Potato Head Folk: Of Fun Buns and Naughty Fries

I couldn’t quite believe I had gone to Potato Head Folk the first time without trying their famous burgers. Following the tongue-tickling cocktails I had at Potato Head Folk’s Studio 1939 lounge more than a month ago, I thus returned to try their burgers.

Three Buns Dining Kitchen is the burger and cocktail bar located on the first and second floor of Potato Head Folk. The cocktails served here are not the same as those served at Studio 1939 (although you can order from Studio 1939 if you like). The cocktails here are specially concocted to complement the burgers.

Looking through the menu, the description of the burgers were enough to make my mouth water in anticipation. There seemed to be a myriad of condiments that accompanied every burger on offer. All the burgers came with fun-sounding names like Baby Huey, James Brown aka the ‘Codfather’ of Soul, Honky-Tonk, to name a few. We finally settled on Truff Ryder ($45) and Smokin’ B-Boy ($28) for burgers, and Naughty Fries ($10) and Wing-Its ($10) for appetisers.

Contrary to their name, the Naughty Fries were sliced potato-chip style and doused with spiced béarnaise, hot beef chilli, parmesan, sesame seeds, and for some local flavour, crisp deep fried shallots. It kind of reminded me of nachos and A&W’s coney dog. The generous slathering of the sauce and chilli meant that every potato slice was covered with the gooey goodness. The spiced béarnaise and beef chilli complemented the potato chips perfectly and the shallots simply put the dish over the top. The bar had been set.

Next up were the Wing-Its – twice cooked chicken winglets served with scallions and a smokey BBQ sauce. The winglets were well-cooked, but unfortunately the BBQ sauce coated the wings was rather generic, lacking the kind of punch I was expecting.

Having heard so much about the burgers, we couldn’t help but have high expectations for them. We were told that the buns are made fresh daily to Potato Head Folk’s in-house recipe so that they would be fresh and soft and prefect for soaking the juices. Besides the bespoke artisan buns, the burgers are 100% all-natural using the finest quality meat and homemade slow-cooked sauces.

The serving staff informed us that the beef patties are cooked medium by default, but we could order otherwise according to our preference. We decided to stick to the default doneness, and requested for the burgers to be sliced in halves for sharing.

Smokin’ B-Boy is a prime 150g beef patty served with smoked cheese, dell beer and treacle-cured bacon, BBQ ketchup, smokey mayo and crisp onions on a demi-brioche bun. A look at the Smokin’ B-Boy burger was sufficient to tell me I should have ordered it medium-rare. The patty was a tad too dry, perhaps due to it being overcooked. There was hardly any of the juices that you usually can see oozing out of perfectly cooked patties. The BBQ sauce also completely overwhelmed the rest of the condiments. It was somewhat too salty to my liking, though the saltiness could also be due to the bacon.

Truff Ryder, however, was a different proposition altogether. Fat was rendering out of the generous portion of foie gras and this trickled down the burger patty creating a delectable mess. The delicious, fragrant smell of truffle wafted to the nose with every bite. Now, this was one well-executed burger.

This burger is 150g of wagyu beef patty with a 50g pan seared foie gras sitting on top. It is served with ketchup, onion jam, four cheeses, summer blade truffle, miso mayo and cradling all these delish delights is a demi-brioche bun. Although the number of condiments seemed intimidating, they melded well together to create a balanced, well-rounded taste. The delicately sweet brioche bun was perfect for soaking up the mix of beef and foie gras juices.

We decided to end the meal on a sweet note by ordering desserts. We ordered Rich Chocolate (S$6) and Sticky Icky Wicky (S$8). They came individually packed in cute little gold coloured cupcake cups. At first glance, the understated presentation might lead one to think that they were not made in-house. But rest assured, all the desserts are individually made and hand-potted by the Potato Head Folk chefs.

Rich Chocolate is a fondant with a gooey center made with a mix of milk and dark chocolate. For chocolate lovers, this would be a well-balanced tasty chocolate treat. Sticky Icky Wicky, as one might have already guessed from the name, is a sticky toffee pudding served with clotted cream, gula melaka and toasted coconut butterscotch sauce. The pudding on its own might be a little dry, but when paired with the cream, it became sweet heaven.

Overall, the dining experience at Potato Head Folk was a pleasant affair. The serving staff were friendly, checking on us every now and then throughout the meal. The food, while not perfect, came in generous portions and were generally executed decently. Coupled with the casual laid-back vibe of the restaurant, Potato Head Folk is a worthy addition to the Keong Saik Road area.

Potato Head Folk
36 Keong Saik Road, Singapore 089143
Tel: +65 6327 1939
www.ptthead.com

Opening Hours: Tue to Sun 11 am to 12 midnight; Closed on Mon