We love discovering new restaurants in Singapore, especially those that offer fuss-free good food. Equatorial Pan Asian Restaurant is one of these finds! The restaurant focuses on Pan-Asian cuisine, taking inspiration from different flavour profiles and preparations.
Small But Intimate Space
The restaurant is on the second floor of a shophouse on Duxton Road, offering only bar seating and a small communal seating area in the corner.
It’s an open kitchen concept where you can watch the chefs prepare the food, including cooking a binchotan grill. They even age their fish in-house!
The space is small but cosy, great for small gatherings or dinners.
Equatorial Menu
The menu features a unique mix of different Asian flavours, elevated with modern techniques and preparations. You can check out their full menu on Instagram.
It’s split into Starters, Raw Food, Grill (Binchotan/Hay) and Dessert. For Starters, there are options like Peach & Beef Tomato Salad ($14) and The Ultimate Egg Mayo ($18) with chum ikura, mentaiko and chive oil.
A special section is the Raw Food, with a selection of dry-aged fish. There’s the Oriental Spicy Mikan Tai Carpaccio ($34) with citrus sea bream and the Dry Aged Bluefin Maguro (from $48, depending on the cut) with black truffle, soy cured yolk and Sarawak black pepper.
The grill menu has more protein selections, including the Hay Roasted Gai Yang (Chicken Thigh, $25) with Thai chilli dipping sauce (nam jim jaew). There’s also a Coffee Miso Pork Collar ($34) and Sliced Ribeye Bulgogi ($38).
They offer an extensive list of sake, wine and whiskey; on top of on-tap beer brews from District Brewers and Lion City Meadery.
Starters
We tried the Smashed Grilled Sheep’s Horn Pepper with Century Egg ($15). This is a take on a traditional Hunan side dish of smashed chillis and century egg. Here, it was served with housemade aioli and belinjau crisps.
This had a great harmony of taste and texture. The creamy, salty and slightly tangy mix of peppers contrasted with the crunch and bitterness of the belinjau, making for an appetizing start to the meal!
Another dish we had was the Seafood & Melon Salad ($17). The Equatorial culinary team was inspired by the prawn mayo salads served at Chinese weddings, elevated with Muscat grapes and a beef tomato granita.
This was light, refreshing and sweet. The granita was a fun way to incorporate umami into the dish, plus an interesting icy texture.
Raw Food
The Fish Yukhoe ($32) is a take on the classic Korean beef tartare but done incredibly well. This featured aged chirasu sashimi with ssamjang and soy-cured egg yolk.
The fish had a clean but concentrated flavour which carried the spicy and tangy sauce, complemented by sweet pears.
Another stand-out is the Binchotan Skin Grilled Madai Sashimi ($28). The aged sea bream skin is seared hot binchotan coals, creating a crisp crust on the outside.
The meat kept its sweetness, elevated by a smoky char from the coals. Something special is the house mixed soy sauce which was so umami and flavour-packed; bringing out the flavour of the fish!
Grill
Our favourite dish of the night was the Matcha Curry Grilled Masala Chicken ($28). Matcha curry sounds like a weird combination but it worked perfectly!
The tea and masala spices created a rich, flavourful marinade, especially fragrant after being grilled over charcoal.
We noted that the chicken came a bit pink, but the kitchen assured us it was safe to eat. It is fully cooked and fresh chicken was used.
We also tried the Rendang Serundeng Beef ($48). It used three cuts of beef – A4 Wagyu, MS6 Wagyu and Argentian Ribeye – which provided a unique mix of textures and beefy flavours.
The rempah packed an addictive kick which had us going back for more!
Dessert
The Kaya Toast Mascarpone ‘Cheesecake’ ($11) came with a soft-boiled egg on top. Despite the unusual choice, the creaminess of the egg yolk played into the dessert perfectly!
It tasted like a deconstructed kaya toast, with fragrant coconut cream, runny yolk and crunchy biscuits.
The Hokkaido Milk Pudding ($15) was a pleasant finish. It was silky and milky but not too sweet, pairing great with the fresh fruit and honey.
Restaurants In Tanjong Pagar
Equatorial stood out with its unique dishes and cosy atmosphere. We highly recommend this for a casual night out with friends or for a good meal in the area.
Check out more eats in Tanjong Pagar:
- Borderless Coffee Co: Cafe Located On The 2nd Floor in Tanjong Pagar with $4 Sticky Date Pudding
- High Bar Society: Singapore’s First 6% ABV Alcoholic Gelato In Tanjong Pagar
- Sushi Yujo: Omakase Restaurant in Tanjong Pagar With Lunch Omakase Menu Starting From $98
Equatorial
60A Duxton Rd #02-01, Singapore 089523
Thurs – Mon: 5:30 pm to 11 pm
*This article is based on a media-tasting event, but all opinions expressed about the food are entirely our own.
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