The alter ego to A Poke Theory (hence the name), Alter Ego is a new dining joint located at the Esplanade’s riverfront. It serves tantalising bar food and a selection of craft beers. And if you’re there early enough you’ll be able to order the popular poke (pronounced po-kay), the Hawaiian raw fish salad that it brought over from A Poke Theory over at Boon Tat Street.
According to the founders Vannessa and Joey, Alter Ego came about because Joey “was sick of tasting, testing and eating poke” almost every day for a few months in a row prior to the opening of A Poke Theory. His perfectionist tendencies meant that he wasn’t satisfied until the different poke dishes were up to standard, much to the detriment of his stomach.
With Alter Ego, Joey could satiate the carnivorous chef in him, the one who loves deep fried food and beers topped off with company and conversation. There are no individual portions in Alter Ego. Everything is made to be shared among friends and family. And that was the situation we found ourselves on a cool Friday evening a few weeks ago, elbow deep in delicious grease and chatting about President Trump.
There is an art to fried food. It’s not just about getting a couple of fish or chicken from the wet market, heating up the deep fryer and tossing them in. The best kind of fried food retains the meat’s taste while still adding something extra, perhaps a secret topping or a marinade that’s bursting with flavours. In this aspect, Alter Ego’s fried chicken skins are a national treasure. Crispy yet non-oily, the skins are rubbed and fried in a southern spice mix that you cannot find anywhere else, as it’s Joey’s own creation. Be warned. It’s incredibly addictive and will make you loosen your belt by a notch at the end of the night.
Other must-try dishes include the Poke & Chips, the Pulled Pork Dip and the Buffalo Wings. That’s not to say that the other options in the menu aren’t any good. They are. It’s just that we don’t want to be responsible for your heart attack.
Alter Ego is at 8 Raffles Avenue, 01-13D, alterego.sg, tel: +65 6327 9301