Dive into Chef Sam and Song’s menu of Asian-inspired BBQ dishes (think satay, pork ribs, and ikan bakar) and unique desserts (gourmet ice kachan, anyone?) at this new BBQ joint on River Valley Road
There’s a lot to take in here. Chef Sam talks about Asian-inspired BBQ, a technique-focused approach to cooking, and his favourite mantras – #NoBurnNoTaste and #SpiceIsNice. While the idea of burnt dishes is likely to raise eyebrows, this new venture by the folks behind Five & Dime aims to present a modern Asian approach to BBQ, topped off with a robust dessert menu by Chef Song that’s just as intriguing – but more on that later.
Another one of Chef Sam’s approaches seemed to be “show don’t tell”, and it was not long before we were presented with a quartet of starters (which he prefers to call medium plates). The first dish we tried consisted of potatoes poached in lamb fat ($12), before being pan-seared for a nice crust. It was finished with hoshimeji mushrooms, kale rosemary, and garlic and lamb jus for an intensely savoury flavour that’s likely to bring to mind memories of Christmas.
Next, we tried two rather unconventional starters. These dishes were prepared very simply, allowing their natural taste, as well at the delightfully charred crust to shine through. The burnt corn ($11) was rubbed with lemon and salt and topped with sour cream and paprika. While the burnt asparagus ($14) was sliced and grilled (or almost burnt, by Chef Sam’s standards) before being dressed in a homemade bernaise sauce. Who says vegetables don’t belong on a BBQ?
Our final starter was a deceptively ordinary looking plate of satay, or Sataytay ($12), as it is called on the menu (several of the dishes here make references to popular musicians). Once again, the devil is in the details – the satay is made from Iberico pork collar and marinated a full day in sambal ’til it is richly flavoured and absolutely tender.
The mains are where the flavour profiles get a little more complex, as exemplified in the Duh Meat Board ($28). This particular main pairs steak (wagyu inside skirt) with the rather unconventional addition of fish sauce, with Iberico pork marinated in sambal along with a side of kai lan (Chinese broccoli), burnt with garlic. The steak, dehydrated atop the grill, offers the palate a delightfully salty complex flavour thanks to the addition of Vietnamese fish sauce. We’re pretty sure the tender Iberico pork with sambal will draw some comparisons with sweet char siew.
The ikan bakar ($28) is a dish clearly inspired by Indonesian and Malaysian charcoal-grilled fish. The dish consists of line-caught parrot fish marinated with chilli oil, garlic paste, ginger paste, kashmiri chilli powder and turmeric for a taste that will be familiar to Southeast Asian palates. The twist here is in the refreshing achar it comes paired with, which features a blend of rice wine, vinegar, gula raja, carrots, coriander and salt, that the chef comically dubs “Kiss of Nicki Minaj”.
Of course, it would be hard to find a BBQ joint that didn’t serve the classic sticky and spicy pork ribs. The pork ribs ($28), cooked sous vide for 11.5 hours is warmed in chicken stock before finally being fired on the BBQ. The sticky sweet sauce offers a nice bit of spiciness that’ll sneak up on you if you’re not careful. And of course, it goes without saying that the meat just melts off the bone.
Fat Lulu’s places just as much an emphasis on sweets as it does savouries, so expect a versatile, dessert menu with seasonal specials as well. Chef Song complements Chef Sam’s savouries by working his magic with desserts. He brings out nostalgic flavours in new and novel dishes like the pineapple and coconut “ice-kachang” ($14) that features rich coconut ice cream, coconut foam, nata de coco, chendol, pineapple granita and, for authenticity, several juicy atap seeds.
Another dish I particularly liked was the “Childhood” ($16). It’s a beautifully plated dish that looked like the aftermath of an ice cream falling on a pavement and shattering, complete with shards of chocolate cookies, frozen raspberry and raspberry puree. The tart fruit taste pairs delightfully with the savouriness of the homemade peanut ice cream.
It’s not often you find a restaurant that places equal emphasis on barbecued mains and unconventional desserts, but Fat Lulu’s manages to find a comfortable middle ground. Whether sweet or savoury, Chefs Sam and Song both manage to pull an elaborate balancing act with both classic and contemporary flavours. Want to spin your preconceptions of BBQ dining on its head? Fat Lulu’s is just the spot.
Fat Lulu’s, 297 River Valley Road, Singapore 238338. Open Tue-Fri 6pm-11pm, weekends 11am-4pm 6pm-11pm. Closed on Mon.