Meatsmith (Little India)

I like how @meatsmith_sg Little India outpost does a different, distinctly Indian menu as opposed to the Western menu at Telok Ayer, because it means that we get zingers like the stellar Crispy Madras Pork Cheeks ($8++). Four colossal chunks of pork cheeks are deep fried (citation needed) till a crunchy crust fully envelops the exterior, dusted with Indian spices, and mounted on skewers with pickles.⠀
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Needless to say, these are perfection as pub grub. These cheeks are considerably less fatty & a lot more meaty than pork belly, but they are no less juicy. Sure, the meat on the perimeter is dry due to it getting deep fried, but that’s a small price to pay for crispiness. The rest of the meat is moist & succulent, and well marinated with the indulgent Indian spices.⠀
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The dusting of extra spices over these pork cheeks truly heightens the thrill of these tasty cuts of pork. The sour, zesty pickles are the hard counter to the heavy, spicy flavours that abound with these cheeks, and both spice & sour combine to deliver a massive wallop of wonderful flavours. The house made Madras Mustard Sauce is a dead ringer for butter chicken, from the comely creaminess down to the tasteful tanginess in the sauce. The creaminess smoothed out the rough textures of the crackling pork, and layered an extra dimension of lusciousness over the flavourful cuts of cheek.⠀
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I love how absolutely cheeky Meatsmith got with the menu at Little India, and I would definitely clap these succulent cheeks again.

(curried granita and carabinero) tasting menu $85++ (before 20% Singapore ReDiscovers discount) What. A. Treat. Simply fab value for a 7-course menu. There’s so many instances of fusion or modern food gone wrong; there was barely a misstep here. Each dish was nicely plated and the combinations of flavors worked a treat (I found the Biryani Nigiri, the carabinero, butter chicken, and their smoked yoghurt ice cream especially pleasing). Needless to say we enjoyed excellent service as well. The menu is constantly evolving so the items will vary.

So they will carve the chicken, very skillfully I might add, then drizzle a generous amount of lemon(I assure you it doesnt taste too sour at all in the end) and butter gravy, before topping with fried rice grains. Looks v appetising >

Not gonna lie it wasn't as if meatsmith surpassed expectations every single time, but damn this one was a satisfying meal. Portion was perfect for two, and the chicken was masterfully roasted. Breast was juicy, and the aroma from the marinade was incredible.

The butter sauce(as in the butter chicken gravy, not the western butter sauce) and the generous lemon(which amounted to just a nice hint when all was mixed) made each mouthful of meat and fluffy rice an addictive adventure. Highly recommended, RMB that this is for 2 so good to get 3 people if u wanted to use beyond with this

Insta: cafehoppingkids
Meat platter for 2 ($80)
⭐️ 5/5 ⭐️
🍴All-round delicious meal of Indian-inspired barbecue. The #meatplatter came with bombay butter naan (made with chickpeas), pork cheeks, chicken wings, beef seekh kebab, lamb ribs, and coconut pork ribs. All the meat were amazingly well-executed and seasoned that left an explosion of flavours in our mouth. The general favourite was the chicken wings that retained a crispy grilled skin and was incredibly tasty with its stuffing of a whole mix of herbs, peanuts, and some popping spice. Close second was the melt-in-your-mouth pork cheeks that had a crispy skin, and elevated by the accompanying smoky bbq sauce. The lamb had a superb sweet crispy glaze, and was more fat than meat (which made it sinfully delicious if you are the type to enjoy creamy fat). While the lamb meat was gamy, the accompanying sauce helped to mask it. The sides were also impressive and balanced really well with the richly flavoured meats. Highly enjoyed the refreshing green mango salad that had a floral aroma, sweet coleslaw, and light and aromatic Briyani rice that was soft and fluffy without being oily. The only minor let downs were the dry naan (the bombay butter version was much better), and we found some parts of the beef kebab to be too chewy.
⚠️ Get 1-1 on this platter with #burpplebeyond at the Little India outlet - makes it such an affordable $40! But do go with min 4 people because it’s pretty generous portions (we found it just nice with 5 people). Do note the voucher is only available tues-thurs & outdoor (no Aircon) sitting as their second floor is reserved for tasting menu
📍@meatsmith_sg, 21 Campbell Lane, Singapore (Little India)

This new concept by the Burnt Ends Hospitality Group will be different from their ala carte menu offering in the first level as diners opting for this tasting menu will embark on a multi-course culinary journey starting with appetizers such as the Biryani Nigiri whereby the well-spiced biryani rice takes centerstage this time round followed by a trio of snacks that has been deconstructed and presented in a contemporary manner such as the Fish and Chips, Chicken Satay and Lamb Satay, these appetizers paired with a refreshing Honey + Tea cocktail.

What came after was another cold dish of Curried Granita and Carabinero paired with a Mango + Coconut champagne before the Grilled Squid that’s cooked in dhal and served with poppadum. The latter is probably one of my favourites of the night as you crack the poppadum into small pieces and mix in to the dhal and squid before eating. The differing textures and flavours go so well together that you will mop clean the plate. Another dish that probably could wrestle the spotlight away from the squid is the Brisket and Beets; smoked brisket sitting on top of a toasted bread and cheese, topped with pickled beets to balance the flavours perfectly so that you will not feel surfeited after eating it.

The next course will be the mains, and on that day, we got the Tandoori Roast Duck and Butter Chicken Deluxe each to share, and between both, my vote goes to the roast duck as there is absolutely zero gaminess from it. The meal ends off with a Pandan Ice Cream with Honey Corn Flakes and a trio of Coconut Caramel Cake, Chocolate Ganache and Gunpower Milo. If you wish to try a different dining experience, Meatsmith Little India Level 2 is where you should book as the flavours and pairing are something that you will not expect.
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✨ Meatsmith Little India Level 2
📍 21 Campbell Lane, Level 2, Singapore 209894
🛵 https://meatsmithlittleindia.oddle.me/en_SG/
🍴 [Media Tasting]

(T R E A T)
There are some chefs whose food once you’ve tasted, is clear they have a fantastic palate and you just know are capable of even more exciting things. In my opinion, such is the case with Head Chef @kurt.sombrero at Meatsmith Little India.
I have always found his menu for the Campbell Lane outlet of Meatsmith, peppered with Indian-inspired twists (a homage to its location), creative and well-tuned in flavour balance. With the launch of the new dining concept - Meatsmith Little India Level 2, he now has another avenue to flex his culinary muscles (while still running the kitchen for the restaurant downstairs and the takeaway menu - phew!).
The multi-course Tasting Menu he’s devised for Level 2 is explorative, refined, and undoubtedly worthy of attention ($85++ per pax). To complement, Senior Bartender Kelvin Chow (@ch0wwww) has engineered a special cocktail pairing menu at $65++ per pax.
Our dinner commenced with vibrant small bites of a coriander cream-dressed Potato “Pani Puri”, an artfully balanced Biryani rice and cured Hamachi Sushi, “Fish & Chips” made with purple potato chips, smoked creme fraiche and cured hamachi, as well as a collection of colourful bites on skewers. These included a pan-seared Amaebi wreathed in pickled fennel, its head deepfried to a crunch, Tandoor oven-baked Leek with Foie Gras, and a cabbage-wrapped Chicken Medallion “lollipop”. Kelvin’s first cocktail to go with these was a light concoction of distilled lemongrass and tea with a hint of honey.
Chef Kurt presented the next course himself, a stunner of Carabinero prawn with cauliflower purée, seaweed salad tossed in oils from curry and prawn shells, and for a finishing touch, curried smoked granita - easily one of the strongest dishes in the menu. Lightly fermented Mango with apricot, barley and fresh coconut went into its accompanying cocktail.
Then came an irresistible grilled squid in thick, aromatic curry shielded by wavy Pappadum “shells”. To enjoy this dish, the “shells” were broken and swiped through the curry. The matching drink was my favourite of the night, an alchemised liquid of fermented green apple and fat-washed burnt cream.
Crispy grilled pork cheeks, pickled beetroots, chives and chilli aioli on grilled potato buns (made in-house at Burnt Ends Bakery by @tart_tatin and her team) made up the next course. This delectable mix was matched by a cocktail of fat-washed red and green apples, and distilled macadamia. General Manager @thomaskoh83 told me it’s his personal favourite.
From the three main course options, I picked the Butter Chicken Deluxe, and was suitably delighted by Chef Kurt’s contemporary take on the classic Indian dish showcasing smoked butter and cream, on to which he shaved black truffle. @huatkaliao opted for the Tandoori Cube Roll (this requires a $15 top-up) and loved every bite of the smoky, tender and richly-flavoured meat. I stole some of it and was equally enamoured. A fab choice for red meat lovers. We were presented with the Pork Belly Chop with Sauerkraut Kombucha to try too and it was good, but my heart really belonged to the other two. It’s good to see all the mains come with housemade Roti as they‘re perfect for mopping up curries and sauces.
My hubby had done a wine-pairing instead of cocktails, and he was very pleased with the pours. So pleased that at the end of the night, he decided to purchase a couple of the wines from @burntends.cellars.sg.
Of course Chef Kurt wasn’t about to do a simple dessert for his inaugural Level 2 Tasting Menu. Hence, what appeared was a scrumptiously complex offering of smoked yoghurt ice-cream, ginger ale-compressed apple, sugarcane meringue mousse with kaffir lime and orange zest, and a shockingly fragrant butter and cumin bread smoked till dry and crumbly. A Coffee Negroni was its sparring partner.
Lastly, on a bed of edible “Gunpowder” spices and Milo were these nibbles to send us rolling off into the night: a fluffy coconut caramel sponge with coconut caramel purée, chocolate ganache and sour plum jelly.

Thank you again for springing a surprise on us and taking care of the bill, Thomas 🙏🙏😄. I’m sure you know we would have happily paid for it.

Stuffed wings in spices, paired with a yogurt based sauce. Personally found the spice rub a little too overwhelming, but meat was tender.

Thank you @meatsmith_sg for having us and @burpple for the kind invite!✨

Even though I had plans that night, there was no way I wouldn’t stop by the “Kebab Party” thrown by Meatsmith Little India. I mean, how often do you get to stuff your face on freshly-made, warm chickpea naan cradling different delicious fillings by Resident Chef Kurt Sombero and his Guest Chefs, right? (The correct answer is about once every 3 months but that isn’t the point here 😆).
Not that it was in any way a competition but I‘d say Chef Kurt’s “Butter Chicken” resonated strongest with me. Big, tender pieces of smoky grilled meat came smothered in a kickass curry gravy rich in Indian spices, and juxtaposed by cool, crisp pickled veg - what a mouthwatering combo. That’s irrefutable proof right there again of Chef Kurt’s knack for spinning palate-dancing flavours.
The Lokal’s Chef Darren Farr’s Vietnamese-inspired “Pork Banh Mi” leaned towards a lighter, cleaner taste profile with slices of the meat dressed in a pretty melange of fresh herbs and sauces. Keeping in line with Chef Darren’s style of cooking, he made everything from scratch too. I am glad I started with his creation as it allowed me to appreciate its flavours better.
The third was the “Sabab” by Japanese Chef Sho Naganuma. It featured a hefty piece of spice-rubbed, grilled mackerel. T’was a rather interesting mash-up of condiments on that naan but it was the smoky fish that I was drawn to the most.