COCONUTS HOT SPOT — Vikings — or Norsemen, for the politically correct — were known to have an unquenchable thirst to voyage far beyond their homelands, sailing far and wide with the aim to colonize, trade, and, of course, pillage.
But along with their reputation as brutal raiders come their brutal appetite for seafood. Though today’s Nordic cuisine has evolved beyond the ancient staples of salted and fermented fish (they didn’t exactly have fridges installed on longships), the focus on ocean bounties remain as strong as Odin’s grip.
Located far, far away from fjords, on the exorbitant grounds that is Stevens Road, stands FiSK, a new 4,000 sq ft shrine to all things Norwegian seafood. Simultaneously a gastronomic restaurant and a fresh seafood market, the establishment in the recently opened Novotel compound delivers quality Norwegian and cold water seafood to our shores — a rare treat for our predominantly Asian palates.
An excursion into the FiSK experience should be launched with the juicy Greenland coldwater prawns on ice ($6/100 grams), naturally delicate and sweet in flavor that is best eaten with your fingers, and with its copious roe nibbled on first. Another lunch must-have would be the smørrebrød ($4-10/piece) — a Danish open-face sandwich made with slices of rye bread spread with organic Norwegian butter and generously topped with options like smoked mackerel, pickled herring, trout roe, and Greenland deep-sea prawns.
For dinner, the adventurous can try out the fried herring ($3.50/piece), with said herring being dill-marinated pickled before plunged into a house-made sourdough batter.
But the seafood skirmish is far from over. Fiskesuppe — a Norwegian seafood-vegetable chowder — gets a fine-dining upgrade with the creamed fish and shellfish soup ($7.50 for half portion, $12.50 for full) made out of a rich seafood stock filled with thick, delicate chunks of Atlantic cod, Norwegian salmon, carrots, celeriac, and leeks. At this point in time, your meal should already be accompanied by Norwegian ale, courtesy of Ægir Bryggeri. No Viking mead though, so that’s a shame.
As hearty as the soup is, it doesn’t hold a candle to one of FiSK’s top highlights: the hot-smoked Greenland Halibut ($35/person, two pax minimum). Served whole to share, it’s an entire damn halibut seasoned beautifully and served alongside assorted sides such as pearl couscous, steamed almond potatoes, broccolini, and cauliflower. All with an exquisite sauce that’s a butter and lemon juice emulsion with horseradish and trout roe folded in.
But Valhalla isn’t just confined to the restaurant — the FiSK market offers a wide range of quality seafood, ready takeaways, and Nordic products rarely found anywhere else for patrons to replicate a feast fit for the Æsir.
The one-stop shop is a work of love by Snorre Food, the suppliers responsible for bringing sustainable, healthy, and safe coldwater seafood directly to local consumers, which shows in their impressive 18m-long display.
FiSK Seafood Bar and Market is at 30 Stevens Rd, #01-01, 6732-0711. Sun-Mon 10am-7pm; Tues-Sat 10am-4:30pm, 6pm-10pm.
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