Singapore Food Blog - Kaiserhaus

Location: City Hall, Central Business District (CBD), Singapore

Updated: This business is permanently closed.

Recommended: Bohemian Pork Roast (Vepřová Pečenē) (SGD26); Viennese Schnitzel (Wiener Schnitzel) (from pork - SGD29); Gourmet Beef (Tafelspitz) (single serve - SGD38); Crispy Fried Mushrooms (SGD14)

Singapore is famous for its rich scene of food variety, and basically you can sample tastes from almost the world over without even stepping onto those countries. Kaiserhaus heightened that variety by introducing meals from the once great Austrian-Hungarian Empire. Its name meant "Imperial Family" and true enough, they offered meals fit for a king.

I like how the English styled Capitol Theater complements the regal European furnishings of Kaiserhaus. Its spacious interior could accommodate a party of guests if you reserve well ahead of time. I got to know this fine establishment while surfing Groupon and the voucher allowed 2 choices of main meal plus appetizer and dessert, which can be chosen from available cake and pastries on display.

Entrance to Kaiserhaus

Part of the interior. It look as if there is a balcony looking towards a nearby residential building, but in fact both sections, including the space in between, are still enclosed under Capitol Theater.

Furnishings and decors aside, the main draw of Kaiserhaus is its unique offering of food choices. From crispy fried mushrooms of unbelievable size for appetizer to the dual choices of gourmet beef or Bohemian pork roast for main course, we were introduced to the bygone culinary tastes once sampled in the great Austrian-Hungarian Empire, and boy was it good. We topped our Groupon choice with Viennese Schnitzel to increase the amount of variety.

For the non-alcoholic hipster, I recommend Kaiserhaus' imported fruit juice. We chose Apricot juice (SGD5) - I mean have you tried apricot juice in Singapore!? Couldn't comment too much on it as its distinctive is a little hard to put into words but it wasn't too bad. Maybe what really piqued m interest was the bottle the juice came in, an imported one from Austria no less!

Our other fruit juices - Orange juice (foreground) and Apple juice (background) (SGD4.50). Not as special as the Apricot juice but still quite delicious.

Crispy Fried Mushrooms (SGD14) is not really crispy, it is more like chewy but that's fine for me because that's how I like my mushrooms anyway. We thought those sizable portions were nuggets in disguise initially since they were huge for mushrooms.

The full array of our order, each of them a sizable portion unto its own.

Bohemian Pork Roast (Vepřová Pečenē) (SGD26) shows how wide the Austrian-Hungary Empire covered in the past (the Kingdom of Bohemia was part of the current Czech Republic), and is the only Czech/Bohemian dish in our current order. As the name implies, slabs of roast pork formed the core of the dish and we were already salivating when we saw those crispy crackling. Gravy poured over the meat adds taste onto the dish and the addition of roasted root vegetables, Gabelkraut and bread dumplings formed a balanced diet. Naturally all attention is on the roast pork.

Viennese Schnitzel (Wiener Schnitzel) (from pork - SGD29) would be a great choice for one to experience Austrian fare. This world renown Austrian national dish is served with 2 choices: you can either choose the original veal version or the pork version, the latter a choice for those avoiding beef for religious reasons.

The dish is prepared from a veal (or pork) cutlet that is pounded into a thin slice, then breaded and fried. Our order came with potato salad, mâche, lemon and cranberry ragout, and while they do add value to the overall experience, the cutlet in itself can undoubtedly hold its own ground. Nothing can go wrong with a breaded pan-fried cutlet especially one with a succulent flesh.

By the way, the potato salad in the foreground is actually part of the Bohemian Pork Roast...

Gourmet Beef (Tafelspitz) (single serve - SGD38) is the highlight of our order and of this post. This is where I understood what "dining like an Emperor" meant. Austrian Emperor Franz Josef I, was enamored with this dish and the nation treats this as a national dish. A copper pot full of beef rump, oyster blade, beef bouillon and mixed root vegetables is served in clear broth that is sweet with the taste of vegetables.

I can find no fault with this meal, from the pot of sweet broth to the complement array of toasted rye bread, bone marrow, crispy potato rosti, creamed spinach and spicy horseradish sauce (that's wasabi to you Japanese eaters). Each of them are a champion in its own and I just couldn't let any of them go to waste even as my tummy gets bloated by stuffing them down.

Be sure to come with a voracious appetite though - their portions were quite generous and our stomachs were left with no space for dessert. Not willing to lose out on our voucher, we ordered the slices of cakes as takeaway to be consumed in our cozy little place.

I am left with no choice but to give Kaiserhaus all my stars since they essentially stole my heart away with their food and ambiance. Though their price is not for the casual diner, it definitely fits what they dish out, both in quality and quantity. I highly recommend this restaurant to readers to try for themselves, and I am sure I will return to sample the long list of untried items on their menu. I wonder how their Kaiserhaus platter taste like...

Environment:          A nice Austrian restaurant in a European styled pavillion

Suitable for:             for celebration
Price:                           luxury (>SGD20 per meal per pax)

Food score:               10/10

Food:                            5.0/5.0

Service:                        5.0/5.0

Value:                           4.5/5.0

Ambiance:                   5.0/5.0

Operating hours:   (Sun - Thu) 10.30 a.m. - 11.00 p.m.
                                       (Fri - Sat)     10.30 a.m. - 12.00 a.m.

Directions:                Disembark at City Hall MRT and work your way towards Capitol Theater (not Capitol Piazza despite the address). The restaurant is located on level 2.

Website:                    Official homepage of Kaiserhaus

Contact:                    +65 - 6377 0013 (phone)

E-mail:                       reservations@kaiserhaus.com.sg

Address:                    Capitol Singapore, 17 Stamford Rd, 02-06, 03-06, Singapore 178907.