Opening its doors (and taps) along Owen Road’s relatively quiet row of shophouses is a brand new craft beer taproom, Mirage. A craft beer hideaway located on the ground level of The Parlour Singapore, a creative shophouse space home to an art studio, music recording studio and more, Mirage is where you can enjoy modern Japanese-inspired nosh with a touch of Mediterranean influences in the form of elevated yakitori skewers as well as 12 taps worth of craft beer to drink yourself into a happy mood.
Mirages are illusory and can often give you a false sense of something that’s there when it isn’t. We paid a visit during their grand opening and we can assure you that everything, from their delicious assortment of craft beers to their food, was sublime and very much real.
Mirage Offers 12 Beers on Tap
Whether you’re just starting out drinking your way from one hazy ale to another or a seasoned hophead… This is a craft beer joint that welcomes all. With 12 taps on constant rotation, there’s bound to be something for everybody. For their opening week, get stoked for a myriad of stellar brews from breweries across 5 continents. With the likes of Beerfarm (AUS); Rocky Ridge (AUS); Parrotdog Brewery (NZ); Heart Of Darkness (Vietnam) and Drifter Brewing (South Africa)—just to name a few—you’ll be hard bent not to want to drink them all.
For craft beer novices, we’d recommend starting with a crisp lager and slowly work your way up toward the pale ales, IPAs (India Pale Ale) and eventually the sours and the stouts. What we particularly admire is the fact that their range of beers is carefully curated to suit a wide range of preferences. So even the most inexperienced craft beer drinker will not be intimated! Take it from us, just go with whatever flavour profile piques your fancy.
Asam Boi Gose by Beer Farm
We got ourselves the Asam Boi by Beer Farm (S$15++). It’s an Australian brewery that’s known for introducing sustainable methods to brewing great beers from their solid selection of complex IPAs, sours, funky goses and easy-to-smash lagers.
Tart, refreshing and a little salty from the get-go, this sour plum hits you with its unique sweet and salty character accompanied by a heady aroma of orange peel punctuated by a sugary, sweet, salty, fruity and sour palate.
Overall, a refreshing one to have that leans more toward sourish-sweet notes. Great for day drinking in the midst of Singapore’s scorching afternoon heat.
Delicious Japanese Yakitori
Wherever you drink, you’ll notice that bars in general usually include a plethora of bar snacks on their menu. When people drink, they tend to crave for crispy, fried and cheesy foods to complement their booze.
Mirage’s food menu is something to admire. While they still retain many bar snack favourites, they stand out with their yakitori skewers – a nod to Japanese izakaya-style dining. After all, what could possibly go wrong with craft beer and delicious grilled skewers?
There are currently two main yakitori platters that you can choose from, Chef’s Yakitori Platter 1 ($15++) that features two sticks each of chicken thigh meat, pork belly, eggplant and tsukene (a type of marinated chicken meatball); and slightly more luxe, Chef’s Yakitori Platter 2 (S$25++) that comprises scallops, melt-in-your-mouth tender beef cubes, chicken thigh meat and king oyster mushrooms.
Expertly prepared over a charcoal grill, the edges of each skewer were nicely crisp with a distinct aroma of smoke and barbecue. Every component, though similar in flavour profile, sported an intensely smoky characteristic, even charring and a layer of sticky-sweet tare brushed on that made eating each skewer taste like candy.
Furikake Fries
One of beer’s best accompaniments is fries, that’s a given. But what makes Mirage’s Furikake Fries (S$10++) so unique and irresistible is the fact that that it’s jam-packed with umami. The initial bite is laced with a sweet creaminess from kewpie Japanese mayo; accompanied by a gentle nuttiness from sesame seeds and umami from the furikake. Safe to say, we polished the entire bowl of fries with relative ease.
Fried Cheese – A Must-Order at Mirage
Just because you’re tipsy, doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t have high expectations when it comes to greasy bar bites. The Fried Cheese (S$10++) these folks make here? They’re exceptional. Dredged in a light coating of what can be described as super-fine breadcrumbs or something quite similar, the exterior was crunchy. Like the best breaded tempura you’ve ever had only it’s better because it’s cheese. While the insides were melty, oozy and soft. The kicker comes in the form of their house-made thyme-infused honey that’s drizzled over top right before serving.
Take a minute to reflect on some of the more noteworthy mozzarella sticks you’ve ever had the pleasure of trying. We’d go so far as to admit that these bad boys could (and would) easily trump them.
Address: 140 Owen Rd, Singapore 218940, Singapore 218940
Opening Hours: 12PM – 10.30PM (Daily)
Contact: +65 9654 5687
Nearest MRT Station: Farrer Park
Disclaimer: Uncover Asia made an anonymous visit and paid for their own meal.
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