COCONUTS HOT SPOT — First off, we’ll admit there was a time when we were rather obsessed with Artichoke. We returned to the Middle Eastern restaurant time and again with different groups of friends for chef-owner Bjorn Shen’s brand of “dudestronomy” (a term he created to describe his culinary style of comfort food with a bro-tastic twist).
When we were done with that, we turned our fixation to Bird Bird, Shen’s fabulous fried chicken joint, until it sadly closed its doors for good last year.
Now that the man himself is back at the mothership, we knew we had to check it out again — and naturally, the revamped menu did not disappoint.
Besides old crowd favorites like the hot skillet prawns with green harissa ($38; with sauce you simply must mop up with any available piece of bread on your table) and the glorious Lambgasm (Artichoke’s signature slow-cooked lamb shoulder that’s so tender the bone comes off clean), it was the new dishes, created in Shen’s irreverent and innovative way, that we just couldn’t get enough of.
The casual eatery has always been about sharing plates, and now even the dips have leveled up with options like burnt miso hummus studded with walnuts and blackcurrants ($10), parmesan-flecked Iraqi spiced mushrooms crowded on a bed of fried egg purée ($12), and Ispanak — a spinach, labneh, fried onion, and plum mix that’s ridiculously addictive.
There’s even a Japanese-influenced appetizer in the form of the Mentaiko Taramasalata ($18) that comes with cod roe dip and crispy garlic bread.
It can be rather tempting to eat your weight in bread, thanks to all these luscious, creamy dips (trust us, we feel ya), but you’ve gotta stay strong and keep pushing on, because even the desserts here are worth working out for.
But first, the refreshed meat line-up. There’s the grilled Iberico pork collar ($34) swimming in a Coca-Cola caramel sauce (strange-sounding, but don’t knock it till you’ve tried it), and BJ’s Favourite Steak ($36), a buttery, garlicky dish of 300g Aussie flank steak served with house pickles and toum garlic whip (just in case you couldn’t get enough of that garlic taste in your mouth).
Now that you’ve worked your way to the sweets, the baklava croissants ($7) are a must-try — they may not look like the finest, most delicate pastries (done on purpose, of course), but they’re all about flaky layers with a tinge of sugar from the orange blossom honey.
If you’re paying Artichoke a visit before the end of April, definitely get your hands dirty with the eatery’s rendition of chocolate pie ($5), a limited edition treat with gooey molten chocolate filling that oozes out from a crispy crust made with roti prata dough. How’s that for the ultimate indulgent way to end your meal?
Oh, and for those constantly on the hunt for happy hour prices, the restaurant’s Hang Time (4pm-7pm) offers $1 wings and $8 drinks for you to stuff your face… before dinner.
Artichoke is at 161 Middle Rd, 6336-6949. Tues-Sun 4pm-10:30pm; weekend brunch 11:30am-3:30pm.
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