Benjamin Barker Recreational Club (Cineleisure)

It does seem that Benjamin Barker has been re-looking into its various F&B operations in recent times; whilst they have included a cafe element within their Benjamin Barker Outlet store located in IMM, it seems that the brand has also revamped their The Assembly Ground concept after the closure of its ION Orchard outlet — the outlet of The Assembly Ground that is located in Cineleisure. Now known as Benjamin Barker Recreational Club, the entire space has been renovated to adopt a style similar to its cafe element in the IMM outlet store. The interior now sees a slightly more Scandinavian / European-style look; the space seeing much of the use of white and wooden elements in its dining hall while the area around the counter sees the use of some elements like vinyls and speakers for a more music-themed approach that seamlessly blends together with the entire aesthetic going on in the dining hall. The entire dining hall is also well lit from the windows from the facade of the shop that faces out of the mall and into the mall. Dining tables at Benjamin Barker Recreational Club are arranged in a manner that would best seat patrons that are visiting the establishment in groups of four (4) pax. The food menu at Benjamin Barker Recreational Club is being split into sections dedicated to Appetisers and Mains, while the beverage menu is split into categories such as Coffee, Chocolate, Matcha, Cloud Series, Soft Drinks, Signature Fizz and Tea.

Skimming through the menu at Benjamin Barker Recreational Club, one of the items that really caught our attention whilst doing so would be the You Polognese Mian; also one of the few dishes available at Benjamin Barker Recreational Club that sees an Asian-Western fusion element. The menu describes the You Polognese Mian to come with elements such as Dao Xiao Mian, Spicy Bolognese, Sesame and Grana Panado; the dish is presented in a way where the spicy bolognese is shaped into a sphere and placed as a scoop atop the Dao Xiao Mian — the Grana Panado being shaved on top of the Dao Xiao Mian as well. Mixing everything up, there was enough Spicy Bolognese to go around the entire portion of Dao Xiao Mian; to be fair, the You Polognese Mian does fall a little short on its description of being inspired from the You Po Mian from the execution of the noodles — the knife-shaven noodles are undoubtedly tossed in chili oil, though perhaps not hot oil as how it would be in the standard mainland Chinese-style You Po Mian since the texture of the noodles still felt considerably soft; the way of it being executed being more similar to pasta. The Spicy Bolognese does come with minced beef with the bolognese carrying a note more akin to Sichuan-style chili peppers; carried a spicy kick that would tickle the tastebuds for those whom are able tolerate moderate levels of spiciness without numbing out the tastebuds.

During our visit, we had also tried the Steak & Frites; this would be the classic dish featuring beef steak that is served with shoestring fries — the menu at Benjamin Barker Recreational Club describes the Steak & Frites to come with elements such as 200gm Australian Sirloin Steak, Shoestring Fries, Charred Broccolini, and Porcini Mushroom Sauce. The Steak & Frites did come with a medium-rare consistency with a pinkish centre which is what was expected at that level of done-ness; very well-executed. The steak also did not come with fatty / veiny parts which could have been difficult to chew, while the meat itself also does not come tasting particularly gamey — we did like how there is that slight hint of smokiness and visual char from the grilling process while the steak is still adequately savoury and flavourful on its own; it also paired well with the Porcini Mushroom Sauce which was creamy with an adequately earthy note that further enhances the flavours of the steak. The shoestring fries were decent; sufficiently crisp and seasoned with salt for flavour – nothing too greasy, while the charred broccolini provided a crunch with a slight smokiness from the charred florets that we typically love about charred vegetables. Skipping coffee and instead going for one of the items that is listed in their Signature Fizz section that had caught our attention fairly early whilst skimming through the menu — the Tom Yam. Benjamin Barker Recreational Club‘s menu mentions the item to come with elements such as Lemongrass, Kaffir Lime, Chili and Tonic Water; a little bit of a mocktail of sorts. Given the elements included, the Tom Yam does replicate the flavours of the Thai Clear Tom Yam Soup in more ways than one — the aromatics, the zippiness and even the spiciness; not chokingly spicy, but still tickles the tastebuds. The only thing that marred the experience for the Tom Yam a little would be the slight lingering bitterness of the Tonic Water that comes after everything else.

It isn’t the first time that Benjamin Barker is giving their F&B concepts a bit of a refresh; in fact, the brand had been fairly involved in their F&B concepts from time to time — The Assembly Ground’s location at Cineleisure was also once home to Benjamin Barker Cafe; the concept that was eventually folded into their The Assembly Ground brand considering how The Assembly Ground was the more notable concept during its heydays at The Cathay between the two cafes that Benjamin Barker runs. There was also a brief period of time where Benjamin Barker operated B Burger; also within this very same grounds. Benjamin Barker Recreational Club does seem to be an attempt provide some sort of rejuvenation to what The Assembly Ground was about — integrating their F&B operations into their main business and simultaneously offering patrons with a renewed experience with some old favourites being served up with fusion / contemporary touch that is more aligned with the palates of cafe-hoppers these days. Prices of the dishes on their Mains section are start from $15 to $32; the lowest-priced being the Granola and the highest being the Steak & Frites; most other dishes hovers around the $22 to $25 price tag. Much like The Assembly Ground and even Benjamin Barker Cafe that came before it, Benjamin Barker Recreational Club definitely does speak to the cafe-hopping crowd; an option that works as well as being a spot for dates as it would be for gatherings / catch-ups over pasta, pizza, burgers and brunch fare that is typically found in a cafe whilst being situated in the slightly quieter corner of Orchard Road that is still pretty convenient to get to — with an evolved dining experience from their previous setups in the same space that keeps that relevant in current times.