IZA & The Skewer Bar in Siglap

In the short stretch of East Coast Road between Frankel Avenue and Siglap Road, there are number of restaurants serving a diverse range of cuisines. You can find yong tau fu and tandoori as well as braised veal shank and cevapcici there. One of the interesting eateries there is a collaboration between IZA and The Skewer Bar. IZA offers craft beers, Japanese beers, sake, umeshu, sochu and award wining Japanese whisky. The Skewer Bar serves affordable yakitori and other tasty Japanese-local fusion treats.

IZA is a casual Japanese pub occupying the grond floor of a shophouse. The front car porch is turned into an al fresco dining area. In the indoor air-conditioned dining space, the decor is casual and industrial, with the usual bare concrete floors and walls and exposed ventilation vents. A large glass window in the rear lets you see the chefs at work in the kitchen

The Skewer Bar Menu

The food menu is not extensive but there is sufficient variety. There are rice bowls pasta, sharing plates as well as yakitori and skewer creations that marry Japanese and local flavours. Below are pictures of the menu and order chit of IZA & The Skewer Bar.

Dinner at IZA & The Skewer Bar

We ordered a spaghetti and a few skewers to share. The wait for the food was quite long; it was probably more than 20 minutes before the first dish arrived. The dishes were served as and when one was ready.

The Nasu with Sweet Potato ($3) and Tau Pok ($3) arrived first. The eggplant and sweet potato with a sweet and salty glaze were interesting and enjoyable. In the dim lighting, we had to take a bite to distinguish the eggplant from the sweet potato – the eggplant was soft and creamy while the sweet potato had a dense but velvety consistency.

The humble Tau Pok ($3) stuffed with ham and cheese and was delicious.

We also had Grilled Lotus Root ($3) and Grilled Pineapple ($2) – nothing to complain about but nothing remarkable as well.

The Bacon Lychee ($2.80) was definitely a good choice. Sweet juicy lychee wrapped with savoury bacon was a tasty combination.

The Hae Bee Hiam Spaghetti ($11.90) was nicely presented and topped with two plumb prawns. The portion was of reasonable size. It would be good enough as a one-dish meal for a person with average appetite. Not surprisingly, the dish was quite spicy and the taste of the dried shrimp sambal was dominant. It could be quite addictive.

Although we were at an izakaya, we chose abstinence from alcohol for the evening and had a Coconut Pineapple Drink ($5) and Hot Lemongrass Tea ($5). Dinner would probably have been more enjoyable if we had ordered sake or one of their craft beers instead.

On the whole we quite like IZA & The Skewer Bar in Siglap. The casual bar and restaurant has a lively atmosphere. The prices are reasonable and overall the food was interesting and tasty – food you can enjoy before alcohol numbs the taste buds.

Ratings:
Food: 3
Service: 3
Value: 3
Atmosphere: 3
Overall Rating: 3 TOPs     

695 East Coast Road
Singapore 459059

Tel: +65 6385 2883

Opening Hours: 6 pm to 1 am

The Skewer bar Facebook Page

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