Roadhouse Restaurant (formerly Cafe Hacienda) at Dempsey Road is a modern American Diner — opened by the Prive Group — that serves hearty food in a rustic yet contemporary setting. It is one of the few restaurants in Singapore that uses Josper Grill to char-grill their meats and burger patties.

While I’d been meaning to try the food for some time now, because of a busy schedule, I only managed to visit it recently. After eating there, I have to say Roadhouse is a place where you can go for weekend brunch with your family; or a nice dinner with a group of friends.

On the menu, it has a variety of burgers: from the signature bacon marinated burger ($23); to the cajun chicken burger ($20); and the miso cod burger ($27) – there is a choice for everyone. They also have quesadillas ($13), tacos ($12), salads ($13), and main courses ($16-48).

During the weekends, roadhouse has a brunch menu (available from 9am to 4pm) with selections like pancakes, eggs benedict ($16), ultimate breakfast ($22), fluffy pancakes ($14), and cheese omelette ($16).

When asked to recommend the best burger on the menu, the staff pointed us to the bacon marinated burger ($23).

It was indeed, a fantastic burger – homemade bun, streaky bacons, caramelised onions, sauteed mushrooms, and 170g Josper-grilled wagyu patty. Utterly delicious.

They also do very good milkshakes ($12) – chocolate, vanilla, and coffee. I probably would not pay so much for a milkshake, but there’s no denying that it is one of the better milkshakes in town.

We also ordered a side of mac & cheese ($18) to share. I think it is good enough to get a spot on my upcoming best mac & cheese post.

Then, we had pancakes. It was rather different from the usual ones. If you are a fan of light and fluffy pancakes, Roadhouse’s version is probably not your type. The pancakes ($14) here are thick, dense, and cake-y.

And what’s brunch without eggs benedict? Fans of Prive Bakery Cafe will be happy to know that Roadhouse has the same good and reliable eggs benedict ($16).

You are probably thinking that we had a big group to share the food, but no, there was only two of us. Even though we had already ordered a lot of food, I couldn’t stop myself when I saw the BBQ U.S spare ribs ($26 for half rack, $40 for whole rack) on the menu.

They turned out to be pretty awesome. Fork-tender, lick-your-fingers good ribs. YUM.

We were very full after finishing all the dishes, but I must have desserts. Out of the eight items on the dessert menu, the S’more ice cream cake ($12) caught my eyes. It was not fantastic, but decent enough to end the brunch on a sweet note.

Overall, a satisfying meal though I think the brunch items could have been a little more wow. That being said, Roadhouse has one of the best burgers in town; you must make a trip down if you love burgers. The meats, cooked using Josper grill, are also very good.

Roadhouse American Diner
13 Dempsey Road #01-07
Tel: +65 6476 2922
Mon to Fri: 10.30am – 2.30pm, 6.30pm – 10pm
Sat & Sun: 9am – 4pm, 6.30pm – 10pm

Note: This was an invited media tasting.

For more recommendations, read my Guide to Restaurants in Dempsey Road

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