Why is this one of our favourite restaurants for date night?
Kaarla is a rather popular restaurant in town. If you’re wondering why that’s the case, and whether you should dine here, we’ve got three good reasons for you: farm-to-table concept, rooftop dining with an enchanting view, and lastly, and open wood-fire grill.
Dishes we recommend at Kaarla
Sharing dishes
The best dish at Kaarla, and arguably the best beef tartare we’ve had in the whole of Singapore, you have to try the Australian Wagyu Beef Tartare ($24).
It’s packed with flavours, especially with cured egg shavings on top, giving it that extra pop of umami in every bite. But as if that’s not enough, Kaarla also pairs their tartare with a range of garnishes, allowing you to enjoy the tartare differently.
As much as I love a good tartare, sometimes, the portion can be a bit big even if I’m sharing it with someone else. So having different combinations the way Kaarla does it makes the experience much more pleasant.
For sides, you have to get the Parker Brioche ($10), paired with their house-made shio kombu butter.
The brioche itself is the epitome of brioches. It’s warm, fluffy and so rich and buttery. Meanwhile, the shio kombu butter is an elevated version of regular salted butter. It’s salty, but the kombu, which is a Japanese seaweed, adds an extra layer of savoury and roundness to its flavour profile. It’s also not overpowering, which allows us to enjoy the brioche fully.
The Lotus Root Chips ($12) is also interesting if you want to order another sharing dish. It’s crispy, slightly salty, but you still get those natural lotus flavours.
The Yuzu Shoyu Salmon ($15), despite looking kinda try at first glance, was crazy tender once you tear into the meat. It was also thoroughly marinated, with a strong umami and tart flavour.
If you really want a good taste of what the wood-fire grill can do, order the Wood Roasted Pumpkin. Personally, I found it a bit too smokey. But, if that’s the kind of flavour you like, you’re going to love it.
What mains do we recommend?
Surprisingly, there aren’t that many entrees at Kaarla. If you take a look at their menu, they’re more focused on small bites and sharing dishes.
Hence, the only main dish we ordered was the Natural Pork Loin ($36).
It was quite tender. But the highlight of the dish was its accompaniments. The caramel miso brown butter was rich, sweet and umami all at once, pairing well with the sliced pork which had natural sweet undertones. The dish was also paired with braised barley and fresh garden vegetables, which crispness balanced the rich sauce.
Save room for dessert
The Cherry Ripe ($18) is such an interesting dessert, but it does require an acquired taste.
The cherries are first smoked on their wood fire grill, sweetening it, but also imparting a sort of smokey, savoury aroma. Hence, you’ll get that sweet and savoury combination in each bite.
Personally, I thought it was very interesting. The smokey flavour was also not too overwhelming. Instead, it was quite a balanced profile. This dessert at Kaarla is very similar to Kubo Woodfire Grill‘s blueberry dessert.
Location: 88 Market St, #51-02, CapitaSpring 048948
Opening hours:
Mon-Fri: 11:30am-2:30pm, 6-11pm
Saturday: 11:30am-3pm. 6-11pm
Sunday: Closed
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