“American Western Food Located Right In Scenic CHIJMES”
With its philosophy of serving good food to good people, American family chain AppleBee’s has become a widely popular neighbourhood grill and bar restaurant and has since expanded internationally.
And of course, its international locations now also include CHIJMES in Singapore. AppleBee’s is located right in scenic CHIJMES after a major overhaul of eateries here, beside the famous spiral staircase where countless of Instagram OOTDs have been taken.
The interior design of AppleBee’s exudes a very down-to-earth and casual vibe due to the use of earthy colors – hues of green, red and yellow. What impressed me about the decor of the restaurant was the fact that they had managed to blend the original pillars of CHIJMES (pillars were to be kept for heritage purposes) into their design concept by painting over them.
I was initially attracted to the cosy-looking chairs in the outdoors dining area but we had to leave after a mere 15 minutes when sweat started trickling uncomfortably down our backs.
I wouldn’t suggest sitting out in the open during the day simply because Singapore’s weather is too hot and humid to permit that. The restaurant is looking into purchasing stronger and more heavy-duty fans, though, so I’m looking forward to that.
We couldn’t make up our minds on which appetizers to settle for so we chose to have the Appetizer Sampler ($18.90), which included mozzarella sticks, calamari, and buffalo wings, because we’re greedy like that.
In case you didn’t know, if you order wings at AppleBee’s, you can have your choice of sauce, from mild to spicy: Honey BBQ, Classic Buffalo, Sweet & Spicy and Hot Buffalo. The adventurous us opted for the hot buffalo sauce.
I was rather disappointed with the calamari as the batter was neither hot nor crispy enough – the batter was didn’t really stick to the squid and tasted dough-y. While the meat of the wings was tender, moist and fell away nicely from the bones when bitten into, the buffalo sauce- termed as the ‘hottest sauce they’ve got’, simply didn’t live up to its hype (in Singapore spicy wing standards anyway). It was a nice, umami sauce but it wasn’t nearly hot enough.
Seth: If they ramped up the heat on the wings, it’s something I would definitely return for.
The mozzarella sticks, however, managed to salvage the appetizer samplers. The outsides were fried to a crisp brown and the insides oozed with cheesy goodness. If you’re a cheese lover, order this. Your satisfaction is almost always guaranteed with the cheese sticks.
The Shrimp & Parmesan Sirloin ($18.90 for 210g; $21.90 for 270g) was surprisingly good. Why surprising? The price.
For $18.90. the steak was juicy and easy to cut through. The meat, pretty pink in the center, was full-flavored and succulent. I also loved AppleBee’s decision to utilize melted cheese and shrimps to top the steak off as a sauce.
The prawns were fresh and tender, a joy to chew on. I would have loved for more sauce because when we got to the end of the steak, there was hardly any left.
Seth: I really disagree with the vegetables that came on the side though, which had a raw taste. Not sure whether perhaps that’s a trait more common in America restaurants.
I’m a sucker for anything with melted cheese, so AppleBee’s Baked Chicken & Shrimp Rigatoni ($15.90) won me over. Served with a toasted bread, the pairing of crispy bacon bits with creamy garlic sauce provided a very interesting texture to the mouth.
The baked pasta was incredibly rich and delicious; I found myself reaching out for forkful after forkful of it. I wouldn’t recommend this as a personal dish, though. It is best shared with several others as it gets pretty jelat (overly heavy) nearing the end.
Another clear winner out of all the dishes was the Double-glazed Baby Back ribs ($11.90 for half rack; $17.90 for full rack). Where else can you find such an affordable rack of baby back ribs at this size?
There was an unanimous agreement amongst us that its price point made it a steal. The contrast of the sticky sauce against the melt-in-the-mouth meat made us all nod our heads in approval. The baby back ribs are definitely a must order.
What meal is complete without deserts? Like all gluttons, I admit to having a separate stomach reserved specially for deserts. No matter how full I claim to be after having finished a main course, I am always up for ice cream. It wasn’t just ice cream we had, though. The Butter Pecan Blonde ($9.90) tasted like sin. Sin which was served atop a sizzling hotplate.
The coldness of the ice cream counteracted the hotness of the cake below, providing a highly unique sensory experience for the tongue. The desert was very sweet but I couldn’t stop myself from reaching out for more. Definitely another item which should be shared. Or not.
Overall, I feel that AppleBee’s is still worth a visit for their highly affordable steaks, baked pastas and baby back ribs. Just skip the appetizers and go straight for their main dishes.
There honestly aren’t many American food joints in Singapore and I can see AppleBee’s becoming a family dinner thing in Singapore. Besides, you can always hang around after your meal to take a few OOTD shots around the very grand-looking CHIJMES compound!
Expected Damage: $20 – $30 per pax
