Club Street Wine Room is Andrew Walsh’s Whimsical Take on Bougie Wine Bars
Singapore has been graced by an inundation of wine bars, as countless groovy, cutting-edge concepts streamed in. Eventually, even Michelin-Starred chefs joined the fray — like fusion maestro Rishi Naleendran’s Fool Wine Bar and Andrew Walsh‘s Club Street Wine Room.
Two styles set the mood for the local wine bar blueprint — there are those oozing a groovy, rebellious edge and those that are transplantations of the archetypal wine bar into more casual, laidback environs.
Like its neighbour Le Bon Funk —a stalwart of Singapore’s wine bar scene— Club Street Wine Room’s vibes skewed towards a luxe disposition.
Underneath the understated frou-frou of the space, there is a strong modern chicness that paints it with the mood of a white-collared shindig.
With a tagline like “rhythm & sound”, expect rowdier times at Club Street Wine Room while getting wined and dined by Andrew Walsh’s signature fusion grub. An endearing blend of cosiness and sophistication — almost like a home party in a bachelor’s pad.
Small Bites All right
Our night at Club Street Wine Room started off slow and easy, digging into globs of gratifyingly crispy Hasselback Potatoes ($9/pc). On its own, it looks like an unassuming fried potato but the black garlic sauce truly worked its magic.
The sweet heady black garlic aroma engulfed the simply seasoned potatoes and was paired immaculately with exterior crunch and soft, pliable flesh.
Torn from the same page is the Beef Tartare & Scallop Toast ($16/2pcs) — Nothing extravagant, just efficaciously umami bites of beef tartare layered atop gently crispy scallop toast.
While it’s rather simple, you can also take a swig in the Japanese-influenced egg dip that will help pierce through the heaviness — be warned of overdosing on the potent concoction though.
Save for the tipples, my pick for favourite is the Caramelised Shallot Tart Tatin ($16/pc). A rather curious pick for sure, considering myriad more exquisite items on Club Street Wine Room’s menu.
Alas, I cannot lie — I was besotted by its intoxicating burst of fragrance and richness, while luscious caramelised onions are draped over it. Perhaps a tad unsophisticated but supremely sapid.
Of course, nothing tickled my fancy much like Club Street Wine Room’s swanky wine curation. For high-rollers, an extensive library can satiate all your wildest dreams but for light drinkers like me, the glass options are more than sufficient.
Craving a more mineral-forward red, I was nudged towards the choice of a Moulin-a-Vent ($21) flowing out of Domaine des côtes de la Molière. Slightly more rugged, brimming with an earthy mineral richness which eventually opens up into charming acidity and light tannins.
Keep it Lowkey
Admittedly, the latter part of the night at Club Street Wine Room couldn’t quite live up to the billing after the promising small bites. While it’s a fun translation of Andrew Walsh’s modern yet homely Irish-influenced twists, there are gaps in execution to justify the prices.
The latter half of the Club Street Wine Room menu consisted of heartier grub and the most promising of it all was the Grilled Welsh Rarebit ($25). Don’t be alarmed, it is not made from the jumpy cute critters.
It’s just a colloquialism for toasted cheese, which is what it is — a simple amalgam of cheddar and carbs. It contains a magnificent dose of cheddar sharpness while finishing with a sexy echo of Guinness depth. A true decadent indulgence but it is slightly pricey for what is essentially cheese and bread.
One big miss was the highly-lauded Andy’s Fried Chicken ($19/6pcs), which carried quite the steep premium. The biggest sell is that it’s an elevated take on KFC’s original, made extremely underwhelming by Singapore’s KFCs.
Club Street Wine Room’s fried chicken is worlds apart in terms of texture, maintaining an easy and fragrant profile without excessive spice. At times, it’s as crispy and succulent as the finest fried chicken I’ve had but it also ended up with intermittent dry spots that robbed me of a perfect experience.
Alas, it has to be said that Club Street Wine Room’s Woodfired French Yellow Chicken & Pithivier Pie ($68) wasn’t the magnificent curtain-closer that it should’ve been either.
There was a jarring inconsistency throughout varying parts of the chook — undoubtedly juicy with pleasant scores on fats on the thigh while also inexpiably arid, for such a fine establishment, around cuts such as the breast,
A bit of a shame, considering that the sauce was a respectably sumptuous mix of sweetness, salinity, and twang. Main plates falling short of small plates do seem to be endemic to similar establishments though, trying to balance simplicity for wine pairing — so it’s not a huge red flag for Club Street Wine Room.
What Andrew Walsh does splendidly with Club Street Wine Room though, is setting a convivial yet elegant ambience for a night of imbibing, A wine room doesn’t have to be either chic or rowdy — this shows that they can be a well-tuned balance of both.
Make your reservations here.
Club Street Wine Room
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- Address: 87 Club St, Singapore 069455
- Hours: (Tue–Thu) 5pm–12am, (Fri–Sat) 12pm–12am, (Sun) 12pm–9pm
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