Restaurant Review: Comfort Food, Bar Grub, and Happy Hour Drinks at Hej Kitchen & Bar on Orchard Road, Singapore

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Potted greens, pastel hues, and homely outdoor furniture by Danish design house Hay mark the location of Hej Kitchen & Bar. Situated on Emerald Hill along Orchard Road, it’s a welcoming sight in a place overrun with glitzy shopping malls and loud billboards. The name, in Swedish, is pronounced as ‘hey’, and means exactly what it sounds like: a welcome.

This casual al fresco diner, which was once named Odd One Out, is part of Peranakan Place, a colourful complex that also house popular nightlife venues Acid Bar and Alley Bar. It’s breezy with a cosy ambience, and the white-washed timber deck makes for a great spot to people-watch from. And the menu? An extensive assortment of appetisers, entrees, pizzas, sandwiches, snacks, and desserts.

 

Order the Margherita Al Funghi Pizza ($24), which is great for sharing. It’s prepped with mixed mushroom, tasty pomodoro sauce, and a fragrant dose of truffle oil to up the flavour. The spicy fried calamari is decent, but lacks the same kick as the Crispy Chicken Crackling ($15): bite-sized fried chicken skins with a fragrant ginger-rojak dressing that together, is both savoury and sweet.

Want actual chicken meat? There’s no rejecting a good Har Cheong Kai ($12), the timeless hawker favourite that’s been elevated with a signature shrimp paste seasoning, crunchy skin, and soft, flavourful flesh – arguably some of the best in town. The Crispy Buttermilk Chicken ($26), marinated with cajun spices and served on a crunchy Belgium waffle, is also quite tasty.

If you’re still hungry, get the Angus Beef Lasagne ($20) that the chef makes from scratch with fresh bolognese and pasta sheets. His creamy béchamel sauce is outstanding, topped with a blend of mozzarella and parmesan cheese layer by layer. If not, a warm plate of Homemade Churros ($12) awaits. That said, the churros itself is not particularly outstanding, but the Valrhona chocolate ganache (Dark Guanaja 70%, obviously) is fabulous.

Happy hour starts early here. Six, eight, and 10 are the only numbers you need to know, as house pour spirits, wines, and beers go for less than $10 from 5pm to 9pm. Drinking in between bouts of shopping is cool, after all. Not one for the cheap stuff? Hej also has a collection of cocktail specials, including a delicious Apple Shandy ($20) that’s mixed with Courvoisier cognac, apple liqueur, sparkling lemon-lime soda and a whiff of rosemary. But really, how about serving it in something other than a dim sum basket?

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Hej Kitchen & Bar is located at 180 Orchard Rd, Peranakan Place, Singapore 238846. Open Sun-Thu 12pm – 1am, Fri-Sat & Eve of PH 12pm – 2am.

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Deputy Editor

Gary is one of those proverbial jack of all trades… you know the rest. When not writing about lifestyle and culture, he dabbles in photography, graphic design, plays four instruments and is a professional wearer of bowties. His greatest weakness: spending more money on clothes than he probably should. Find him across the social world as @grimlay