Tucked deep within a small corner of Seletar airbase lies
a non-descript, no-frills joint called the Sunset Bar and
Grill.
But strip away its friendly service and “Sunday barbeque” picnic
feel and you’ll discover — at your own peril — that its kitchen is
home to the hottest wings in Singapore (and,
possibly, Batam and Malaysia).
By hot, i mean palate-busting, tongue-scorching,
tear-jerking HOT.
I found out first-hand just how toxic its buffalo wings are when me
and a couple of friends paid a visit to the cosy, well-hidden
grill-cum-pub last Sunday.
The first thing you’ll notice is that it’s not easily
accessible. It’s nestled so deep
within Seletar airbase that as you drive in (walking
is not advised), you’ll pass a series of crickety
maintenance hangars for old planes. If you’re lucky, you might even
pass a few fit-for-museum propeller planes and a private jet
or two.
If you choose to sit alfresco in the early evenings, you’ll also
get a good view of the sun as it sets. Situated literally right
next to the Seletar airfield, it’s also not uncommon for
low-flying aircraft and propeller planes to skim the
horizon as they land or take-off.
The food is decent. It serves mostly western fare such as fish
and chips ($15.50), mini-burgers ($14.50) and pork
ribs ($29.80).
But the real highlight is, of, course, the wings. I’ll be the
first to admit I love my chicken wings — fried, barbequed,
buffalo, KFC or McDonald’s-style — I love them all.
And upon first glance at the menu, I wondered to myself, “Come
on, really, how hot can these wings be?”
In fact, when the friendly waiter advised that “rookies” like us
should start with a ”Level 2″ (Level 1 and
2 are just normal chicken wings. Level 3 is when they
start adding the chilli padi into the marinated batter and it
goes all the way up to a Level 30), I scoffed and
immediately ordered a half-dozen of “Level 3″ ($19.50).
The result? Suffice it to say it was an induction into hell on
earth — in your mouth. Several gung-ho members of my group
found the wings to be from a “Okay, what! Quite tolerable!” to
a tear-squelching, “Can I have a pail of ice with my
Coke?”
It got worse.
Seeing as we were already at the deep end, we took
the plunge and went on to order a “Level 5″ before
finishing off with a take-no-prisoners “Level 10″.
Frankly, after a certain point, your tongue goes dead and you don’t
taste anything. The secret? Wolf down the wings as quickly as
possible and avoid the chilli paste stinging your lips
and eyes.
Several Cokes and beers later, and
after the mini-explosion in my stomach had subsided, I
felt pretty pleased about myself — after all, I had
conquered a “Level 10″ whereas the table beside
ours was struggling to polish off a half-dozen “Level
5″s.
My sense of satisfaction was short-lived after I chanced
upon the Sunset Grill “Chili Heads Hall of Fame” — a wall
dedicated to the adventurous folks who’d tried the Level
30 and survived to tell the tale. It was…a pretty long
wall.
Despite its ultra-hidden location, the establishment has a large
loyal following. On a Sunday evening, the 100-seater or so
bar was packed to the rafters.
Business was so good that the bar’s American owner, Jerry
Griffis, 76, declined to have his picture taken.
The former businessman, who used to run an aerospace
engineering firm and has been living in Singapore for the
past 35 years, said, “I really don’t need the publicity. As you can
see, I’ve got more business than I can handle right now.”
And he was right.
My friends and I weren’t the only ones crazy enough to
tempt death by chilli.
Sunset Grill and
Bar
Republic of Singapore
Flying Club
140-B Piccadilly Road,
Seletar Airbase
East Camp
Tel:
64820244
Open from 4pm (last
order at 930pm)
Directions: Turn left at
Seletar Army Camp and drive straight until you hit a small
road called Seletar Aerospace View. Turn right and drive
straight past a series of maintenance hangars and small
planes by the wayside. You will find the open carpark of
Sunset Bar and Grill beside the Republic of Singapore Flying
Club.
