Sunday nights are usually about having a relaxed dinner with the family and this time we decided to try Griglia Open Fire Kitchen at Katong.
Griglia is an Italian restaurant built around open-fire cooking, with its menu designed quite nicely for sharing. The restaurant has locations at Craig Road and Katong, and the idea is very much about bringing people together over food cooked over the fire.
We made a reservation for dinner on a Sunday night to celebrate the wifey’s birthday with the children and ordered a few dishes to share: Focaccia, Octopus, Pappardelle and the 30-day aged Porterhouse.
The Focaccia
We started with the house-made focaccia, which was a pretty good way to kick off the meal.
The focaccia was lightly grilled upon order. It was soft, toasty and flavourful, with the garlic and rosemary giving it plenty of character. There was also olive oil to dip it in, and honestly, this was one of those dishes that disappeared quite quickly from the table.
The kids enjoyed it too, which is always a good sign when you’re dining as a family.
Octopus
The octopus was another dish we enjoyed.
It had that nice combination of being tender on the inside with some char from the cooking, which worked particularly well with the restaurant’s open-fire concept. The dish was served with cherry tomatoes and almond pesto. The cherry tomatoes were grilled till soft and sweet. The plate was emptied very quickly because it was too small a portion to share amongst four of us. Haha!
Pappardelle
The Pappardelle was one of the most recommended dishes in online reviews.
Griglia’s version is made with pork cheek, chianti and crispy guanciale with the pasta picking up plenty of flavour from the sauce. It’s a fairly rich dish, but the wide pappardelle worked really well with it.
And again, this was a hit with the kids.
I always find pasta to be a good test when eating Italian food with the family because if the kids are happily eating it without much encouragement, that’s usually a pretty good indication!
30-Day Aged Porterhouse
Then came the main event, the 30 Days Dry Aged Porterhouse.
This is one of Griglia’s signature dishes and we ordered it medium-rare.
The doneness of the steak probably was edging towards medium but no complains as it was perfect for the children. The steak had a nice crust and the meat was tender enough for the kids to enjoy. The steak came with garlic sabayon sauce, mustard seeds and red wine jus to pair with the steak.
There’s something about having a large piece of steak arrive at the table and carving it up for everyone to share. It also made the dinner feel more like a proper family meal rather than everyone ordering their own individual dish.
Nocciolamisu
Of course there is always space for dessert. The Nocciolamisu is Griglia’s take on the tiramisu with frangelico (hazelnut liquor) added. It is light and not overly sweet.
Service
Service was good throughout our dinner.
The team was attentive and friendly without making us feel rushed, which I particularly appreciated because we were dining with the children. Every course was served promptly without much waiting time between dishes.
Everything felt fairly relaxed, which is exactly what we wanted for a nice Sunday night dinner birthday celebration. The restaurant filled up fairly quickly but we could still have conversations.
Overall
Overall, we had a really enjoyable dinner at Griglia Open Fire Kitchen.
What I liked was that the menu worked really well for a family meal. Rather than everyone ordering their own dish, we could order a few things for the table and share everything.
For me, the Pappardelle and Focaccia were particularly popular with the kids. The Octopus was something new to the kids but they really enjoyed the tender and flavourful protein. Lastly the Niccolamisu was a great way to finish the meal.
It was a relaxed Sunday evening, good food, good service and plenty of sharing around the table.
Rating: 4.25 / 5
Griglia Open Fire Kitchen
139 E Coast Rd, #01-01, Singapore 428829
Google Maps Link: https://maps.app.goo.gl/WLsGVgWJZzkU3Kem7
