Greek Restaurant Blu Kouzina, now at Dempsey (April 2016)

Popular Greek restaurant Blu Kouzina has moved from their former location along Bukit Timah Road to spiffy new premises on Dempsey Hill. Their new address is in Block 10. They are in the middle of the building in which Prime Portico and Chopsuey occupy the extreme ends. The problem with their old place which was just off Old Holland Road was the challenges of parking. Now that parking spaces are aplenty in this new location, we were not surprised to see a packed restaurant in the first week of their operations. People were flocking to the new Blu Kouzina like bees to Greek thyme honey. Move over Spanish tapas and Italian pasta, as far as the Dempsey crowds are concerned, Greece is the word!

The more beautiful part of the new Blu Kouzina is the outdoor area (below) where the white sun drenched space looked like we had been transported to a restaurant somewhere in Greece. There is nothing wrong with the indoor dining area. Indeed, the air-conditioned area was the preferred place to be in the 36 degree heat of the Singapore sun, but we thought it was a bit too congested and the lighting was too soft and warm (colour temperature wise). In this respect the old place looked more ‘Greek’. According to the Blu website the old space in Bukit Timah will be converted into a more casual Greek dining space, so we look forward to seeing its rebirth.

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Here are pages from the Blu Kozina menu and wine list. A full menu is available at their website (link below). We ordered two items which always give us fond memories of our meals in Greece – the mousaka ($27.80) and grilled octopus ($29.80).

The Mediterranean diet is said to be very healthy, in part because of the abundant use of olive oil. In Blue Kouzina, the bread with olive oil that preceded the meal proper were very good. The olive oil in particular was clean and pure tasting. A bit of ground pepper enhanced the flavours of the oil and we could eat endless amounts of these humble bread rolls.

The two dishes we ordered that day were not very pretty dishes. The grilled octopus tentacles looked like parts of some sea monster. The moussaka was a plain dish of baked mincemeat with eggplant and potatoes on top with béchamel sauce.

What the octopus lacked in looks, it made up for in terms of taste and texture. These tentacles were about six inches long and with a girth of an inch in diameter (at the wider end). The texture was almost perfect – springy yet not rubbery. The natural taste of the sea was there. All that was needed was more of the wonderful olive oil, a dot of salt and a drop of lemon to make a great tasting combination.

The moussaka was also very good. The white cream sauce, potatoes and brinjal combined to balance the meaty taste. Each scoop from the dish was a complex, creamy mouthful of taste. It was also a heavy dish. It was a good thing we ordered only two dishes. This moussaka alone is too much for one of us.

Finally, no moussaka meal is complete without some Mythos beer ($11.80) from Greece to balance the heavy oiliness. Overall, we are happy to see Blu Kouzina relocate to Dempsey. The only way to improve on the experience the next time is to (a) come in a bigger group and try the meat and seafood platters; and (b) choose a less hot day so that we can be seated outdoors for a more Greek-like atmosphere.