At Great World City, Ryan’s Kitchen is the dining companion to Ryan’s Grocery, a premium food store that not only specializes in gluten-, allergen- and preservative-free foods, but also offers carbon neutral free-range meats. Definitely a great place for a guilt-free experience.

Housed in a 4000sqft space, Ryan’s Kitchen’s ingredients come straight from its neighbouring grocery store. You can even select from its wide variety of meat cuts at the grocery to be sent to the kitchen to be cooked.

Breaded Wild-Caught Whiting with Tartar Sauce ($16++)

We had two fried finger foods to begin – Breaded Wild-Caught Whiting with Tartar Sauce ($16++) and Crispy Pork Belly Nuggets with BBQ Relish ($12++). Both not overly fried, crispy on the outside and moist on the inside as they should be; both great accompaniments to beer.

Crispy Pork Belly Nuggets with BBQ Relish ($12++)

The crispy pork belly is like a deconstructed sweet and sour pork with the sweet onion relish on the side – though I wished they had removed the rind before deep frying it, the chewiness of it made the crunchiness of the dish less delightful.

The Aussie The ‘Lot’ Burger with Ciabatta Bun ($28++)

Then, there were The Aussie The ‘Lot’ Burger with Ciabatta Bun ($28++) and Mushroom Swiss Burger with Keto Bun ($25++) as well. Both burgers are proper burger patties, just minced beef and salt and no other nonsense added in.

Mushroom Swiss Burger with Keto Bun ($25++)

They are juicy, well cooked and well seasoned – I was skeptical about the keto bun but it turned out surprisingly delicious. It’s not as fluffy as the usual gluten-laden burger bun but it’s suitably dense, chewy and after some mastication, an umami flavor emerges.

The Mushroom Swiss tastes like an atas, sumptuous version of its cousin at BK.

Sausages (from topdown: cumberland, chorizo, beef)

The sausages offered at Ryan’s Kitchen are all house-made. But for me, that’s where the interestingness ends. The taste isn’t as spectacular as I’d’ve hoped for sausages made inhouse i.e. chockful of flavor. I mean why not go wild with the flavouring?

The Borrowdale Free Range Pork Cumberland Sausage ($2.80-$3.50 per piece; $2.80 per 100g) doesn’t have the reminiscent strong flavours of pork and herbs like they did back in the UK.

The Borrowdale Free Range Pork Chorizo ($2.80-$3.50 per piece; $2.80 per 100g) is mildly spicy and the Mara Organic Herb and Garlic Beef Sausage ($3.00-$4.00 per piece; $3.00 per 100g), well, modest with its garlicky aroma.

The meats in the sausages also feel overly minced, somewhat floury – a middle ground between chunky homemade sausages and the smooth processed ones. It’s not something I’d come here for.

Borrowdale Free Range Pork Collar ($28++)

The next dish, the Borrowdale Free Range Pork Collar ($28++), is also a letdown. The chutneys on the side are nice, the fatty bits of the pork are nice but where there is meat, there is also dryness.

Five Founders Carbon Neutral Certified Beef OP Ribs ($148++)

Thankfully we ended off on a high with the Five Founders Carbon Neutral Certified Beef OP Ribs ($148++). It is a generous 1kg of succulent, chunky, glorious, medium-rare beef that can easily feed 3-4 (if not ordering any other dishes) paired with a sauce made with the its drippings. I would come here for this (and the burgers).

If you want wholesome, honest-to-goodness bovine indulgences, this is the place to come to.

Menu

Food: 7
Ambience: 6 (casual, modern cafeteria feel)
Value: 6

You may be interested in…
–Black Marble by Otto, Raffles Holland V Mall: Steaks, Grilled without Frills
–Homeground Grill & Bar, Boon Keng: Women-led Team Serves Charcoal-grilled Paleo
–Nude Grill, Marina One: Contemporary Asian Grill House Serves Fantastic Food
–Bar-roque Grill, Tanjong Pagar: New Michelin Bib Gourmand Recipient, Meatcentric and Borderless

Written by Paul Ng. Deathrow meal: steamed uonuma koshihikari rice, sunny side up eggs drizzled with slow-rendered pork lard, kicap cair dark soya sauce with a side of gribenes. And a bowl of uni. Aspiring taitai. Also co-owner of Provisions Food – local maker of baked goods, snacks, condiments and sauces inspired by the flavours of Asia.