At ERWIN’s Gastrobar tucked away in River Valley, you’ll be surprised to find see a comprehensive selection of healthy choices, topped off with hearty delights.
Here’s one example – ERWIN’s Gastrobar serves three salad-based options including the Raw (crisp rocket, shaved beets, carrots, broccoli, French beans, pine nuts complete with a dollop of ricotta and avocado dressing), Roasted (oyster mushrooms, celery, grilled artichoke, aged parmesan, rocket finished off with a drizzle of balsamic dressing) and Classic (fresh greens, baby potatoes, fragrant mint and lemon basil pesto dressing).
My super health-conscious dinner companion absolutely loved the Raw salad base, which I have to admit, was really tasty even for a carnivore like me. However, just greens alone was not satisfying enough for me, and I was pleased to discover that I could add your choice of proteins to complement the vegetarian salads.
The options were succulent strips of Herb Roasted Chicken (additional S$5), tender slices of Premium Proscuitto (additional S$6), delicate chargrilled Tuna Steak (150g, additional S$8.50), and Australian Ribeye Steak (100g, additional S$8.50).
Adding the proteins was an absolute game-changer for me. The herb roasted chicken was not too dry, unlike the usual tasteless chicken breast one finds in chicken salads. The ribeye steak was so good I could have easily had two portions of it alone. The proscuitto met expectations, while the tuna steak was perfectly chargrilled without losing its freshness.
ERWIN’s sides surpassed my expectations. The Mac and Cheese (S$8), an elbow pasta tossed with crispy bacon and mozzarella sauce was more than just comfort food; the cheese was luscious and thick, with little shocks of bacon pieces. It managed to find a balance between underwhelmingly predictable and overwhelmingly cheesy. There is also a vegetarian option available.
The Potato Salad (S$6) was composed of soft boiled potatoes with garlic, parsley and honey mustard. Potatoes never really go wrong, and ERWIN’s did theirs right.
I had the Crayfish Risotto for my main, while my companion had the Lemon Sole. A new option on the menu, the Crayfish Risotto is simmered in seafood stock and roasted cauliflower cream, finished with aged parmesan and served with toasted ciabatta. My propensity for food envy aside, I felt like the risotto could have been simmered longer for the taste of seafood stock to penetrate it. Rather, the bits of crayfish meat had very little interaction with the risotto. The only upside was that the consistency of the risotto was decent.
Fortunately, the Lemon Sole, a baked fish fillet served with sautéed Italian greens and warm olive tapenade, was not as disappointing. The fish was tender and flavourful, and the warm olive tapenade was an interesting twist to whet the appetite. The only grouse was that again, the fish had little interaction with the olives. Then again, the fish was good enough to hold its own weight.
For desserts, we tried the Amaretto Zabalione (S$3.50), the Mocha Mousse (S$3.50) and Cannoli (S$9.50). The Amaretto Zabalione is an almond dessert served with apricot compote and shortbread crumble. While it was creamy and pleasant, it was rather forgettable.
The Mocha Mousse was decent though, and came with a few perks – a warm doughnut and chantilly cream. I thought this was a pretty neat dessert – it is much like a deconstructed mousse-filled donut, except that the donut is served piping hot and slightly crispy!
On the other hand, the Cannoli garnered mixed reviews. The cannoli is a Sicilian pastry dessert which means “little tube” and is made of a pastry shell usually no bigger than a finger, and filled with a sweet, creamy filling. ERWIN’s version had an interesting interpretation of that: mini ice cream cones were used as a pastry shell, and filled with strawberries, apricot compote, vanilla mascarpone and chocolate ganache. While I was slightly disappointed that the chocolate ganache was not as rich as I had expected, and that ice cream cones were used instead of fried pastry dough, the concept was interesting enough.
While there were some hits and misses in the dessert department, ERWIN’s Gastrobar is particularly strong for its beer bites.
The Piadina Flatbread (S$14) is a toasted tortilla with pancetta (Italian bacon made of pork belly meat), black pepper cheddar, mozzarella, roasted peppers and jalapeños. This would go well with most drinks and was delightful as a starter in itself.
The Fried Gnocchi (S$8.50) was rather creative. Fried with basil ricotta and truffle salt, it was the donut version of gnocchi. Doughy and chewy, it was a love-or-hate for some of us. I loved it.
The Beef Sliders (S$13.50) was indisputably delicious. Chargrilled patties, gherkin, tomato and onion chutney served on brioche buns, it is a quick fix for someone with a burger craving.
As I’ve mentioned earlier, ERWIN’s Mac and Cheese is pretty damn good – and so is their Mac & Cheese balls (S$11). Crumbed and shallow fried, tossed in paprika salt and served with Napoletana sauce, this was a mix between a meatball and mac and cheese. I don’t know how they did it – but it was the best of both worlds for me.
Salmon Tramezzino (S$9.50), which is cured salmon, truffled ricotta and dill salsa verde, is really as good as it sounds. For those who love salmon especially, this won’t go wrong for you.
I thought the most interesting bar bite was ERWIN’s Pork Craklings (S$6). Chilli roasted pork rind (I know how this sounds) served with honey mustard, this is the next best thing to potato chips. It was so delightfully crispy and undergirded with the ever-familiar oily pork taste, yet with the lightness of texture (something comparable to that of crispy fish maw). Have this with a beer or two, and life is perfect.
Hit ERWIN’s Gastrobar for its delicious bar bites, enjoy a drink or two, soak up its chill ambience — and don’t forget to take away some pork cracklings with you.
ERWIN’s
491 River Valley Road,
#01-21/22/23 Valley Point,
Singapore 248371
Tel: +65 6235 1613
