I am unable to consume alcohol, so I have to stick with my ice water.
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| Devil’s
Peak Lager (South Africa) & Heretic Caramel Moo’chiato (USA)
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My picks for the yakitori are: tsukune, these mince chicken balls are juicy and succulent. Grilled perfectly, resulting in the melts in your mouth sensation. The fattiness from the salmon belly produces a crisp yet flaky bite of the salmon flesh.
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| Tsukune |
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| Salmon Belly |
Meanwhile, the texture of King Oyster Mushrooms with the sweet yakitori sauce is just irresistible. The okra yakitori taste really surprised me. Frankly, I am not an okra fan, however, the version here is slightly charred and delivery a crisp texture absents of the gooey texture that I dislike most. Yum yum.
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| King Oyster Mushroom |
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| Okra |
Instead of ordering the yakitori individually, it will be more worth it to order the platter.
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| Staircase to 3rd floor |
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| Studio Stools |
Served together with the yakitori platter is sharing plate of pita and dips platter. Consist of [from top anti-clockwise] Guacamole, Hummus, Pesto, Tzaziki, Fried Mantou, Asian Slaw, Pita Bread and Sweet Butter Corn. Frankly, my first impression is that the balance is out of whack as there are more dips compared to the pita bread and fried mantou. Later on, it was explained to us that the dips are to be paired with the yakitori as well. Now, it makes sense.
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| Pita & Dips Platter |
I like the unique brown colour pesto and Asian slaw made from purple cabbage. Both dishes offer a unique twist of flavour, yet helps to offset the fattiness from the yakitori. The sweet butter corn is delicious; however, the portions are just too small even for 1 person including the pita bread as well.
If you need something more filling, TPM also offers donburi. Hokubee Beef Don ($24). The Hokubee Meltique Beef offer a nice smoky aroma and juicy beef texture, while the Kombu Cream with homemade pickled radish, chopped spring onion and soft boiled egg deliver a creamy umami flavour with a touch of tanginess.
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| Hokubee Beef Don |
We end the meal with Stracciatella ($15). A soft Italian cheese using buffalo milk, mixed with honey, nuts, grilled sweet corn and grilled plum. An explosion of flavours in your mouth. Sweet, savoury, crunchy, smoky, crisp and creamy. Although this dish is geared towards a savoury dish, I think this will work well for desserts.
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| Stracciatella |
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| Stracciatella |
The décor of TPM was inspired by Japan’s gold-accented Tottori dessert and beige dunes. The word Mirage in the restaurant name can be attributed to the Mirage sighting in the dessert. Though the restaurant is filled with a rich gold colour, you will feel at ease as due to the balance colour combination. Of course, the 12 craft beer taps under the Singapore palm tree logo will be the centre of TPM universe.
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The Parlour Mirage
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Overall, the Japanese x Mediterranean cuisine at The Parlour Mirage is geared as a perfect companion for the craft beers. The Yakitori, Chicken Karaage and Stracciatella are a must-try here. Cheers!!
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| Pit Stop - After too many beers |
Thank you Naomi from The Linch Agency and The Parlour Mirage Team for hosting us.
Food & Drinks: 7.25/10
Value: 6.25/10
Service: N/A (Tasting Invitation)
Ambiance: 7.5/10
Budget per Person: $26-$50
The Parlour Mirage
140 Owen Road
Singapore 218940
T: +65 9654 5687
IG: @Theparlourmirage
