Oktoberfest All Year Long

Though the Signature Pork Knuckle (S$42.00) seemed like the perfect item to redeem as a Burpple Beyond 1-for-1 deal, it was probably more enjoyable as a sharing dish because of its richness.

Just imagine a perfectly-roasted hind-leg pork knuckle that packed both crispy crackling and tender meat that was complete with a good serving of sauerkraut, potato salad and a beer gravy by the side…… aren’t you feeling hungry already?

Just be prepared, as of most meat dishes, there would be quite some chewing to do.

#BurppleEatup
#BurppleBeyond

Pre-made beef patties might have been a bit of a letdown in my first encounter with HANS IM GLÜCK burgers, but I had a pretty satisfying time somehow.

Their Alsdann (S$17.00) was a beef burger with chunks of grilled pear, mild blue cheese sauce and walnuts, giving the ordinary burgers different flavours and textures. With the choice of a sourdough bun, I was surprised that it was soft to the chew, so that more attention could be given to what was in-between.

On top of the mains, I topped up another S$5.00 and got myself a set that included a side dish (their fries were awesome with those self-serve bottles of sauces on the table), an iced thirst quencher and a hot beverage, making the add-on worth the buck for sure. Definitely a good experience that made this place deserving for a return visit, and hopefully I would reserve a spot that could catch the service crew’s attention a bit easier.

This place used to be a popular ice cream parlour with a photo wall. Maybe the kids have grown up and now they serve alcoholic beverages from the tap.

“Orh Gao” was a colloquial term for stout back in the Kopitiam setting. And to create that inviting coffee shop ambience, the owners run Killiney Kopitiam here in the morning until 6.30pm. Be early evening, the restaurant transforms into a craft beer place that also serves bar food, pasta, main courses and desserts. The 10 taps on the wall dispense a variety of beer, stout and ciders, and the menu changes as the kegs empty, so be sure to experience something different every visit.

The food were reasonably priced as all main courses were available under S$20.00. Burpple Beyond users would rejoice as the restaurant would offer 1-for-1 deals on either “Main Dish” or “Main & Dessert”, so you need not order beer here but could still leave the restaurant with a happy belly after a good meal.

#BurppleEatup
#BurppleBeyond

Drink beer.
#beer #happyhour #carling #stickiesbar #burpple #burpplesg #foreverhungry

One of the items in the Small Bites menu that was recommended was this Chili Sea Salt Wings (S$14.00 for 6 pieces), which was marinated in coconut milk and seasoned by Sichuan pepper and sea salt, before coated with tapioca flour and deep fried till crispy.

I quite liked this dish because the flavour was neither bland nor intense, which made it score a little better than the typical “har cheong gai” from the Zi Char stalls.

The only drawback about this dish was its price. It was only after appearing in front of my eyes that I realised that the 6 pieces referred to 3 whole wings. Given such a price point of about S$5.00 per wing, I would settle for a burger or pasta anytime, just to be certain that I had indeed eaten something substantial.

#BurppleEatup

Tropical Wheat (S$8.80 per bottle) to counter that tropical heat. This limited edition beer was recommended by the waitress before the beer would be available on tap from 9 May 2019 onwards, at S$16.80 a pint.

The taste profile of the beer was hoppy and citric, with quite a low bitterness and carried some sweetness. It reached a point where I almost thought I was downing a liquified version of a chicken chipolata, or maybe I was just too hungry. But the good news was that given its lightness, I thought it was very easy to drink, with or without food on the table. But I guess the perfect pairing would be with their seasonal white asparagus which would be rolled out any time now.

A main course like this Roasted Whole Pork Knuckle (S$31.90) would be seemingly too large a portion for dinner, but it was worth every cent of it if you were a roasted pork knuckle person like me.

The chef would be more than happy to help you debone the roast for easier consumption, but despite having quite a fine balance of crispiness and tenderness, be prepared to send your jaws for an extensive exercise if you would choose this.

But the goodness did not stop at the meat. Along with the dish also came a generous portion of Sauerkraut, and that really helped to cleanse away the greasiness a fair bit while at the same time also tasted great (one of the best Sauerkrauts I had taken so far). The “ball” that accompanied the dish was a Bavarian bread dumpling, which was also delicious because of its buttery richness, but I came to realisation in the middle of the meal that if I were to empty the plate all by myself, I would probably have a digestion problem.

So the best way to enjoy this meal without fearing of overeating, would probably be to share it with two or more people, so that the other dining buddies would order something “lighter” for everyone to potluck: a food strategy best executed with Burpple Beyond in hand.

#BurppleBeyond

All major food centres should have one craft beer stall, and this latest addition at Old Airport Road Food Centre is just what I need. Serving up to 10 types of craft beer on tap and some bottled beers too, 3rd Culture Brewing Co is located at one corner of the iconic food centre and you should pay them a visit if you are there. This is simply because some of the beer actually goes well with our local foodfare.

My India Session Ale by Postmark Brewing, for instance, was priced at S$11.00 per pint, and its light and balanced nature made it an easy pairing with rojak, in my opinion.

And if they charge you an extra dollar, it is just a refundable deposit so long as you return them the beer glass after downing the booze.

Here for a crazy evening of beer at the “Wiki-Beeria” event, organised by Archipelago Brewery, to celebrate Singapore’s first crowd craft beer.

And the recipe of English Humour was the works of my colleague who is an avid cook. It’s basically a Black Ale “made with 8 different malts and hops, giving a well-balanced bitterness with sweet and biscuity aroma of caramel, on top of a coffee / chocolate sensation”. But if you would ask me, it’s really easy to drink with some notes reminding me of iced lemon tea with coke.

It should be out for a very limited time, until their supply runs out, if it had not already sold out completely.

Among all the handcrafted beer they offered here, I chose a pint of Steam Beer (S$15.00), which has an amber colour, caramel malt flavour, and medium bitterness. Though I must admit that the first sip of it was a little too bitter for me, I actually enjoyed it more towards the halfway mark. As the menu described, it’s possibly the perfect cross between pilsner and pale ale, and it’s pretty much common in California.

Perhaps there is no “live”soccer match telecast shown on TV, and that explains why the restaurant is less than half-filled. However, a pint of beer is still a relaxing way to round up the week.

At a place where you can get a wide variety of bottled beers, it only makes sense for them to sell the totally irresistable roasted pork knuckles.

And they did. The Pork Knuckle they offer here is definitely well-cooked, with its meat soft and tender from the slow roast, to the point that I almost started making my own pulled pork. And you known that they invested a lot of time in their roasting because the bones can be detached by a simple twist-and-pull. The skin was generally crispy, although there are some portions where the skin started to turn a little chewy.

However, I took a bit of time trying to remove the chunks of fats from under the skin. It is indeed visually disturbing, so I’d rather not post it here.

Sadly, I did not like their Sauerkraut that was served with the pork knuckle. It’s a little marshy for me, so I suppose it might not be as freshly-prepared as I had hope it would be.

The S$28.00 portion is good for two to share.

Definitely, if you are into bar grubs and craft beers. This newly-open bistro has five types of craft beer made by Circa 7 Brewing Co., and each pint goes at either S$14.00 or S$16.00. I tried "Pursuit of Hoppiness IPA" and "Bohemian Pilsner" craft beers, and I have mixed feelings about each of them.

The "Pursuit of Happiness" (S$14.00 per pint) comes across as a typical kind of beer that I reckon with fruity notes and with that smooth and clean finish, but it has this so-called "biscuity malt" aftertaste which I don't exactly enjoy. On the other hand, the "Bohemian Pilsner" (S$12.00 per pint) promises a nice sweetness aftertaste, but has this different kind of smell and initial taste as I took my first gulp. Then again, everyone would have their preference to how their beer should taste like, so even if I prefer the "Pursuit of Happiness", first-timers can consider trying them all for a more personalised preference.

Moving on to the food. The Beef Sliders (S$16.00) comes with three mini-burgers with beef patty, cheese, coleslaw and bacon between the crispy toasted buns. The fries were given with a decent portion, but turned out to be a tad salty. There isn't much of a "wow" factor from it, but given that it went well with the beer, I'm happy enough.