Relish

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.

Stop reading if you think that paying $80 for 2 burger meals is too expensive.

This place is really not for you. Don't waste your time. Especially if you are the type who enjoy champagne on a beer budget.

Here at Willin Low's (of Wild Rocket fame) latest experiment in the upcoming hip Cluny Court, the burgers are priced between $16-$19 each. And they are smaller than the McDonalds cheeseburger. Burgers comes with 8-10 lovely fries which is perfect for the low carbo folks. A side salad is $7. The beers here cost more than a glass of the house wine.

Mind you, the burgers here are excellent. One of the best I've ever had. My Ram-Lee burger is like a perfect example of how the humble pasar malam staple should be. Thick chunky beef patties wrapped in a perfectly cooked omelette and oozing with jus and sweet chilli. My partner's bacon and cheese was a revelation with the classic burger finishing with an tomato relish edge. We were somewhat let down by the limp mixed salad but the ginger vinagrette had a nice kick. Each burger is also paired with a recommended gourmet beer which I could frankly skip. The staff here are quite efficient although I have no idea how they fit into their tight jeans.

As we left, we wonder if this is a sign of things to come in Singapore. The more privileged elites types who won't think twice about buying a new Cayman or a Cairnhill condo for Christmas will be chilling out in this uber chic burger joint. While those of us who complain about the astronomical living costs or confused about the new taxi surcharges will be peering into the windows, saving our pennys for bus fare or Transitlink card topup. Will the chasm of the rich-poor food divide widen even further?

As much as I had enjoyed my evening here, thanks to the ever trustworthy Chubby Hubby, I'm happy to stick to my not so chic Carl's Junior sourdough bacon hamburger and Diet Cokes for a fraction of the price.

You know when someone has a concept that works, considering all the affecting factors, an astute effort should be made to achieve recognition and consistency... The young looking male manager has no idea what he is doing..! Oh, and like so many others behaves so differently when his boss is around! The burgers are good, however perhaps a change in supplier an chef is in order, for the simple inability to fry steak fries and serve them hot.

To sum up, this may end up like Uber Burger and well bless the waitresses as they do their best... but how can you know the best if your manager has no cooking clue!

Poor performnce considering place, position, price etc...