Eunice Quek
UPDATED FEB 29, 2024, 05:52 PM
The main dining room of Jiak Kim House, which takes up one of three warehouses that used to house the old Zouk club's Velvet Underground lounge. PHOTO: JIAK KIM HOUSE
Modern Asian fare at Jiak Kim House
If you are from the era that went clubbing at the old Zouk in Jiak Kim Street, it is quite surreal to step into what is now the modern Asian restaurant Jiak Kim House.
The beautiful 120-seat restaurant – with a 40-seat private dining room looking towards the Singapore River – was once Zouk’s Velvet Underground lounge.
It takes up one of three conservation warehouses in Jiak Kim Street, all of which are part of Frasers Property Singapore’s integrated precinct.
One warehouse is the front-of-house and reception area for serviced residence Fraser Residence River Promenade, while the other is an event space.
Jiak Kim House is run by lifestyle and food and beverage company The Brewerkz Group, and its kitchen is helmed by the group’s Singaporean chef-partner Seow Tzi Qin, 35.
He continues to ride the wave of local chefs making their mark in the competitive dining scene with creative dishes packed with robust flavours.
The Brewerkz Group’s chef-partner Seow Tzi Qin helms the kitchen at Jiak Kim House.
PHOTO: JIAK KIM HOUSE
My meal kicks off on a high with The Tingkat of Memories ($36, good for two), a set of four starters comprising a crab cake with piquant assam mayonnaise; lamb goulash croquettes with mint coulis; chilli crab pie tee; and otak otak layered with batang fish and chunky prawns.
Another standout is the mushroom herbal tea “macchiato” ($22), the chef’s spin on bak kut teh with a peppery mushroom consomme topped with green peppercorn foam and paired with housemade dough fritters to dip.
For mains, I enjoy the Beef Tongue to Tail ($42) dish of spiced rendang short ribs, torched ox tongue and braised oxtail with crispy pave potatoes topped with grated coconut. It comes with grilled shishito peppers and a side of rojak salad to cut through the richness of the meat.
Jiak Kim House's menu offers modern Asian dishes packed with robust flavours.
PHOTO: JIAK KIM HOUSE
The other must-try dish is the kam heong sambal grouper ($40), which has been marinated overnight in black peppercorns and housemade sambal, and cleverly paired with a vibrant mangosteen salsa and fragrant cilantro rice. It is a good one-dish meal.
After all the rich flavours, round off the meal with Snow Peak ($22), a refreshing dessert of Maotai liquor and pineapple-infused sorbet on a bed of diced scoby (short for the symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeast used to make kombucha), guava and strawberries covered in a coconut jelly and shards of lime meringue.
The dishes mentioned are also part of a weekday lunch set menu, priced at $52++ (two courses) or $65++ (three courses).
Where: Jiak Kim House, 01-16/17, 5 Jiak Kim Street
MRT: Havelock
Open: Noon to 3pm, 6 to 11pm, Mondays to Saturdays; closed on Sundays
Tel: 9831-5430
Info: jiakkimhouse.com
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