District 10 Bistro

We have been patronizing this since it was newly opened and it has grown to be fairly crowded now.
Loved the location as I am staying just next door.Food is great.The ribs were fab.We had pizzas/ribs and the asian salad and whiting fish and chips and the steak.All items received thumbs up.
In fact I like the chill out mode and the some food here better than Bonta.
Bonta is excellent for the ala carte and pasta but I was disappointed by the set lunch by a rubbery steak.
I would definitely return to District 10 and we are going for drinks there later again.
people who used to love defunct Fat Frogs at The Substation would love this for the reasonable wine/food and lovely casual ambiance.

DATE VISITED: 090210

AMBIENCE : 8/10
The effort District 10 puts to make a relaxing environment is commendable. The colour lanterns on the outside (too bad it is a smoking area). The cosy interior with sofas and simple wooden furnitures make this place a nice spot to chill out. Little details like the retro style lamps, a facade of beer bottles, rattan furniture, chalkboards, jazz/big band music helped create an old school feeling to the place and add a modern touch to it at the same time.

This place score high marks for its interior decoration and ambience because the place has created a unique identity of itself. The only thing I don't quite like is that it is a little too dim for me.

FOOD: 7/10

HALAL : NO
The place serves alcohol and pork.

The menu is alright, quite a few items to select especially the beverages and wine. They features a rather large variety of wines from around the world. They also made an effort to make a presentable menu, although some would prefer to have pictures to have a rough idea of what they are ordering.

1. French Onion Soup with Gruyere Croutons - $10.00: 3.5/5
Maybe it is my personal preference, on the onset, I find the soup abit too salty. However, the sweetness of the onions comes through as you continue to drink the soup. Overall, I felt that the soup is above-average.

2. Rigatoni with Wagyu Meat Balls, Fresh Tomato and Shaved Parmesan Cheese - $20: 3/5
I don't find the Rigatoni to be extremely fantastic etc. However, I do find it better than average and the Wagyu Meatballs are definitely worth trying.

3. Spaghetti Carbonara - $15: 3.5/5
The Spaghetti Carbonara is good but too rich for my taste. The bacon meat is well cooked. Not too salty and not fatty.

4. Roasted Baby Back Ribs with Smoky Barbeque Sauce Served with Fries - $27: 4/5 The ribs are delicious although some parts are harder to chew. The accompanying salad is quite fresh and the dressing is just nice. The fries are very delicious. It is abit sweet with a tinch of spice to it. They were well-made too, soft interior with a delicious, crunchy exterior.

5. Traditional Creme Brule with Bourbon vanilla and rum - $10: 5/5
This creme brule finished off the meal perfectly. The best creme brulee I had so far. The well caramelized crust with the smooth, creamy interior makes this a perfect dessert. Together with the 'biscuit', each mouthful of the creme brule makes you want to eat more. The sight of specks of vanilla inside also tells us alot about this dessert. I normally have very poor impression of creme brule, this changed my perception totally. If I am to come back here, I will definitely have the creme brule again.

SERVICE : 7/10
The service is quite okay. The staff are friendly and they are very observant and takes the initiative to come and ask me for any request or how is the food. The only bad thing is that we have to remind them for the bill.

VALUE: 7/10
GST: YES
SERVICE CHARGE: YES
The prices are bit high here. However, the quality of the food and the ambience is what you paid for. My friends also ordered a School's Out (a cocktail).

OVERALL : 7/10
I really enjoy the ambience here and for the food it is above average especially for the creme brule.   http://the4moose.blogspot.com/2010/02/district-10-bistro-wine-bar.html

Literally, I used to study in this exact building. And they have done a good job maintaining most of the "feel" to the place. And where our canteen was, is now District 10.

That beautiful, old and huge tree that used to shade us from the afternoon sun during recess still stands there in its full glory, except it is now even more a focal point with the water feature around it.

Twice I've been here for food and drinks and twice I was pleased.

Food - Fusion. Thai Style Baby Back Ribs - not as spicy as I would expect something "Thai styled" to be, but still really well cooked (tender) and really tasty. Sambal Prawns Pizza - spicy, not to the extent of breaking out sweats and drinking gulps full of water, just enough to feel heat on the tongue. Only thing was it was a little too fishy smelling. Chilli Crab Pizza - which I still remember from the last visit, months back when they first launched. Using soft shell crabs with chilli crab sauce, on pizza dough. I couldn't get enough of it. Delicious.

Dessert - usual variety... Creme Brule was really quite good actually. sugar just lightly torched, and the custardy part, nice and creamy... Tiramisu had a good taste of alcohol in there.. not too strong, just right. Be back for Creme Brule.

Drinks - Unique cocktails. I believe they have an extremely innovative bartender somewhere indoors. The cocktail menu had a bizzare variety of drinks I had never heard of. Using chilli or lemongrass with alcohol. POW! refreshingly alcoholic. Promo of Stella Artois was $10 a pint if I recall correctly. Will definitely be back for drinks.

I've added the pictures from my last visit, but honestly, what we ate then was mostly a blur, other than the Chilli Crab Pizza...

District 10 started out as a promising aspect for a birthday dinner with its location.
However, it slowly turned out to be more of an overrated attraction.

I would like to start out with the good points.

District 10's area and choice of location was excellent and a very unique selling point. Built on a school premise!

The area though mostly outdoors, had sufficient ventilation and fans to keep the place cool.

However, that was their only great point, a stellar wrapping on the exterior.

We had trouble getting the attention of the service staff when ever we needed to order something and the food that arrived was mediocre though it did look appetizing. I would give them points for the usage of fresh ingredients.

We tried out the sambal prawn pizza which had the SLIGHTEST taste of sambal, not even spicy at all, REALLY slight taste for $20 which can be shared among 3 persons.

Several of us ordered the pastas which received nods of approval but as said, nothing fantastic.

Last but not least the worst part of the meal was when the bill came, and it turns out they added in extra items that jacked our bill up.

*TAKE NOTE TO CHECK YOUR BILLS BEFORE YOU PAY AT THIS PLACE.

Even though we highlighted it to the staff, we had to wait for approx 20mins for them redo the bill, even by 20 mins I had to go to the counter to remind them about it as my friends and I were in a hurry to go off.

Once the bill came, we paid in cash and after waiting for some time again, we decided to just go off.

So the only reason why they actually received a tip in this case was because we didn't wait for the change and it will probably be their last tip from us.

My mom made a reservation for this restaurant the day before we visited, I believe. They told her that she was lucky and that she had to go early, because they were fully booked.

We arrived early, so service staff were friendly and attentive, especially with recommendations. Between us, we ordered the wagyu meatballs rigatoni, the country style baby back ribs and a chili crab pizza to try.

The wagyu meatballs rigatoni was not bad. Meat was decent, rigatoni was al dente. But for some reason I was not wowed. Not as much as I expected to be. The country style baby back ribs had similarly tender and flavoured meat. But for some reason... maybe the meat was took soft? Maybe too much flavour had been boiled out of the meat? ...the dish struck me as some what forgettable. The chilli crab pizza was an ambitious dish. It used deep fried soft shell crabs with a chilli crab gravy on a thin-crusted pizza. Unfortunately for some reason, perhaps our tastebuds are too traditional, but chilli crab gravy on pizza dough somehow did not fly. Plus the dough could have afforded to be slightly dinner.

Dessert was the District 10 Sundae. That was vanilla bean ice-cream with chocolate sauce and chopped peanuts. It tasted exactly like that... except it cost $12.

All in all, the food is relatively reasonably priced, and I would consider the food decent. Plus the ambience is quaint and the service not bad too. However, somehow I just find the food rather forgettable. I think this place is just better for the setting, and maybe the drinks.

But remember to book in advance.

Check out http://www.thewordfood.wordpress.com for more honest reviews!

There have been a number of midrange eateries sprouting up in Singapore – the formula for setting up one seems to vary: some of the places have a niche type of food to sell(eg. burgers, milkshakes, pizzas, desserts), some have a quirky esoteric decor(eg. random vintage objects placed everywhere, chandeliers, lights, mirrors), some pride themselves as being a hip watering hole(with controversial advertising campaigns to boot) while others try to run the gamut of classic Western dishes in an effort to please everyone.

District 10, situated in the quiet Winstedt Road, shows much promise – it’s situated close to town with plenty of parking, but without the competition that its Dempsey cousins face. The place is cozy and warm, and offers a competitively priced $18++ set lunch during weekdays for a soup/salad, main course and a drink (add an additional $5 and you can pick a dessert).

When I was there with a friend on Saturday, the place was filled mostly with families – and it’s easy to see why. The menu is not ambitious – pizzas, pastas, baby back ribs, fish and chips, bangers and mash, selection of starters including calamari, duck spring rolls. Quite the crowd-pleaser and certainly very child friendly.  This is what I think distinguishes District 10 from its competitors. While most of the other midrange eateries have tried to bridge the gap between haute cuisine and midrange fare, District 10 does not try too hard in its bid but executes their versions of Classic favourites.

For instance, a recommended dish was the Country Style Baby Back ribs. 4 versions were on offer, among which were the British and American versions. I asked what the difference was, and the waiter explained that the sauce was different for both. In the end, we settled on the American version. Usually, I am highly dubious when places claim to execute 4 international versions of the same dish. But the country style baby back ribs did not disappoint- it was cooked perfectly, the meat was crispy on the outside, but absolutely tender on the inside. The sauce was not cloyingly sweet, the meat slid easily off the bone, and what you got was a very tasty set of ribs, indeed. Accompanying it was a green salad and crispy fries. I would have liked that the fries were served separately, instead of being hidden under the ribs(the moisture of the ribs made the fries less crispy than it otherwise was).

Another much touted dish was the Wagyu Meatballs Rigatoni. Much like truffles, Wagyu beef has featured heavily in many of the menus. Would this version stand up to the test? The rigatoni was al dente, but what set this pasta apart was the slightly sour-ish sauce that made the dish more punchy than it was. Had the sauce been done slightly different, it might have become pedestrian. However, the controlled use of the sauce meant that one could mop it up with the rigatoni easily. Some might comment however, that a more meaty base might have been tastier. I would have to say this is a matter of taste. When it came to the meatballs though(arguably, the most important part of the pasta), I venture to say that the texture of the meatballs might have been different. District 10’s version was a very finely minced up meatball. However, I prefer my meatballs to have more texture, and a less finely ground mince might have been tastier. It would also lend the dish more meat-iness.

We decided to try some of the starters and selected the Duck Spring rolls with Chilli Lime Dressing. This duck spring roll was indeed filled with lots of duck-goodness, the only difference was that instead of a wafer thin roll, District 10’s version uses a pastry, almost puff like pastry. The contrast in the textures was quite interesting and also meant that the pastry was still crispy after it was dipped into the honey and chilli lime dressing.

As with many of these eateries, often, the desserts may not be executed with as much finesse as the mains. Sadly, this was true of our Bramley apple tart with Butterscotch set.We felt that the apple tart could not decide if it wanted to be a cake or a tart. Instead, there was a thick layer of cake at the base of the tart, made up of almond flour(FoodsmithTwo informs me:)) and hardly any apples. The vanilla ice cream was much too creamy and foamy for my liking, and it was half heartedly put on top of a shortbread.

District 10’s quiet location and its crowd-pleasing menu should draw many patrons. Whether it manages to keep them coming back for more, really depends on how well it continues to execute its dishes.

 

We went for the xmas set dinner last night and everything was more than we had expected! The starter was a mixed plater with dry hams and salmon, salad with avocado and a pate. All three were well presented and made. We particularly like the salami (although it wasn't made by them!) and the pate. I don't recall the pate is on the normal a la carte menu. If the management is reading this, perhaps please consider adding the pate to the normal menu! It was tasty and not heavy like some of the others I tried elsewhere.

We opted for the steaks and we all changed the trimming options. The staff was more than helpful with that special request and the food was well cooked and presented again. As for me, I thought the steak could have done with a bit more seasoning.

The Xmas pudding came as a surprise as we were just expecting the usual pudding. However, it was wrapped in a mazipan or a meringue and the combination really worked. My husband doesn't usually like Xmas pudding also enjoyed it.

We had two bottles of wine ($79.00++) and a few beer. The total came to $300.00 which is a far better value for what we had than going to any fancy hotels or restaurants. We like the new selection of price in wine, too.

Having heard much about this place, my friend and I decided to check District 10 out. Tucked away in a rather inaccessible place at Bukit Timah, the easiest way (by public transport) is to take the MRT to Newton, and walk about 10mins to Windstedt Road. If you are driving however, do not turn in my Clemenceau Ave North as it is a one-way road. The restaurant is quaint, and most of the furniture were made of wood. It looks like we're in a forest of some sort! Indoors, there's a wine counter of some sorts, with barrels and barrels of wine peering down upon us. I didn't take a good look at the wine counter, but the selection looks pretty wide.

My friend and I both had the set menu (18$). The wild mushroom soup that we both had was fantastic! Topped with bread croûtons, it was creamy and thick. It was served piping hot, and was perfect for a cold rainy day (that caused us to be stuck at the restaurant for 4 hours). The portion was pretty big as well, and by the time we were done with the soup, we were semi-full already.

I had the Mixed Seafood Linguine in tomato sauce and basil which came with a generous helping of mussels, prawns, scallops and squids. I expected the dish to be some sort of a Seafood Marinara, but the chef did it differently. The tomato sauce was already well-mixed into the linguine, and it was a dry tomato base as there was no sauce overflowing. (don't know how to describe la, try it for yourself to find out!) I haven't tried pasta like this before, but it wasn't too bad.

My friend had baked chicken with cheese, served with mash potato and salad (not in usual menu) but according to her it wasn't fantastic. The chicken was too bland and dry, and there was no taste of cheese. I tried the mash potato however, and it was pretty good! That's saying a lot because I'm not a big fan of mash.

Service wise, there were hits and misses. For example, the waiter asked if we were ready for our main course only when we were halfway done with the soup. He also peered indiscreetly at us to see if he could clear the dishes. The chef however, came out to talk to us and asked if we were intending to stay for dinner because he noticed us there for a long time. (Damn the rain!)

The set meal is worth it at 18$. Because if you order the dishes ala carte, (mushroom soup 10$, seafood linguine 19$ and coffee(4.50$)/tea (5.50$), you're definitely getting more bang for your buck!

The calamari we had was soggy and completely tasteless. Pizza was really dry. Staff was not at all interested in taking the order and the al fresco area was not clean enough. the menu was a little too limited and it needs to be worked on

Me being my usual metalteeth decided to give district 10 a try despite the numerous bad reviews. Unfortunately, true to the reviews here the food were really not that great.
Went with 3 other gfs this time, we ordered carbonara, sambal prawn pizza, magerita pizza, district 10 fries and the durian platter
Everything came lukewarm except the magerita pizza because we asked the kitchen to serve it later while waiting for the last gf to appear. maybe they kept heating it up? ahhaha

let's start with the fries, its french fries plus mashed potatoes topped with cheese and served with sambal chili in a disposable souffle/cupcake casing. (i'm a baking avid so I know where and what the casing is for). end result, french fries were mushy and the mashed potatoes really doesnt add on to the taste of the fries at all. The sambal chili was not even spicy didnt even know that its sambal until my gf told me.

next up, the pizzas. The sambal prawn pizza is thin crust, filing is sambal and prawns and cheese.. i have to say the sambal prawn pizza is really not my cup of tea. Slightly fishy taste and no hint of spiciness again. The magherita pizza scored better but its not fantastic.

The most palatable is the carbonara, its super creamy and seriously it would be better if its warmer.

The worst thing that we chose for that day was the durian platter. Serves us right ordering something like this from a "western" restaurant. We saw this on the blackboard so maybe its meant to be a new item?
Platter came with 4 items. a slice of durian cake, a durian creme brulee, a durian puff and lemon sorbet. yup lemon sorbet.

creme brulee was watery below the caramelised sugar top. It literally dripped from our spoons. durian cake was ordinary more cake then anything else. The worst is the durian puff it was soo hard, the pastry was thick and no taste of durian. Best item? Lemon sorbet. It clears our palate after tasting all the wannabe durian items.

Will i go back again? No.