On busy ECR, there’s no dearth of places to stop for a bite. One of the newest places on the stretch, however, is all about the drama. Sitcom celebrates the shows that we’ve all grown up with, and the ones we binge-watch on TV all weekend.
As you enter the café section of the diner on the ground floor, a display case full of pastries seems to say, “How you doin’?” a la Joey Tribbiani of Friends. Sweet and savoury quiches, danishes and croissants are baked in-house. Then there are the gelatos in their frosty containers: temptations run high to start with dessert, but we resist and move to the restaurant on the first floor.
True to its name, there are several TVs and a projector playing Suits on Comedy Central. While the diner element, seemingly inspired by Seinfeld and How I Met Your Mother, comes through in the form of the neon orange booths, there’s also a long wooden trestle table for community dining. A large poster of Jim Parsons as Sheldon from The Big Bang Theory adorns the wall — a number of diners stop to click a quick selfie with him on the way out.
The menu is largely continental, with pizzas, burgers, pastas and steaks. But the Pan Asian section is not to be ignored: we start with spiky rice dumplings, steamed and stuffed with vegetables. There’s a little bit of heat to it, but not so much that you can’t go back for seconds. Both the French onion soup and Hungarian beef goulash are the kind of comfort food that are the perfect antidote for rainy evenings, hearty and full of flavour.
There are plenty of vegetarian options on the menu; most don’t stray beyond cheese, paneer and mushrooms, although there is the odd water chestnut and leeks. But the stand-out dishes are a meat-lovers delight: falling-off-the-bone pork ribs covered in a smoky sauce and crisp and tender roast beef. The former’s sticky sauce can get messy while eating, while the latter could have done with a touch less salt. During another visit, we sample the Nasi Goreng — it easily feeds two people — and the chicken pepprita, that’s served with a side of roast veggies and is a great healthy option.
Adding to the drama that’s already running on the screens is the Monster Burger. Weighing in at 1.5 kilograms, you eat it for free if you’re able to finish it. We settle for a toned-down version of another signature dish, the smoking burger. With three patties, the burger comes to the table under a bell jar filled with smoke, and lives up to the hype.
Crème brulee and American apple pie sound enticing from the dessert menu, but we decide to sample the gelatos. The jackfruit flavour is mild, bitter chocolate is a must for anyone with a dark chocolate obsession, and the filter kaapi tastes like Madras. My personal favourite, however, is the salted caramel: sweet, salty and creamy in all the right proportions, it’s worth braving the traffic on ECR for a taste.