Cover Bjorn Shen takes over popular Homeground Coffee until the end of April (Photo: New Bahru)
Bjorn Shen takes over popular Homeground Coffee until the end of April (Photo: New Bahru)
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At the month-long takeover at Homeground Coffee, the inventive Bjorn Shen serves up crispy fried chicken and inventive plates emboldened by Thai flavours
If you didn’t already know, Bjorn Shen’s modern Mediterranean cuisine Artichoke is moving to its new home at New Bahru by The Lo & Behold Group in May. And with the soon-departure of speciality coffee shop Homeground from the coffee scene, having made the decision to close its outlet at Teo Hong Road by the end of April, the local coffee tastemakers will be playing host to the inventive chef.
From April 4 to 30, Bjorn Shen tinkers up a collaborative pop-up that features a Thai-inspired revival of Bird Bird, the now-defunct fried chicken restaurant with a cult following attached to Artichoke, and a sushi omakase experience anchored by the philosophy behind pizza concept Small’s where Shen dubs the “wildest omakase experience in Singapore”.
Read more: New Bahru by The Lo & Behold Group opens this May with 13 F&B concepts
Here’s what to expect to find on the menu peppered "with punchy flavours" according to Bjorn Shen. Over lunch, snack on starters of smashed hash browns that come either spicy or spruced up with an aromatic basil mushroom krapow. Mains come in handy sandwiches that remind of the classic fat-stacked crispy chicken sandwiches with refreshing green papaya slaw or a comforting Northern Thai-inspired khao soi (curry noodles) with duck and mustard greens. Sweet treats of a Thai-milk tea-inspired cake and a toothsome Bird Bird sundae satisfy.
Come sundown, dinner takes things up a notch with a bold shout on seafood. Think nibbles of hokkigai clams dressed with salted egg and corn salad and seared scallops slathered with coconut nam jim sauce and textures of crispy chicken skin. In the mains, the crowd favourite Bird Bird crispy fried chicken makes a comeback when paired with the lip-smacking green chilli nam jim. Other standouts include the Thai crab omelette and the juicy lamb steak imbued with the smokiness of the chilli nam jim sauce.
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For those who want to challenge your tastebuds, snag a seat at the counter for Shen’s Thai sushi omakase. Expect a boundary-pushing marriage of fresh Japanese produce and traditional Thai sauces and condiments with each bite. There’s a buttery shima aji (striped jack) brushed with creamy tom kha gai (coconut curry); oysters layered with a kick of gaeng som (Thai sour curry); and maguro (tuna) expressed as larb (chopped meat salad). And while Bjorn Shen declared on Instagram that the Thai omakase is sold out for the month, we reckon to keep your eyes peeled for any last-minute dropouts.
