Housed in the heart of the up and coming Telok Ayer neighbourhood is two-week old FYR Cycene Ond Drinc (pronounced – Fire Kitchen and Drink), joining the likes of other popular eateries in the vicinity such as Moosehead Kitchen – Bar & Sum Yi Tai. Sporting a clean and rustic interior, this modern European grill house is an attention grabber with its hand-painted wall murals and music from the 90s blasting through overhead speakers.
Starters
The menu comprises delicious grilled proteins and baked starters, with every dish cooked in the sleek Josper Charcoal Oven. Our first dish, the Baked Freshly Shucked Oysters ($15; pictured), was prepared with a spicy and tangy mix of paprika, roasted garlic, chilli padi, spring onion and calamansi that balanced out well with the oysters' natural sweetness.
Other starters that we tried include the buttery and flavourful Baked Half Bone Marrow ($15; pictured on the left) that paired perfectly with the accompanying veal shortbread. A big part of FYR’s menu involves a mix of Asian spices and seasoning, and this reflects in the Baked Aubergine & Chickpea Ragout ($10; pictured on the right) – seasoned wuth miso, béchamel (an Italian white sauce) and topped off with parmesan cheese.
Mains
Unfortunately, I was slightly disappointed when being served a medium-well ribeye steak – Grain-fed US Holstein Cow Ribeye 365 Days ($32), which lost all of its natural juiciness. What saved it was a flavourful seasoning that was not overly aggressive.
Fun Fact: ‘365 Days’ in the name of this dish actually refers to the cow (or calf’s) age
If you come in a group or pair, you might want to pick their platter of Five-spice Half Chicken, Striploin & Asian-spiced Tiger Prawn ($55; pictured). This time, the steak came well-done, so be sure to state your preferred done-ness when you place your order.
Perhaps the team hasn’t fully mastered the Josper oven because our chicken was dry inside. But because of the spices, the charred chicken skin was delicious. The prawns on the other hand, while grilled well, lacked the opaqueness and crunch that I prefer.
For seafood, options include Seafood Linguine ($18; pictured on the left) and Spiced Deboned Red Snapper ($25; pictured on the right). A commendable and safe choice but their grilled proteins still outshone the pack.
Desserts
We all love the runny goodness when we cut through a molten lava cake and FYR aces their take on this popular dessert with the Baked Pistachio Melt & Pandan Ice Cream ($10; pictured), served to us warm with sprinkles of cinnamon and pistachio bits. Upon slicing through, we were greeted with runny pistachio ‘lava’ that truly complemented the pandan ice cream. Definitely a winner of the entire meal.
FYR Cycene Ond Drinc, 19 Boon Tat St, Singapore 069619Written by Cheryl Chong, images are writer's own
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