Food review: OverEasy

SINGAPORE — OverEasy’s second outlet at Liat Towers takes the American diner concept back to the old school. Outfitted with chrome siding, checked floor tiles and vinyl booths, it looks every bit the vintage diner, right down to its menu, which is heavy on American standards.

Naturally, that means a selection of burgers. Only in this case, they are made with Wagyu chuck blend patties that boast an 80 per cent meat to 20 per cent fat ratio. That means the 160g patties are just rich enough (without going overboard) and packed with robust flavour.

The American classics also get dressed with modern-day sensibilities. While there is a To Die For burger (S$22) with the standard trimmings of cheddar, lettuce, tomatoes and pickles; there is also The Truffle burger (S$28) with Swiss cheese, sauteed onions, mushrooms and truffle mayo. The buttery shitake mushrooms in the latter gave the loosely packed meat patties a lovely umami lilt, which, in turn, amped up the flavour of the melty Swiss cheese. The truffle part was indiscernible, but it didn’t matter as it was a satisfying burger.

(Ironically, while its owners say that this location “has a special place in our hearts for housing the first McDonald’s in Singapore”, to us, this burger tasted more like a reboot of Burger King’s Mushroom Swiss — though much better.)

One of the more dressed-up selections was the Mac & Cheeks (S$22), a riff on the classic mac and cheese, forged with Gruyere cheese, bechamel and pulled Australian beef cheeks braised in veal jus, thyme and rosemary. This is as rich as mac and cheese should get, with gelatinous shreds of the meat folded through the velvety mix, pleasurably redolent of red wine. Not quite so successful, though, were the Crispy Brussels Sprouts (S$12), which lived up to their promise of being crispy, but were also greasy and burnt.

Off the menu is the Beer Can Chicken (S$58), a whole chicken roasted in the oven with a can of beer stuck up its behind. The chicken emerged succulent and tender, with that malty whiff of beer permeating its flesh. It was, however, over-seasoned and the root vegetables that came with it were undercooked.

The most transporting of offerings for us was the Smokey The Bear milkshake (S$9), made with bananas, vanilla ice cream and house-smoked maple syrup. Fresh, subtly sweet and hit with a lovely, deep smokiness, it tasted like it had been spiked with bourbon, which is never a bad thing. 

OverEasy. Where: #01-01 Liat Towers, 541 Orchard Road. Telephone: 6684 1453. Opening hours: 11am to 11pm daily

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