Wheeler's Estate

Wheeler's Estate
2 Park Lane

https://www.facebook.com/wheelersestate/

Peruvian Barbecue Chicken (SGD $36)

Relaxing, Multi-Concept, Premium Dining Destination

(Ratings: On a scale of 1 to 10, with 1 = Worst and 10 = Best)
Overall: 7
Ambience & Setting: 10
Food & Beverage: 7
Service: 6
Value for Money: 6
Spent about SGD $70 per person.

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Opening its doors in December 2016, Wheeler's Estate is the up-market, stylish cousin of the famed Wheeler's Yard cafe, brainchild of boss and cycling enthusiast Tommy Ong. Distinctly yuppie, Wheeler's Estate is a multi-concept dining destination set amidst The Oval @ Seletar Aerospace Park (SAP). Comprising a cafe, restaurant, bar, grill house, and picnic lawn, they offer modern Australian cuisine, albeit at premium prices.

Ambience at Wheeler's Estate benefits from the lush, green surroundings, and restored colonial facade. The cafe on the 1st floor features wooden rattan chairs around modern white tables, and a relaxing environment. Ceiling fans keep the place cool, though the open, naturally lit area is partially exposed to the elements. The restaurant on the 2nd floor boasts a spacious, air-conditioned dining hall, looking elegant and classy, suitable for events. Sturdy modern wooden furniture neatly line the space. There's ample natural light during the day, while modern chandeliers cast a warm glow at night. The well-stocked bar is an attraction on its own, very eye-catching.

Service at Wheeler's Estate is decent enough. Staff generally seem busy and overwhelmed, it's hard to catch their attention, so be prepared to wait. They demonstrate politeness and display good product knowledge on the menu. During meals however, you have to approach them, rather than staff proactively checking on customers. I like that they clear away empty / dirty plates efficiently. Orders take a short while to be fulfilled, around 10 - 15 minutes or so. For the place, I also expected that staff would be engage customers more, but this wasn't the case. Overall, decent, passable service standards, but not justified for the price and location.

Food at Wheeler's Estate is modern Australian European cuisine, with their speciality being rotisserie / grilled dishes, as they have their own grill house on the premises. Dishes are creative and exciting, combining flavours and presentation styles in thought-provoking ways, yet still being familiar and tasty. Portions are large and hearty, very filling. They offer a different menu for both the cafe and restaurant, and while small, is sufficient enough for repeat visits. Quality differs though; the restaurant has much better food than the cafe. Prices are higher than normal, and I personally feel it's not good value for money. Budget about SGD $70 per person for a full meal here.

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Wheeler's Estate Camper Van

Wheeler's Estate Facade

Cafe Seating

Cafe Counter

Restaurant Seating

Restaurant Seating

Restaurant Seating

Veranda Seating

Veranda Corridor

Bar Counter

Bar Counter

Decorative Wall Lights

Bottles And More Bottles

Bottles And More Bottles

Grill House

Lawn

Playground

Tree Of Lights

Stump

The Hot Mocha (SGD $6) is rich and chocolatey in taste, with good depth of body in the coffee. Pretty good.

Hot Mocha (SGD $6)

Hot Mocha

The Beer Hitachino Nest White Ale (SGD $13.50) is brewed by the Kiuchi Brewery in the Ibaraki Prefecture, in the Kanto region of Japan. It has a light, hazy golden yellow colour, with aromas of coriander, lemon, orange, and nutmeg. Body is medium, smooth, and soapy, with lively carbonation, and tastes of tangerines, cloves, ginger, and bread. Nicely bitter sweet with undertones of fruit. Finish is crisp and dry, pretty refreshing.

Beer Hitachino Nest White Ale (SGD $13.50)

The Beer Hitachino Nest Red Rice Ale (SGD $13.50) is brewed by the Kiuchi Brewery in the Ibaraki Prefecture, in the Kanto region of Japan. It has a deep, robust amber brown colour, with aromas of strawberries, cherries, white rice, and vinegar. Body is medium, creamy, and lively, with good carbonation, and tastes of raspberries, potatoes, cardamom, and pear. Mild but with a unique flavour, fruity spicy sweet bitter. Finish is light and dry, lingering slightly.

Beer Hitachino Nest Red Rice Ale (SGD $13.50)

The Beer Hitachino Nest Yuzu Saison Du Japon (SGD $13.50) is brewed by the Kiuchi Brewery in the Ibaraki Prefecture, in the Kanto region of Japan. It has a pale, cloudy golden orange colour, with aromas of lime, cookie dough, wheat, and pepper. Body is light, refreshing, and crisp, with lively carbonation, and tastes of grapefruit, yuzu, cereal, and caramel. Bright notes of sweet sour bitter with lively fruit. Finish is sticky and refreshing, very clean.

Beer Hitachino Nest Yuzu Saison Du Japon (SGD $13.50)

The Idle Tongue (SGD $24) is a breakfast / brunch dish, only available on weekends. The dish consists of warm toasted brioche bread, sharp sour tangy pickled onions, crunchy vegetal wild rocket leaves / arugula, 2 nicely poached eggs, crisp creamy potato croquettes, and savoury salty lean pickled ox tongue. The flavours work so well together when combined, but fall apart when eaten separately, so I recommend mixing a bit of everything together in a bite. Decent, albeit slightly pricey.

Idle Tongue (SGD $24)

Idle Tongue

The Cheeky Swine (SGD $25) is a cheeky appetizer... marvelously mischevious slabs of fatty pork belly, slow braised in bourbon and apple cider till the meat achieves a tender, fall apart texture, with a fragrant savoury sweet flavour. The thick layer of fat on the pork belly lends good moisture. A medley of fruity earthy vegetal sour sweet flavours complement, including peas, pearl onions, blackberries, raspberries, blueberries, wild rocket leaves / arugula, red-veined sorrel leaves, and a cool saffron cream. Luxurious and decadent, the clean, fresh flavours are so beautiful, like a bright summer day. Highly recommended!

Cheeky Swine (SGD $25)

Cheeky Swine

The Peruvian Barbecue Chicken (SGD $36) is their take on the classic Pollo A La Brasa, a popular national dish of Peru. A whole butterflied young chicken, marinated in herbs and spices, including light soy sauce, lime juice, garlic, salt, pepper, cumin, and oregano, is slow roasted / grilled over charcoal in a wood-fired oven. The result; tender, juicy, clean-tasting chicken meat, a bold robust flavour from the spice and herb coated skin, with lovely notes of savoury sweet flavour and undertones of sour. Served with a fresh garden salad (cherry tomatoes, wild rocket leaves / arugula, purple cabbage, red-veined sorrel leaves, onions) coated in a sharp spicy sauce; medium-cut chips that have a fluffy texture and good potato flavour with a hint of salt; and a creamy grainy Salsa Aji Verde, a classic Peruvian pepper sauce that is sweet sour spicy sharp in taste. So good. Highly recommended!

Peruvian Barbecue Chicken (SGD $36)

Peruvian Barbecue Chicken

Peruvian Barbecue Chicken

Loved the Teres Majors Steak (SGD $45 / 300g), which features a large, juicy, tender cut of 200 days grain fed black angus shoulder, perfectly grilled to a nice medium rare. Seasoned with salt and pepper, the beef is nicely savoury with a light salty touch, and is flavourful enough to eat on its own. Served with tender earthy roasted potatoes and sauteed onions, fresh vegetal wild rocket leaves / arugula dressed in a lemon vinaigrette, and juicy grilled cherry tomatoes. The only component in this dish which didn't work for me was the peppercorn sauce served on the side; this was overly sweet and salty, lacking the peppery taste. Don't pour it over the beef, as it completely destroys the natural flavours. Otherwise, everything else was well executed and excellent. Good!