The Place We have been to Open Farm Community (OFC) at Dempsey previously to try some of its brunch items, and glad to say we have finally tried some of its amazing dishes on the dinner menu. With a focus on locally sourced , seasonal ingredients and innovative dishes, we had high expectations simply because it is by celebrity Chef Ryan Clift. While the alfresco lush garden setting was tempting in the day during our previous brunch experience, I love the indoor open kitchen concept equally. We shall let the pictures do the talking, as we can safely say we tried almost the whole menu!

The Food It is always nice to kickstart a meal with some starters, and I will highly recommend trying some of the starters here at Open Farm Community. I could not stop laying my hands on the Coal baked omelette with smoked haddock, tarragon & grain mustard mornay ($24). The Organic eggs omelette was oven baked and topped with sliced smoked haddock from France, served with rocket salad and shaved parmesan. I will never look at omelette the same way after having this.

In terms of presentation, the Chilled avocado and ginger soup with poached yabbies and fresh radish ($20) won hands down. The unique combination of Thai Tom Kha broth and avocado puree and coconut milk was enough to fill up the anticipation. Served separately, pour the broth into the bowl of diced avocado, shallot, red radish and poached yabbies (freshwater crayfish from Malaysia) and herbs, served with warm pita bread on the side.

We rarely hear of local sourced clams, but here we have the Sautéed local clams with crispy bread ($18). Be sure to dip the bread with the Lemon meunière sauce, made via an emulsification process with butter and parsley.

The other interesting starter is the Fermented carrot ‘tartare’ ($24), definitely a first of a kind for me. The Baby carrot was fermented in a nukabed (mix of roasted Rice bran, kombu, salt and miso), while the Ground carrot was topped with barne organic egg yolk, served with a selection of seasonings and dressings such as shallots, chives, capers, gherkins, herbs and gochujang (Korean fermented chilli paste).

Even the ‘Hail Caesar’ house smoked chicken, 5J Jamon, horseradish caesar dressing & fresh romaine lettuce ($22) was packed with loads of ingredients. The Caesar salad dressing was made with Japanese mayonnaise, horseradish, speck (Swiss farm bacon), baby romaine lettuce and 5J Cinco Jotas Jamon Iberico, served with poached chicken breast from Malaysia, boiled barne organic eggs (soft core), sliced parmesan cheese and ciabatta bread croutons.

For the Vegetable sides, the Sweet corn with smoked paprika butter ($14) was my pick as it was sweet and not overly buttery. The corn was poached, then roasted in the charcoal oven and  brushed with smoked paprika butter. Served in a husk with baby corn, popcorn and chimichurri bread.

Other vegetable sides include the Baby eggplant with spicy togarashi, quinoa, curry oil and sourdough ($14) and Cauliflower with yogurt & southern wood dressing ($14).

From lamb to barramundi to chicken, the mains at Open Farm Community are quite impressive, in terms of presentation and execution. Go for the tender Mangalica pork collar, Asian bbq glaze, corn & speck ragout ($34) or the Roasted baby chicken, braised leeks with hazelnut butter & wild watercress salad ($28). We love the combination of Asian flavours in both dishes.

If you love lamb, the Charred S.A. lamb rump with garden peas, bacon, lettuce, mint, whipped mash & a rosemary thyme jus ($32) may just be your kind of mains. The lamb was prepared sous vide, then pan seared, giving it a succulent flavour. I profess that I am not the biggest lamb lover, but this rendition was not gamy at all fortunately.

Other worthy options from the mains selection include the Coal baked Barramundi with cucumber coleslaw, roasted eggplant & a fresh mint dressing ($26) and the Red grouper with peas and mint puree ($28).

On the whole for the pasta options, there is nothing like the usual Carbonara or Aglio Olio at Open Farm Community. My favourite is the Rigatoni, local mushrooms, smoked pancetta topped with stilton & balsamic reduction ($26), which you must not miss if you love mushrooms (which I do). The mushrooms are sourced from a local farm, and went so well with the with butter and cream sauce for the pasta.

Another pasta I will recommend is the Strozzapreti with 48 hour barolo braised oxtail, parmesan wafers & wild thyme ($26). The rich flavours of the pasta is testament of the well-marinated black angus Oxtail in Barolo red wine for 48 hours. If you are looking for a hearty pasta flavour, this is a must order.

The other notable highlights for pastas include the Mud crab spaghettoni with thai curry sauce, crunchy yellow squash, coconut, crispy shallot Thai basil ($28), Pumpkin & pine nut tortelli with local yabbies & minden pesto ($24) and the Potato dumpling gnocchi, shredded pork sausage, sun dried tomato jus & fresh fennel ($26).

For desserts, I like how diverse the options are. However, it was not tough for me to pick pick a favourite out of the lot, that is the Lemon tart with basil ice cream ($17). No doubt the garden-inspired plating was a visual treat, but the combination of the sweet and sour lemon tart with the refreshing basil flavour truly won my palate over.

Other equally tantalising sweet treats include the Hot and cold chocolate cake with chocolate sorbet and mint meringue ($17), the Thai-iinspired Caramelized mango with textures of coconut ($17) and Orange meringue pie with citrus salsa ($17).

Rants It’s insanely packed, so walk-ins are a huge gamble. Brace yourself for mozzies at the alfresco area.

Will I Return Again? If I were to bring my foreign friends to one restaurant in Singapore, Open Farm Community is top on my list. It is hard to imagine a restaurant in Singapore having such abundance of space to house its own produce, provide a fun and farm environment and an interior and alfresco space so endearing.

Make your reservation instantly at Open Farm Community here.

TheRantingPanda says:
Taste bud: 4/5
Hole in the pocket: 4/5
Ambience: 4.5/5
Overall Experience: 4/5

Open Farm Community
130E Minden Road
Singapore 248819
Tel: +65 6471 0306

Opening Hours
Mon to Fri: 12pm – 3pm, 6pm – 10pm
Sat to Sun: 11am – 10pm

Ranted by the Ranter