Raw Kitchen Bar

Raw Kitchen Bar is an al fresco restaurant located at the previous Bukit Timah Firestation. It's completely al fresco, so in order not to die from heatstroke wear something coooooling! I was wearing jeans and feeling quite hot and icky in general. Plus, since it's a bar the lighting is pretty dim - please don't bring someone who has night blindness, unless you want to sit inside (which is more lighted, but doesn't have aircon, so it's even warmer). Actually, it's quite hot, but if you wear shorts, then the mosquitoes will swarm onto you (since it's so near the nature reserve, definitely have lots of mosquitoes). So I guess you can either suffer from the heat or get bitten and risk dengue lol!
Rosemary Flat Bread which comes with basil olive oil dip. The bread's really fresh - from where I was seated, I could see hte chef drizzling olive oil over the dough and baking it in the oven. They initially forgot to serve us the bread, and when we peered around at other tables and realized that they had bread. So despite having already started on main courses, we had 2 rounds of bread. Ahi Mango Poke with Wanton Chips ($16++) - Deep fried wanton skins, with a slightly sourish crunch salad with Japanese Cucumbers, Capsicums, onion and juicy mango. I think the beauty of this dish is in its simplicity. Personally, I think I can easily do this one at home (minus the deep frying, cos I don't know how to deep fry - do you reuse the oil or throw it away?but it's such a waste cos there's so much oil!) and I don't see why it's $16++. But it tastes really good cos it's crunchy and refreshing.

Zucchini Pancake with balsamic goat cheese and prosciutto ($12++)

This one was pretty interesting, just that I found the portion a bit small. Three little floury zucchini pancakes, with creamy goat's cheese (it's not the kind tt reeks of goat, so good for those people who hate the goat smell), and a small piece of prosciutto. Salmon Nori with Wasabi Mash and Mushrooms ($22++)

This was my main course - the salmon was juicy and oily, and wrapped with a small piece of seaweed. It's quite a thick piece of salmon. The portion is very generous - the place was pretty full (it's a normal sized plate) and the dish was quite filling (but I always have space for dessert). I quite liked the mushrooms, which had the slight taste of balsamic vinegar. The wasabi mashed potatoes had hardly any wasabi taste - there was only the mildest bit of wasabi, and that was only in one corner of the mashed potatoes. Not that I'm complaining cos I don't like powdered wasabi (which is actually horseradish). Balsamic Duck and Butter Potatoes ($23++)
I can't remember much about this dish - I don't think it was that fantastic, but it wasn't that bad cos I didn't think that the duck was hard/dry/tough or anything.

Marsala Wine Lamb Chops ($24++)

The lamb chops were succulent and nice and pink in the middle. It comes with sweet potato mash, which is an interesting change from the normal mashed potatoes. I really like sweet potato, and the mash was smooth and delicious. It also came with grilled vegetables (eggplant, zucchini and peppers). I think that $24 is very reasonable for lamb (especially for dinner) cos some other places charge around $30 just for lamb!Rigatoni, Crab, Cromato Sauce ($21++)

This was my fave dish of the night - crab and pasta plus pink sauce always tastes good. Btw, Cromato means cream + tomato. Actually, I think that if I came here again, I'll either order this or the lamb. Although I do think the lamb is more worth it cos it's meat, and this one hardly has any meat?

Deep Fried Cheesecake with Strawberry Marmalade ($6++)

I thought this dessert was really worth the price - it's 3 medium sized balls of deep fried cheesecake, with a syrupy strawberry sauce. Though I found the batter a bit on the heavy and oily side, the cheesecake was oozingly creamy, and still slightly chilled.

Dining at Raw Kitchen Bar reminds me of having a casual bbq at a friend's house, just that you have to pay more:P Although the main courses are very reasonably priced, I think that the appetisers are not. The food here is very simple and tasty. Service here is friendly and unpretentious, and the relaxed atmosphere. In fact, our server told us that they encourage sharing, especially for appetisers - how many places actually do tt!

This place was recommended by C who's dad has been patronizing this place lots:D She recommends the White Zucchini Pizza too.

Raw Kitchen Bar

276 Upper Bukit Timah Road

Tel: 6467 3987

It's really in the middle of nowhere, from the main road, just look for this neon sign saying "Gastrobar" and you've found the right place. I shall go and try the Gastrobar next :)