A Whole Murray Cod

Fireplace by Bedrock at One Holland Village is fast becoming a favorite hangout. The dog-friendly sheltered outdoor area meant that we'll be okay on most nights in the fickle Singapore weather. The tiny fans in the area aren't enough, so on those super hot nights, bring portable fans. 

The man had cleverly signed up for dunno-what credit card promotion of which this restaurant honors without much fuss, and for the now, it extends those discounts to even our drinks. WIN. We like their list of single malts and whisky priced reasonably. We were so pleased with the whisky. 

Had easy starters of savory chicken-fat-flamed oysters on a bed of chorizo and chives, grilled asparagus with garlic chilli crisp, and couldn't resist the ox-tongue with roasted leek and sesame sesame dip and ponzu dressing. I loved the onions atop the ox-tongue. Mmmm. 

Tonight we weren't in the mood for its 300-gram aged ribeye or 650-gram Porterhouse steak. Opted for a whole Murray cod. It's one the largest freshwater fish, very predatory, territorial and aggressive. They're completely unrelated to the Northern Hemisphere's marine cod. It used to be critically endangered, but now the numbers are back up and Australia has managed to sustainably farm the species. The 1-kg fish arrived beautifully filleted. I was impressed. I couldn't have done it better. It was absolutely delightful. The seasoning was kept minimal — just salt and pepper and lemon juice, I believe, topped with grilled cherry tomatoes.  

We even made it to dessert. Had an apple crumble that was so good. No 'cake'. I like this iteration that isn't a cake or a pie. It's literally just caramelized apples and layered with crumble on the top, and a giant scoop of vanilla bean ice-cream.