It took me a while before finally heading down to relish to try out their famous burgers. Made a reservation a couple of days before but on sat, but if you are one of those spur-of-the-moments type, you will be happy to know that there were tables available

The lunch started on a good note, when i was greeted by a cheery young staff who was obliging enough to give us sofa seats even though they had allocated another table to me. Water was also promptly given (plus point!). My companion and I order the Wild Rocket Burger and the Blue Cheese and William Pear burger. Will have to say that the blue cheese burger stood out, it was pretty similar in content to the wild rocket (namely beef patty and rocket in between 2 buns) except with extra toppings of blue cheese and pear which gave it extra punch. the burgers came with fries, can opt to change to a salad.

Service: when the blue cheese burger was presented, it had fries on it (which I had earlier on changed to salad)and when i pointed it out, waiter realised he made a mistake (he had 2 plates of the same burger on his hands) and gave me the other one without a word. Here, service can be improved, didnt really appreciate the 'silent' treatment, at least an apology would be nice. Additionally, when we were done with our meal, after a while, we were presented with a bill, which we werent ready for since I did not actually ask FOR the bill. In my shock I commented that i did not ask for the bill, for which the waiter promptly chose to ignore and stood there waiting for us to pay. Although I appreciate it might be a genuine mistake on their part, when the restaurant is not even full, customers definitely do not appreciate being chased away before they are ready!

was on a budget due to pay's not in yet so decided to give relish a try after reading many reviews about it. (and coz it fitted into my budget. =D)

located at cluny court on the 2nd level with simple and uncluttered decor. it had bright airy feel. probably also due to the fact that the ceiling was very high. giving me a modern yet welcoming feel. =D

service was prompt. friend and i were ushered to a table very quickly although the staff were busy with orders. nothing to shout about the service but the staff were attentive and polite.

and guess what? they were having a promotion for set lunch as well. =D $22++ for a starter and main. $26++ for a starter. a main and a dessert. and both sets are inclusive of a regular coffee or tea. =D

so. my friend had the soup of the day (clam chowder) and chicken masak merah burger with coffee while i had the white bait with mesclun salad. signature wild rocket beef burger and tea. didn't go for the dessert coz i was saving space for island creamery. (more about that in another review =D)

ok food. the clam chowder smelled good when in arrived in a portion that seemed too small for the big gigantic white bowl. =X friend had no comment on it. but there were bits of carrots seen in the soup.

friend commented that the chicken masak merah burger was juicy. and he especially liked the fries. =D

i thought the white bait salad was quite good. coz the pesto sauce drizzled around the plate was infused with curry as well. i think. =)the white bait was fried till crisp and i simply love their pieces of tomatoes!!! it was soooo crunchy! =D the rocket was not as overwhelming as when i first thought it would be. overall an ok salad.

and then came the wild rocket beef burger which i requested to have it done medium. it came on a bed of rocket which turned me off totally until i tried in all in a bite with the mustard. the salsa (?) the patty. and the bread. and it was actually good. no bitter aftertaste or what notz. =D i especially liked the mustard coz it added the extra 'oomph' for me. =D the fries? i still enjoy my skinny and soggy fries from mcdonald's. =P

coffee and tea were much like the usual you find outside.

overall a pleasant dining experience with good food which didn't burn any holes in my pocket. =D am thinking of going back again with otehr friends for a celebration soon. =D

I've set foot into Relish @ Cluny Court a few times. Once with a lively, chatty, gathering of about 10 including a baby, all HY ex colleagues. Another time with 2 close friends. This time round, only myself, just to kill some alone time on a Thursday noon time (my legitimate 24 hours rest time after my night duty).

Relish is located on the 2nd level of some restored 1928 shophouses, which is now Cluny Court. The decor is more casual than the parent restaurant, Wild Rockets @ Mount Emily.

The interior is simple, white wash and adorned with a lively yellow and orange mural of flying pigs and cows. This gives the restaurant a modern touch in the otherwise, aged, pre-war exterior. During the day time, natural light is led into the restaurant through the many glass panelled windows.

Like I have described above, Relish is equally welcoming for someone who wants to chill out (a weekday noon 1pm would be good, its quite empty when I'm here alone, wonder if it's the effects of the credit crunch), or for a party of lively gathering. To add a booster to the liveliness factor, Relish serves beers from all over the world.

The menu is created by Chef Willin, owner of Wild Rockets and Relish. He creates ingenious burger dishes with American-European flair and incorporating local ingredients, carving a niche in the Singapore food scene. Good burgers were hard to come by until his two restaurants were founded.

The chalk board on the walls highlight the meal specials and their popular burgers with all the local touches. Some of the more popular burgers are, Wild Rocket (their signature beef burger), Ramlee, BBQ Char Siew Pork and Spiced Lamb Pita. I noticed many of the guests looked European which only implies that they are quite taken with the local touches in Chef Willin's re-creations of dishes that originate from their home countries.

The last few times, I had dishes from their a-la-carte menu. This time, I'm trying their burger set-lunch at S$26++ for 3 courses. The 2 course set-lunch is at S$22++. There are a few items to select from a list of starters, mains and desserts. Here's the set lunch that I've picked from the set lunch menu.

Standard Coffee (or tea) : I've asked for the coffee to be served first, so as to perk me up after waking up early this morning.

Starters : Baked gorgonzola polenta cake with shiitake mushroom - This is cake alright, but the savoury kind. The sauce makes the whole dish very appetizing and encourage one to look forward to the mains that's arriving right after.

Mains : Chicken Masak Merah Burger - Chef Willin has added local Malay flavours in this burger. Sandwiched between the sesame-ed burger buns is a big chunk of tender chicken thigh meat covered with bread crumbs and then fried. The "masak merah" (means red cooking), a popular Malay way of cooking, is where the local twist is added to the burger. The "masak merah-ing" involves a tomato based paste with chilli and other spices. In this burgur dish, the red paste is spread between the burger halves and meat. Some lemon grass is added to accentuate the taste of chicken.

Dessert : Pandan-infused Panna Cotta with gula melaka - This pandan-infused panna cotta dipped in the gula melaka sauce is the cherry on top of my cake. I've already enjoyed lunch up to the point when I finished the burger and to top it off, I'm most delighted with this version of panna cotta. The pandan flavour and gula melaka really blends well with this dairy based Italian dessert. Would you ever find this amazing panna cotta in Italy?

Apart from the above, the spiced lamb pita is also good. I haven't eaten their Signature Wild Rockets burger but I heard its good too!

Most of the service staff are young and I'm not sure if they work in Relish on a permanent basis. The service is good when the restaurant is not filled, like this time I was there. During dinner time, Relish will see more customers. This is when the service may not be as prompt as I like it to be.

For more photos and details see : http://4-the-love-of-food.blogspot.com/2009/05/relish-cluny-court-good-set-lunch-at.html

Located at Cluny Court, the restaurant is situated on the second floor of this colonial bungalow and the design of the place is spacious with a touch of simplicity.

Relish, armed with the impeccable pedigree of Chef Willin's Wild Rocket group, along with the patronage and endorsement of gastronomic luminaries like Chubbyhubby, was destined to be a commercial success right from the start.

I have a deep and abiding love for good burgers, as well as eating in general. Coupled with Relish's close proximity to my school, it was inevitable that I'd eventually drop by for a meal.

The waiters were earnest and helpful, which I found fairly typical of an establishment of this stature. I was fine with this. However, I find that waiters here lack the ability to engage in witty banter with customers. It is hardly gratifying when you attempt to crack a joke that is met with a feeble giggle, or silence even, leaving one to wonder whether the joke was bad or some form of language barrier exists.

My friends and I were seated in a dark corner of the restaurant. It wasn't dim or romantic. It was so dark that I couldn't read the menu clearly. However, it did provide an excellent vantage point to survey the rest of the restaurant. I found it interesting that the demographic of customers Relish attracts varies widely. Diners that night ranged from girls in their early twenties (who I enjoyed looking at) to families with elderly grandparents in tow (who I did not enjoy looking at quite as much).

Food:

We got some parmesan wings ($10) to start just because of the enticing name. Everyone loves parmesan, and everyone also loves chicken wings, so if you put two perennial favourites together, success is assured! I thought the portion of 6 wings was quite skimpy. Only the middle portion of the wing is served, you don't get the drumstick part, nor the other disgusting meatless part. Served piping hot, it went well with the mayonnaise provided. Less so with the chicken rice chilli sauce, however. How can parmesan, chicken wings and mayonnaise go wrong! I don't think this was really worth the money though.

We also ordered the spaghetti aglio olio. I think this cost around $14 or so. The aglio olio was tweaked quite well to cater to a local palate, there wasn't too much garlic and the accompanying prawns were relatively fresh. For a burger joint, this Italian staple was really done quite well, although I still think my friend is an idiot for ordering this here.

We had the Wild Rocket burger ($14.5), as well as the Blue Cheese burger with Poached pears ($16.5). The wild rocket burger consisted of a nice thick patty topped with rocket, and the latter was a modification which entailed the addition of blue cheese sauce as well as poached pears (obviously).

I believe we are in the midst of a global epidemic, with regard to the consumption of rocket, also popularly known as arugula or rucola. I find that rocket has an unpleasantly bitter taste, and I strongly believe that this obsession with rocket is largely due to the cool-sounding name. Originally native to the Mediterranean region, this insidious plant would not have penetrated our society to this extent if it were known by its proper name of Eruca Sativa. That's right. I don't think anyone would order an Eruca Sativa salad. It would be way too uncool.

I felt that the 180g patties for both burgers (there's a 230g option I think) were just right. A problem with gourmet burger joints is that the burgers sometimes get a little too thick to eat comfortably with your hands. I believe using a fork and knife to eat your burger is sacrilegious and defeats the entire purpose of consuming a burger.

Fortunately the rocket they use at Relish is fairly limp and insipid, and does little to interfere with your enjoyment of their burgers, while providing you with an illusion of enjoying the mythical health benefits which result from the consumption of vegetables. This is a good thing.

The beef patties in the both burgers were quite good for reconstituted beef. It's no wagyu, but the patties were juicy and quite tasty. I prefer to have my reconstituted beef done medium well, though. I don't really like burger buns soaked through!

I was slightly wary of the blue cheese burger. Whilst I do enjoy roquefort on occasion, I didn't think it would go down too well as part of a burger. Fortunately they toned it down quite well, and the sweetness of the poached pears provided an interesting counterpoint. I am also certain that a small amount of satay sauce was used in the burger. Or something that tasted similar.

Both burgers were quite enjoyable, but the accompanying fries were sadly disappointing. They weren't served piping hot, and were unevenly cooked.

A (silly) friend also ordered the portobello tofu burger because he wasn't hungry. I like portobello as part of a dish. As the centerpiece of a burger, the taste got cloying after a while although I could not fault the size of the portion. The tofu slices sandwiching the portobello also had a sour tang. At almost $20, this definitely wasn't worth the money, although I can't say it was disappointing because the description is already far from appetising.

I think that the burgers at Relish pass muster, and it is a good place to see and be seen. However, the "hip-diner" concept doesn't really work for me. It was a bit too pricey, but is definitely worth a try. Perhaps I'll return when I'm feeling a bit more price-inelastic.