Friday, October 25, 2019

BurgerLabo

When the friends raved about BurgerLabo at Gilman Barracks, we had to slowly make our way there to have a taste. This is Nekkid's new incarnation, another food baby from Ken Loon (of The Naked Finn). The tiny bistro was crowded when we went. Well, there were just three of us, and nobody picked up that phone for us to make any reservations. But we got a table outdoors at 8pm. They thoughtfully provided mosquito coils. They were effective. Whewww. I've had enough of being bitten by mozzies these two weeks.

We all opted for the Basic Burger (S$23) — a 170g patty made from a blend of grass-fed Black Angus beef neck and Toriyama Umami wagyu A4 tenderloin and brisket. The others requested for a side of an egg (S$3) with the burger. I skipped that. Too filling for me. I added pickled and caramelized onions (S$2). The Basic Burger comes with a standard two slices of American cheese, grilled tomato, lettuce; and house-made bone marrow 'butter' made it superbly delicious.

Cutlery, wipes and serviettes offered. None of that bullshit that burgers don't require cutlery. (I'm glad that the stupid joint closed down.) The menu offered truffle fries or truffle fries with cheese. We asked for NORMAL FRIES (S$3 per serving). None of us liked truffle oil or anything like that in our food. If I want truffles, it's gotta be shaved truffles and only that.


I'm glad to see a vegetarian option on the menu. They called it Almost Burger. I want to eat it at the next visit. It's a mix of Impossible™beef and OmniPork with fried and fresh onions, pickled gherkins and house-made Danish remoulade. Sounds decent! If fries aren't your thing, there're additional sides of pumpkin mash, grilled cauliflower or tomato, and cauliflower soup to choose from too.

For people who don't take beef or superbly processed fake meat, you could do chicken or pork. Or a lobster roll. The Chicken Burger (S$20) is conceptualized by Julien Royer (of Odette). It's a 160g GG French poulet boneless leg marinated in yoghurt and spices, topped with egg and Frenchie salsa. The pork burger uses pork from Salmon Creek Farms (Twin Falls, Idaho) in the form of a Buta roll. The Buta Roll (S$20) is filled with grilled pork belly and collar, and baked bacon, pickled daikon, yama-wasabi, dunno-what tare and grated Parmesan cheese. For S$38, the Connecticut-style Lobster Roll (same as Naked Finn's) using 90g of grilled American lobster comes with shoestring fries and mesclun. Hahaha. There's a lobster bisque (S$22) too.

To my surprise, I didn't mind the Basic Burger. Of course I never love any burger enough to want to have it every week. (Nope, no 🌭🍔🍕. These are sad foods which I avoid.) I have no idea how people judge their burgers. There're all sorts of requisites and whatnot. Here's a sampling of my tastebuds if you want to benchmark my comments about burgers. Hahaha. I don't take to Shake Shack or In-N-Out. I'm not keen on Fatboy's, Wolf or Omakase, I don't mind Two Blur Guys, 25 Degrees and Burger Joint. Dunno what my choices mean, but it's an indication of whether your tastebuds are similar to mine. This is important if you want to give BurgerLabo a go, especially when it's at Gilman Barracks- if you take a risk without reservations or a car, you'll be rather miffed by the lack of food choices in the area.

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