The Steak Never Gets Old
You would think that with so many steakhouses already in Singapore, the market would be saturated by now. But new ones keep popping up, and they keep filling up. Which tells you something. The good old beef steak, done properly, never really goes out of fashion.
Singapore’s steakhouse scene spans a wide range. At the entry level, you have your casual grill joints where a decent ribeye might set you back thirty to forty dollars. In the mid-range, there are reliable workhorses that do a respectable job for around eighty to a hundred dollars a head.
Then there is the serious tier. The places where you go when you mean business. Where the beef is dry-aged in-house, the wine list runs to hundreds of labels, and you are probably marking a special occasion just by walking through the door. This is where names like CUT, Burnt Ends and Bistecca have long held court.
It is into this rarefied company that Stags Head Steakhouse has just announced itself.
A Little Corner of London in Marina Bay
Stags Head Steakhouse sits on the third floor of Pan Pacific Singapore in Marina Bay, and from the moment you step in, you know this is not your typical Singapore steakhouse. The concept is unapologetically London. Think dark wood panelling, generous ceiling heights of 5.5 metres, a visible wine cellar and dry-ageing cabinets that hint at the serious intent behind the kitchen.
There is a Library Bar and Lounge where you are meant to begin the evening with a cocktail before settling into the grand dining room. Standing in that library, it is not hard to conjure the image of Winston Churchill himself, cigar in one hand, whisky in the other, holding court on the affairs of the empire.
Bar Bites – Pig’s Head Terrine
From Italy to the Mediterranean to the British Isles
Stags Head is the latest venture from the team behind Bistecca Tuscan Steakhouse, which many will know as one of Singapore’s most popular steakhouses, having been voted the best steakhouse in Singapore a few years back. With such a pedigree, it was just a matter of seeing what new theme they have come up with. And this time, Group Executive Chef Oliver Hyde finally gets to cook from the heart. Hyde grew up on the Norfolk Broads in England, and after years helming Mediterranean-inspired menus at Bistecca and Artemis, he finally has the chance to put Yorkshire pudding on the menu.
With a name like Stags Head Steakhouse, I was expecting to walk in and be greeted by an actual stag’s head mounted on the wall, the kind you see in old English chophouses. Instead, what welcomed me was a portrait of Mr Stag himself, dapper in a well-fitted suit, looking every bit the gentleman about town. It set the tone perfectly. This is a steakhouse that takes its beef seriously but does not take itself too seriously.
Our evening began in The Library Bar and Lounge where we sipped on cocktails and bar bites before proceeding to the dining room.
Starters
A Bone Marrow to Die for
The Baked Bone Marrow ($30) set the tone for the evening from the very first bite. Instead of the usual bone marrow with parsley salad and toast that you see everywhere else, Chef Hyde has combined the marrow with shredded oxtail, mixed it with onion jam and pickles and served it with a lovely smoky grilled sourdough. Rich and intensely beefy, with the pickles and onion jam cutting through the richness, and crispy baked bread crumbs on top giving it just the right textural contrast.
Sourdough So Good!
A special mention must go to that sourdough. It is made in house by the pastry chef, and it was honestly one of the best I have come across in Singapore. They serve it as part of the bread course, paired with whipped beef tallow, and it is worth every calorie.
The crumb structure is light and airy, with a lovely depth of flavour but without the aggressive tang that can sometimes overpower everything else. Grilled over the live fire, it takes on a beautiful smokiness that makes it almost impossible to stop at one slice. The kind of bread you keep reaching for even when you know you should save room for the steak.
Crab Thermidor – A Nod to British Pub Food
The Crab Thermidor ($36) is Chef Hyde’s nod to a classic you would find in British pubs, except here he has swapped lobster for crab. It arrives at the table looking rather impressive.
The whole crab shell sitting on a bed of rock salt, with its top grilled to a deep golden gratin with fresh herbs scattered over. The crab meat is soft and stringy in the way good crab should be. And it mingles nicely with the creamy béchamel spiked with tarragon and cognac.
Honestly, if you put this in front of me without telling me what it was, I would have called it a very good crab gratin. But it was delicious nonetheless.
The Beef
Now to the main event. At the heart of the Stags Head experience are the large-format sharing steaks, and the menu does not disappoint. The beef is sourced directly from Australia, and what is worth noting is that the Red Door Group imports its beef directly for all three of its restaurants. So if you have eaten at Bistecca before, you already know the kind of pedigree you are dealing with. Expect the same quality here.
For the large format sharing cuts, the beef is 450-day grain-fed F1 Wagyu from the Tajima bloodline, butchered in-house, and offered as tomahawks, porterhouses and bone-in sirloin in both wet-aged and dry-aged expressions.
For those dining individually, there is a selection of F1 Wagyu from Gippsland, Australia, pasture-raised for 28 months, available as a Rib Eye ($110) or Filet Mignon ($115).
What sets Stags Head apart is how the beef is cooked. Instead of a conventional grill, the steaks are fired on a parilla over a combination of binchōtan charcoal and applewood, which delivers controlled heat and a subtle smokiness without ever overpowering the beef itself.
The steaks are properly rested before serving and paired with a delicious bone marrow jus which in itself would have been enough. But we wanted to try some of the sauces they offer to see how they can further enhance each bite.
Savoury Steak Sauces Some with a Stiff Upper Lip
They offer quite a good selection of house-made sauces that arrive in charming little silver sauce boats. There is a Blue Cheese Hollandaise, horseradish, and a green peppercorn, among others. All worthy companions to a good steak. But the one that stood out for us was the Stags Mustard, which had a lovely tang that cut through the richness of the beef beautifully.
Another sauce that underscores its British theme is the piccalilli, one of Britain’s most beloved condiments and which is not commonly found here. It has been around since at least 1758, first documented as an English adaptation of Indian pickles.
Britain’s expanding trade routes brought exotic spices and flavours from India, and cooks began adapting recipes inspired by Indian achars to suit local tastes and available produce. The result is a chunky, tangy relish of pickled vegetables seasoned with mustard and turmeric, giving it that distinctive golden colour. Its appeal lies in its balance of sharp and sweet, crunchy yet smooth. Against a rich, fatty piece of wagyu, it worked beautifully.
The steaks are well prepared and arrive nicely charred and perfectly medium rare all the way through. The Porterhouse was very good but many places nowadays can serve a good steak. Often what sets one steakhouse apart from the next are the side dishes.
Notable Side Dishes
There is nothing more English than Yorkshire Pudding and Chef Oliver delivered an excellent one which is always cooked to order.
Light, airy and with that perfect hollow centre, it was ideal for soaking up the rich bone marrow jus. A simple thing done properly, and it made all the difference.
The Beef Fat Roast Potatoes ($16) are also well worth ordering, although the name is a bit of a misnomer. They are in fact triple cooked potatoes, which is a more efficient way of achieving the same result, and it works brilliantly.
Perfectly fluffy on the inside with a thick, crunchy savoury crust on the outside, they practically melt in your mouth while still delivering that satisfying crunch. The beef tallow gives them an incredible depth of flavour that vegetable oil simply cannot replicate. If you have ever had a really good oven roasted potato, this is exactly what these taste like. Do not skip them.
Ending the Meal on an English Note
If the Bomb Alaska is the signature dessert of the American steakhouse, then the Eton Mess must be its English equivalent.
But do not expect an actual mess on the plate. Chef Oliver has tidied things up beautifully, presenting it as an elegant Strawberry Pavlova ($18) with Chantilly cream, meringue, almond tuille and strawberry sorbet arranged just so. It is up to you to turn it into a mess.
We ended the evening with the Artisanal Cheese Platter ($28 small / $42 large), and it was a fitting finale for a restaurant that wears its British identity so proudly.
All four cheeses are sourced from the British Isles, and the selection is excellent. The Colston Bassett Stilton from Nottinghamshire is a classic blue that is creamy and pungent without being overpowering. The Hafod Cheddar from West Wales is hard and nutty with a lovely depth.
The Ogleshield from Somerset is semi-soft and buttery, made from unpasteurised cow’s milk, while the Cornish Yarg from Cornwall rounds things off with a milder, slightly crumbly character.
Conclusion
Stags Head Steakhouse is Singapore’s first London-style steakhouse, and they have done a commendable job bringing that vision to life. The dark wood panelling, the checkered marble floors, the soaring ceilings and the warm, moody lighting all come together to create an atmosphere that feels distinctly and unapologetically British. The only thing missing is the smell of cigars.
What gives the space its most distinctive character are the portraits of animal figures in suits lining the walls. Aside from Mr Stag who greets you at the entrance, there were a host of other animals holding court around the restaurant, each one dressed like a proper English gentleman. I almost felt as if I was a participant in Squid Game being watched!
Beyond the atmosphere, what ultimately matters is the food and the beef. And Chef Oliver Hyde delivers on both counts. From the clever Baked Bone Marrow starter to the beautifully fired Porterhouse, the excellent Yorkshire Pudding and the very British cheese platter, this is a meal that feels cohesive and purposeful. A chef cooking from the heart, with food he grew up eating.
Disclosure: this review is done as part of a Media Invite.
