the queen and her mangosteens.

The Queen & Mangosteen
#01-106/107 Vivocity
1 Harbourfront Walk
Tel : 6376 9380
Website: http://www.queenandmangosteen.com/

When D told me about a new gastropub which opened near his work place, I was psyched! One reason was because I had not been trying any new places recently. More importantly, I was drawn to its name. If what The Queen & Mangosteen was doing was to attract their customers with their catchy name, it certainly caught me. It took me awhile to figure out the reason for its name and when I finally did, I thought it might have been because mangosteens were considered the queen of fruits. That was until I found out that mangosteens were a favourite with Queen Victoria. I never knew that there were mangosteens over in the UK.

The Queen & Mangosteen is a new British gourmet pub set up by the people behind the Highlander Bar and The Pump Room. I've tried the Irish pub grub but going British was new for me. After a crazy week at work last week, D decided to pay a visit that was overdue. It was a pretty enjoyable experience since I needed a relaxing time off and that's what I got. Whilst Singapore isn't the most ideal place to go al fresco, it was nice to sit outside and overlook the waters dividing the main land and Sentosa.

It wouldn't really be fair for me to give a real assessment of the food they served because I dropped in only for a late afternoon snack. That being said, I did think that there were hits and misses in the food we ordered. Ordering from the 'nibbles' section of the menu, we made a beeline for the Mixed Seafood Deli Board which consisted of Beer Battered Fish, Chilled Prawns, Crayfish and Fried Whitebait that came with a variety of dipping sauces such as curry tartare sauce. I loved the presentation of the dish. The seafood was rather fresh but I thought the batter for the fried items were disappointing. While the accompanying sauces were tasty, the batter on the fish and the whitebait were too thick for my liking. It's frustrating that I still can't find people in Singapore who do fish & chips like the ones at Cicerello's in Perth.















I liked the Mini Hamburger & Chips which followed. The burgers were fuss free with just a slice of tomato, some mayonnaise and a thick patty sandwiched between 2 mini buns. I think the patties had both beef and pork in it because there were really juicy. I liked that they toasted the buns because it created a really nice texture when eaten together with the thick juicy patties. I also loved the chips as they were crispy on the outside yet soft on the inside. I would have cleared the whole bucket had I not feel guilty about the carbo overload.














D also ordered us a jug of Pimm's & Lemonade, a British cocktail most well known to be served during the Wimbledon in summer. Pimm's is a gin-based alcoholic beverage which has 25% in alcoholic volume and most commonly served with lemonade which is how it's served here. Just to spice things up a little, the beverage also has cubes of strawberries, orange peel and cucumber in it. I'm not sure if one can find this drink any place else here but this was a first time I'd seen it on a local menu. I'm not usually much of a drinker so I would say it was out of the norm that I was sipping alcohol at 4 in the afternoon. I did find that it was refreshing and rather suited for Singapore's hot and humid weather so it's definitely in my list now. Trust me when I say my list isn't very long.














I wouldn't say the food's authentic British pub grub and neither do I find the food mind-blowing. To be frank, I wasn't impressed when I visited The Pump Room because I was expecting to have food like I had in an Australian café. However, I won't be so quick to rule out that I won't be returning because I think there was enough to warrant a return visit some time again. Plus, I want to try the mains on the menu. In particular, I want to have the Bangers & Mash which I have read good reviews about.

Did I also mention that I absolutely heart their cute coasters?