Clay Oven
The Clay Oven on Dempsey Hill When I told the taxi driver “Dempsey Hill” and leaned back to relax, memories of my brothers reporting for National Service came to mind. Yes, Dempsey Hill used to be the Central Manpower Base of Singapore and was always referred as “CMPB” but prior to that apparently it was the British army barracks. It used to be a disciplined area, with crew cut young men walking matching or walking around. As I alighted from the taxi, I knew very well, that time has changed the whole place into a restaurant and lifestyle hub and the mood was ‘party’. The old barracks and bungalow have been preserved well.
The Clay Oven Restaurant nestled in the midst of nice lush greenery gives you the feeling of dining in a rustic, quaint, colonial bungalow with interesting Indian paintings, knick knacks and exquisite Indian furniture.
The Clay Oven is an interesting restaurant concept. The menu naturally focuses on charcoal-fired tandoor oven grilled meats and baked unleavened breads. The tandoor is a cylindrical clay oven used by Indians especially those from the Northern region of India in cooking and baking. The heat of a tandoor is traditionally generated by fire, burning within the tandoor itself, thus exposing the food to both live-fire, radiant heat cooking and hot-air to do the baking. Temperatures in a tandoor can reach up to 480°C!
 Complementing the food in this restaurant is a whisky concept, Scotch Corner, a whiskey warehouse developed by Andrew Skene from Spirit of Scotland. Diners can sample over 15 single malts from the Scottish Highlands, Lowlands and Islay regions and also purchase bottles of it. The Clay Oven has a well stocked collection of fine Scottish Whiskies, single malts from all over Scotland and therefore you will find some brands that you would have never seen elsewhere in Singapore. To complement the whiskies you will also fine a range of organic Scottish beers like Ben Navis (India Pale Ale), Lomond Gold (Blonde Beer), William Wallace (80 shilling) and even Glencoe Stout.I started off by tasting the Mixed Tandoori Platter that consisted of Fish Tikka, Chicken Tikka, Sheekh Kebab and Murgh Kastoori Kebab. The platter was enough for two persons to share and my personal favorite was the Murgh Kastoori Kebab. Murgh Kastoori Kebab, marinated cubes of creamy, tender chicken breasts with a strong hint of fenugreek leaves was so tender and flavorful, that leave you wanting more.
 Next I tried the Royal Briyani – fluffy, aromatic long grained rice cooked in rich stock and with cubes of mutton in it. I also tried the Garlic Naan, very fluffy unleavened bread. The restaurant did not have many varieties of breads unlike other North Indian restaurant. For the mains, the chef’ special, Crab A La Madras was interesting. Crabmeat is cooked with a medley of spices, onions and tomatoes and it taste very typically like a South Indian dish. To accompany the above, we also ordered and tried the Palak Paneer and the Daal Makhni. If you need to assess the quality of food in a North Indian restaurant you must try these two dishes. The Palak Paneer was creamy, pureed spinach with paneer cubes (Indian homemade cheese). It was the perfect accompaniment to the Naan. The Daal Makhni was not as rich as some of those I have tasted at other restaurants.
 Dessert was very unusual yet so common – it was a marriage of the Indian and Scottish. Gulab Jamun Flambéed with Malt Whiskey Liqueur andPistachio and Saffron Kulfi!! Gulab Jamun is a typical deep fried Punjabi dessert/sweet that is soaked in syrup scented with rose flavor. At Clay Oven, Malt Whiskey is poured over the gulab jamuns and flambéed. Because of the flambéing the dessert had an awesome flavor. This is a must try dessert in this restaurant. The Pistachio and Saffron Kulfi was rich,creamy and fragrant.On the whole, Clay Oven has friendly staff, attentive staff. The place is relaxed with eclectic ambience, indoor and alfresco and a great place to wind down after work, and enjoy some Indian food paired with Scotch stuff.
Clay Oven Blk 26B , Dempsey Road
Dempsey Hill
Singapore 249673
Tel: 6472 0221
Tue - Thu 5.00 pm - 10.30 pm (Last order 10.15 pm)
Fri - Sun 12.00 pm - 3.30 pm
5.00 pm - 11.00 pm (Last order 10.30 pm)
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