Nov 14, 2024
When Potato Head first announced that it was saying goodbye back in September, fans of its tipples and burgers were devastated.
Thankfully for them, the multi-concept dining destination, located in the iconic heritage building at 36 Keong Saik Road, is not shuttering for good — rather, it has actually rebranded.
Now, it's called 1939 — after the year the building was built — instead of Potato Head, and several of its food and drink options have been tweaked to be more locally themed.
With regards to the building and its aesthetic though, the establishment hasn't changed much.
In fact, the bulk of its decor has remained relatively unchanged, save for a few new paintings on the walls.
The layout is also the same, with an open-concept kitchen on the ground floor, a dining hall on the second floor, a speakeasy bar called Studio 1939 on the third as well as a rooftop bar on the fourth.
A spokesperson from 1939 told AsiaOne that even with its new name, 1939 is still under the Potato Head brand and has not changed management — it just has a more local branding that's different from its Bali counterpart.
For context, Potato Head was founded by Jakarta-born Ronald Akili, and its first dining and lifestyle concept opened in Bali in 2010. The brand launched its Singapore branch in 2014.
The Singapore establishment's pivot to a local theme is mostly reflected in the food and drinks menu.
Curious to see what's new, we paid 1939 a visit.
To start off our meal, we were given a sample of sides from the new menu, which included the Classic Mac N Cheese ($10), This Little Piggy ($17) and 1939 Har Cheong Gai ($18).
The har cheong gai chicken wings were one of the ways that 1939 has added a local touch to its food offerings.
Thanks to the batter, these were extremely fragrant and had a good crunch to them.
My colleague and I were huge fans of the sinfully good This Little Piggy, which essentially are twice-cooked Dingley Dell pork belly on skewers, served with a watermelon relish and smokey mayo dip.
Those who want something lighter on the palate can opt for the Cobb Salad ($18).
I'm not normally someone who enjoys salads but I really liked this one. It was garnished with sliced sakura chicken breast, avocado, crispy bacon and cubes of blue D'Auvergne cheese, finished off with some Cobb dressing.
While I had never visited Potato Head before the rebrand, I knew it was famous for its burgers.
In fact, a spokesperson from 1939 told us that when the rebranding was announced, many diners wrote in to ask if its well-loved burgers would still be around.
If you're one of the said concerned patrons, fret not as the establishment will keep eight of its bestsellers despite the menu revamp.
The in-house chefs have also added two more new burgers, such as the Chilli Crab Burger ($28).
A fried patty — made with real crab meat — is wedged between two buns along with lettuce, coriander, spring onions and sauce.
While delicious, it was a tad bit too spicy for me (but I do have quite low spice tolerance).
Apart from burgers, there are also tacos on the menu, such as the Fish Tacos ($11/$20) and Chicken Tacos ($10/$18).
Frankly, these were quite average. But they do make great finger food.
For mains, there are four options — Beef Steak ($42), Lamb Rack ($42), Grilled Fish ($42) and Ocean's Fry Fish N Chips ($26).
If you're looking for something more filling, I suggest getting the fish and chips as it's the only main that comes with a side of fries.
My favourite of the lot was the Beef Steak, which features 200 grams of Angus hanger steak seasoned with thyme and garlic, paired with a chimichurri sauce. This was prepared medium rare and extremely tender.
The Lamb Rack, which is a cap-on Tasmanian cut that was also seasoned with thyme and garlic, was cooked well and very juicy. I was also pleasantly surprised by the fresh mint sauce that it came with.
As for desserts, we were served the Apple Pie ($16) which comes with spiced apples encased in a flakey, buttery crust.
This was excellent and they were very generous with the apple filling too.
One of the highlights of Potato Head has always been its bars and guests can look forward to a slew of new drinks to sip on.
Something else that's new is the cocktail programme that's rooted in beats per minute (BPM), where each cocktail reflects the energy of music genres through its composition.
The BPM is indicated on the menu above each cocktail's name.
On weekends, Studio 1939 also comes alive with high-energy DJ performances that also follow the BPM concept.
But if you prefer enjoying your tipple in a more chill space, feel free to head up to the rooftop bar instead.
One of the more impactful drinks we had was Toxic ($25), which was inspired by a classic bowl of Singapore laksa. This was 120 BPM.
The drink, which was crafted with laksa leaf-infused vodka, coconut cream, chili padi and fresh citrus, was an explosion of spicy, creamy and zesty flavours.
We were thoroughly impressed by how the skilled bartenders managed to make the cocktail taste like an actual bowl of laksa. But I must warn you — the first sip can be quite jarring.
We also sampled Lovely Day ($25) which was 115 BPM. This featured Roku Gin, butterfly pea, elderflower and sour apple.
The flavour profile for this was fresh and herbal, with a hint of tartness from the sour apple. Very different from Toxic but still good nonetheless.
My colleague opted to try Stayin' Alive ($25) which was 90 BPM and featured Grey Goose, starfruit, fino sherry and salt. This is a good option for people who prefer bright, clean flavours and a savoury finish.
For me, I got Dancing Queen ($25), which was 130 BPM and made with Nusa Cana White Rum, raspberry, tomato and mint.
As someone who enjoys bright and fruity flavours, this was a great way to end off the meal.
Unfortunately, I did not manage to visit the establishment during its Potato Head days, so I have no point of comparison.
But overall, I had a swell time at 1939, and the food and drinks my colleague and I sampled were mostly fantastic.
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