RVLT owners open vibey Revolution Wine Bistro at Henderson, serving local-inspired pasta & RVLT classics

There’s a new restaurant in Henderson that has been invading all our social media feeds — it’s none other than Revolution Wine Bistro.

Keen-eyed foodies would notice there are three familiar names behind Revolution Wine Bistro: Alvin Gho, Ian Lim and Sunny Leong.

These were the same three names who lit up Singapore’s wine bar scene for years with cult-favourite RVLT at Clarke Quay. It had unfortunately shuttered in July — a goodbye that jerked many tears amongst its regulars.

Sure, the new restaurant’s name is similar and certain dishes will certainly be familiar, but the endless claims of “reopening” and “rebranding” has made the trio emphasise something: This is not RVLT.

It is not a rebrand or a reopening, but a brand-new restaurant.

Revolution Wine Bistro is a new chapter that sees the veteran threesome continue doing what they do best: Promising the same bold, creative flavours and fun, unpretentious vibes, but with a whole new identity.

Interestingly, the new venture sees them partnering with design house Fritz Hansen, as a F&B tenant within its multi-concept showroom.

In case you’re unfamiliar where in Henderson does the Revolution sit at, the restaurant is snuggled inside an industrial building, near popular burger brand BurgerLabo. 

Revolution Wine Bistro’s space is casual but wonderfully designed, drowning in mid-century chicness, grounded with sophisticated earth hues, and brightened up with sparing splashes of colour.

I guess they are right in stressing that this is not RVLT: The lighter tones and more elegant ambience is markedly distinct from the edgier wine bar, which was darker and awash with neon lights.

Revolution Wine Bar is really not RVLT

For now, Revolution Wine Bistro will only be open during the day. 

The restaurant will serve a lunch menu from 11.30am to 3pm, followed by a fresh bakes selection from 3pm onwards, before shuttering at 5pm.

There are plans for a dinner menu from September or October, though details are sparse at the moment.

While we’ve belaboured the point that Revolution Wine Bistro is not RVLT, Revolution’s menu does feature many returning favourites that will probably cause long-time regulars to scream in excitement. 

One is the legendarily indulgent wagyu patty melt (S$28) and the other is the chicken nuggets (S$20).

If you like nuggets in particular, Revolution Wine Bar’s atas (or elevated) take on them is pretty tasty — there’s a crunchy exterior, juicy interior, and some cartilage adding light crunch like what you’ll find in a tsukune (Japanese chicken meatballs).

It’s absolutely moreish when dunked into the tangy tomato sriracha dip. Sure, it’s overpriced atas chicken nuggets, but these are the overpriced atas chicken nuggets you’ll want to pay for (again and again, regulars might add) and make for a great pairing with drinks.

That said, you won’t find certain items like the beloved uni fettuccine.

Instead, Revolution Wine Bar’s menu offers a slew of five creative local-inspired pasta creations, a handful of smaller sharing plates and meatier options such as steak tartare (S$26).

Those who miss the seafood-forward classic should make a beeline for the hua diao white clams linguine (S$19.80). 

Just like how this restaurant is not RVLT, this dish is not a vongole. It features slender linguine, slicked in a rich, lightly briny and tremendously creamy and buttery sauce imbued with huadiao sweetness.

Oh, and the clams? Juicy, big boys that you probably won’t get enough of.

There’s also an interesting salted egg carbonara (S$19.80) which is finished with a heap of salted egg sabayon (salted egg, vinegar, butter and egg reduction).

It’s creamy with a good dose of salted egg fragrance but isn’t exceedingly salty — in fact, it’s actually quite tame in its salinity, with most of the heavy lifting done by the crunchy guanciale bits.

But the wildest local-style pasta creation on Revolution Wine Bar’s is definitely the chicken rendang ravioli (S$19.80).

Each house-made raviolo is stuffed with chicken mousse and rempah, and all of that is drowned in a fragrant and robust chicken rempah sauce.

It’s nostalgic, but different. Just like how the restaurant feels familiar but isn’t RVLT.

What’s for dinner?

Revolution at Henderson’s dinner menu is still a work-in-progress (and not available at the moment), but it intends to go in a slightly different direction from the lunch offerings.

One marked difference is that Revolution Wine Bar will offer a tasting menu for dinner, containing a smorgasbord of intriguing flavour experiments by owner-chef Sunny.

One example is the blue mussel “cheong fun”, where a melange of artichoke puree and mussels are blanketed with a sheet of “cheong fun” fashioned out of milk and dashi.

The dish is comforting with its puree-and-mussels base sporting a thick, slightly gritty texture akin to clam chowder, while the milk “cheong fun” adds a light, silky touch.

Besides the tasting menu, Revolution Wine Bar will also feature more snacks, sharing plates and big plates for dinner. 

In a throwback to previous RVLT menus, chef Sunny is putting a spin on his beloved Crystal bread, which is essentially a hollow and transparent crunchy “bread”.

The Crystal “sensu fan” (S$20) is a dainty one-bite affair, where the crackling bread is folded up to look like a fan, and topped with caviar, cauliflower puree and laksa prawn gel.

And it seems chef Sunny is really in love with the idea of intricate little snacks because the mala taco (S$20) is another fascinating one-mouth wonder.

Revolution Wine Bistro’s variation isn’t exactly a taco but rather, it comprises tuna negitoro and tomato jelly sandwiched between the edges of a mini mala and sesame shell.

Lots of flavours and umami, with a wonderful blend of textures, jazzed up with a spiff of numbing mala spice — a satisfying little bite for sure.

We probably have to wait and see how Revolution Wine Bar goes with its dinner menu, but if its mini-preview was anything to go by, it seems like there are a lot of exciting things waiting in the wings.

For fans of what Alvin, Ian and Sunny have done over the years at RVLT, this will be giving you more of the same, but also more of the different.

As they say: “The king is dead, long live the king.” 

The brand-new Revolution Wine Bistro — which is, once again, totally not RVLT — carries on the spirit of the beloved wine bar but promises new experiences that loyal guests will no doubt relish.

This was a hosted tasting.

For more ideas on what to eat, read our stories on the super adorable Jellycat-themed cafe in Singapore and the popular Cafe Kitsune’s second outlet at Jewel!