Fiasco by Juice has all the trimmings required of a restaurant you’d imagine in quirky Tiong Bahru. Think eye-pleasing aesthetics, a unique food menu, great music, and an interesting wine list to boot. The cosy restaurant and wine joint is the new, friendly addition to the neighbourhood. And here, you can grab coffee and get some work done from 9am to 4pm, fuel up with a scrumptious lunch of signature sandwiches from 11am to 3pm, or wait till nightfall, where the magic happens.
When the sun sets, the curtains along the corridor are closed and the lights are dimmed, drawing you into an inviting yet otherworldly living-room-inspired space drenched in a warm, balmy glow. The scene is set for deep conversations and intimate evenings, whether it’s a romantic date night or a long-overdue catchup with an old friend.
And a setting like this goes perfectly with a glass of wine. As expected, any food concept by Juice – the wine bar along Boat Quay – demands a masterful wine curation. The one at Fiasco ranges from a juicy Austrian Putzsa Libre, to bottles of Grower Champagne such as the Ulysse Colin. All its bottles are housed in a Star Wars-coded back room, which also doubles up as a private room that can be booked for functions. There are also daily rotating wine specials typically consisting of a red, a white, and an orange. Sip on the light-to-medium-bodied Joseph Pascal Pinot Noir ($20 per glass) if it’s available, and pair this with the signature dry-aged duck.
The best seats in the house depend on the occasion, but we recommend those at the counter where you get a first-row view of talented chefs fixing up delicious bites in the kitchen. Leading the charge is Chef Haran Kumar, who has an embellished history working at Michelin-starred establishments like Nouri, Da Terra, and the London-based Ikoyi which is listed in the World’s 50 Best Restaurants ranking.
Must-tries include the smoked beef tartare ($12) featuring charcoal-smoked Australian wagyu bavette with a confit egg yolk jam atop crispy rosti, as well as the dry-aged Japanese snapper in a mandarin kosho Beurre Blanc sauce ($45). Make sure to dunk the accompanying warm bread slices into the Beurre Blanc for the perfect mouthful. Other highlights in the mains section include the dry-aged duck paired with a modern Bearnaise made of beetroot caramel and emulsified duck fat, as well as the classic steak frites ($35) with triple-cooked chips ($35). Diners can also look forward to simple staples like charred cabbage and chilli labneh, which sound promising with its unabashed use of everyone’s favourite Lao Gan Ma chilli, together with nori butter and smoked kombu oil.
Also look out for Fiasco’s ever-rotating board of specials, which sees bites like the bebek guling ($12) and fried chicken burger ($20). The former is one of Chef Haran’s favourites and also our winner of the evening. Leftover duck meat is formed into bite-sized pockets then deep fried and paired with a sambal mata emulsion and basil mayo, so nothing goes to waste. Unfortunately this is quite laborious to make, so if you do spot it on the specials board, make sure to get first dibs. We also hear that the fried chicken burger is quickly becoming a favourite among regulars, so fingers crossed that it makes it on the permanent menu one day.
The dessert menu isn’t an afterthought here, with Chef Haran intentionally swapping out your typical Madagascar vanilla ice cream for Balinese vanilla ($4) instead. To this, we say hats off, because the caramel and floral notes really do come out stronger here, and this might just turn folks apathetic about vanilla ice cream into full-on converts. Another standout is the crowd-favourite popcorn ice cream ($8), where you’ll first catch a whiff of kaffir lime before digging into the buttery ice cream paired with pink peppercorn meringue. The ‘Kopi’ – a twist on the Indonesian Bika Ambon dessert – however, is certainly for the sweet-toothed.
If we had to list any qualms, it would be that the Thai green curry mussel flatbread was on the doughier and drier side and could do with a tad more curry and toppings to truly coat each slice. In terms of Fiasco’s beverage list, we also wish we saw more non-alcoholic options to cater to non-drinkers and alcohol-intolerant folks alike. Nevertheless, barring these teething issues, it’s safe to say that the unbeatable ambience, reasonable prices, and excellent menu here are reason enough to warrant a first visit – and maybe a second or third.