[update - 2015: Barcelos have officially CLOSED in Singapore (refer to update on foursquare here). For a other halal Portuguese dining options, you can go to either Nandos Restaurant or Charcos. Official reviews on these two will be up soon]
[update: 17/4/2010: I just went over to Barcelos again yesterday 16/04/10 at Vivocity and found out that the Halal certificate is no longer displayed at the counter. Hence, it is best to assume that Barcelos is not Halal-certified at the moment, until otherwise stated.]
With 91 outlets in 6 countries worldwide, Singapore can be considered lucky to have 2 of them here - one in Vivocity and another in Holland Village. What is more exciting is to find out that the restaurant specialising in Portuguese chicken here is Halal-certified!
The selling point of the food chain is the way the chicken is cooked - flame grilled and marinated with its special 'Marinade Recipe' as mentioned on its website. Another specialty of the restaurant is with its different type of signature sauces aimed to satisfy different tastebuds! This is one thing i like about the place. Actually, that's about the only thing i like.
The selling points of the restaurant bear such a resemblance to the famous restaurant Nandos (famous and halal-certified in Malaysia, from S.Africa) even to the names of the sauces that my friends and I thought that it was a subsidiary of it in Singapore. But apparently we don't think it is. And since we are fans of Nandos, we decided to try it. (sidepoint: Nandos is opening in Singapore soon, but whether it will be halal-certified is another question. Read here and Hardware zone forum here).
The place looks pretty nice. The woody interiors make the restaurant feels pretty authentic and comfortable for dine in.
The chicken was just okay. It was not extremely delicious nor was it horrible, and it can taste a bit bland, hence the need for the sauces (i wonder if it is on purpose?). We found that the meals seem extremely overpriced (1/4 chicken + 1 side combo costs $14.95!) Although they say that you can buy get a free flow drink per pax, the ala carte was already too pricey that you probably think you can do without the drink (we can always get another drink after the meal).
But the problem with such deals is that they will always 'remind' you that you cant share the drink, and seem to seriously monitor you during your meal. When I was there with my boyfriend, he got a drink, and I didn't want to get one since I have my own bottled water (plus their drinks are already quite expensive). But like any normal couples, it is usual to sip a little of his drink, take a little of his food and vice versa. It is not like I am drinking it, even if it is just a few sips. But no matter what, you can tell that they still keep eyeing on you, like it is such a big deal. I have read other reviews that the staff make customers pay for another drink because the guy wanted to refill the drink after they saw him sharing it with his girlfriend. I understand it makes certain business sense to make drinks free flow, but the need for constant monitoring, the possible sharing of cups by non-paying customers and of course destroying the experience of dining, Barcelos should stop making the drinks free flow. Just charge per cup! Couples and friends do share their meals and drinks most of the time. The experience eating there becomes horribly annoying for this reason.
Service wasn't very good by Singapore's standards. The restaurant tread between fast food and a service restaurant. You are expected to queue up and pay upfront, then the food will be served - which is fine except that the staff are not very helpful to attend to any of your queries, whether at or off the counter.
I have only been there once, and I don't think I would like to come back again, unless my friends want me to, or unless they have some promotional prices. As a halal-food place, there are only 2 places in Singapore selling Portuguese chicken, and Barcelos is the only accessible one thus far. And for sure, similarities aside, it cannot match up to Nandos.
My ratings:
- Food / Drinks: 4.5/10
- Ambience: 8/10
- Service: 2/10
Overall: 5/10
- only if you are craving for accessible Portuguese chicken
Read other reviews / information on Barcelos at:
- HungryGoWhere.com: Barcelos (Vivocity)
- HungryGoWhere.com: Barcelos (Holland Village)
- Putri Berendam.com: Barcelos (Vivocity)
- Simple Aphrodisiac.com: Barcelos (Vivocity)
- Reviews at Sparklette.net: Nandos (Msia) and Barcelos (Spore)
- ilovelookinggood.com: Barcelos (Vivocity)
- Travelling Hungry Boy Blog: Barcelos (Vivocity)
- Singapore Daily Makan Photo: Barcelos (Holland Village)
- am11 wordpress: Barcelos (Vivocity)
Find it at:
- 17E Lorong Liput, Holland Village, S(277731) Tel: +65 621 994 08
- Vivo City, Level 2 Unit 91-93 S(098585 ) Tel: +65 637 695 32
- www.barcelos.com.sg
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