We got to Hawker Bar last week around 7pm. All the table seats were filled so a spot at the tiny L-shaped bar in the back corner called our names. This new Singapore-street-food restaurant on the Ossington Strip can accommodate maybe 26 guests in its rich-wood filled den of…how should we say this…den of awesome.
Wary at the thought of dining sans booze – Hawker Bar’s liquor licence has yet to come through – we ordered up a couple cheap mocktails that were, for all intents and purposes, a generous compromise to proper libations. The Evan’s Revenge, for instance, is a muddled mix of fresh orange, ginger, and chili peppers that’s a perfect accompaniment to the small menu.
We started with the cucumber salad – beautiful strips of peeled cucumber, a mirin and lemon dressing, red chillies, and toasted sticky rice – and the chili salt tofu – silken tofu simply prepared with a generous sprinkling of the salt, served up with a sweet and smoky dipping sauce. The pork satay was coated in a crunchy peanut sauce, with the meat being surprisingly tender though it’s grilled on a stick.
The whole Sea Bream we chose as a main was fried excellence. A stand-out dish to be sure, simple yet elegant with a banana blossom salad. The coconut rice suggested as a side by our server was a perfect pairing with the fish sauce.
Hawker Bar’s prices are incredible (four apps, two mocktails, and a featured main tallied just under $60 after tax), especially given the uncomplicated yet precise presentation and flash of flavours. We can’t wait to head back in after the bar’s ‘prohibition’ is over and test out some flavourful ‘real’ drinks. But in the interim, the comfortable space, friendly service, and beautiful flavours of Singapore will have to suffice…