Cavern Restaurant @ Mandai

After spending the morning walking around the River Wonders, the family proceeded over to the newly opened Rainforest Wild Asia to try its new dine-in restaurant.

The concept of Rainforest Wild Asia is like a canopy walk of the tropical rainforest as well as the exploring the caves of Borneo. Do not be alarmed, there’s no wondering scorpions or snakes, or flying bats in the caves – everything is behind glass enclosures. And the Cavern Restaurant is decked in creature comforts like a very strong air-conditioning.

Step into Cavern Restaurant, Singapore’s first and only restaurant in a cave setting inspired by the Mulu Caves in Sarawak. Managed by TungLok Group, a renowned name known for its award-winning establishments across the region, Cavern Restaurant showcases a family-friendly menu that is more American diner than European bistro chic.

The menu is curated by Head Chef Sheng Lim and his team, and it’s not like any other Tung Lok fine dining restaurant – hearty grilled meats, vibrant shared platters, and an enticing selection of signature cocktails and craft beverages.

Beet & Burrata Salad

heirloom beetroot salad, burrata, truffle honey, walnut

This salad turned out surprisingly delicious. The adage that the simplest ingredients, when they are of good quality, combine to become the most delicious eats holds true. The burrata was creamy, and the beet was not too sweet; combined with the walnuts and Roma tomatoes, it was simple and good.

Charcoal-grilled Shishito Pepper

shishito, shichimi, sea salt

Another classic izakaya appetiser that was not out of place in this Western restaurant. But the shishito used were Malaysian (Cameroon Highlands) grown variety and the likeliness of getting a spicy one is higher.

Carbonara

sous vide egg, smoked bacon, chives, rigatoni pasta

Would taste better with linguine I think.

Hunter’s Board

pork rib, beef tenderloin, half chicken with peri-peri sauce, jumbo tiger prawn (4 pcs), cherry tomato (sauces: bbq, black pepper sauce, chimchurri)

Sharing plate for 4 pax, but we had 8 hungry folks. The ribs were so good we ordered a single portion.

Beef Bone Marrow

bone marrow, sourdough toast, chives, fried onion

Skip this, not good. The bone marrow was too small, and dried out when grilled.

Charcoal-grilled Lamb Rack

Australian grass-fed lamb rack, mash, green curry, endive yellow

Lamb rack was more like three pieces of miserable lamb chops that you get from the Western store in a hawker centre. Didn’t expect the quality to drop so much.

Dessert of the Day – Caramel Dark Chocolate Cake

vanilla ice cream, sea salt, dark chocolate, caramel

This was not on the menu, perhaps something they are trying out. The ganache was very rich and paired well with the salted caramel. Quenelle of vanilla ice cream was quite sad, more Magnolia than Haagen Daz.

Durian Custard Donut

I couldn’t resist a donut, especially one filled with durian custard. No fault, but not overwhelming.

Durian with Soft-served Ice Cream

durian purée, freeze-dried durian, vanilla soft-serve ice-cream

This was a hit among all, the bits of frozen durian was the highlight. The puree was too watery and the cheapo vanilla ice cream made its appearance again.

I have come to expect something better with Tung Lok. But Cavern has not hit the right notes for me. Perhaps the cave theme was something quite difficult to come up with a proper menu, but caveman doesn’t mean it has to be grilled meat and tomahawk. The food and dessert were at best Swensen’s standard. It is definitely priced like a restaurant in a tourist attraction. Wouldn’t drive here specially for it, even when we have free parking as annual member of the zoo.

Cavern Restaurant
20 Mandai Lake Road, 02-32 Rainforest Wild ASIA, Singapore 729825
Tel : +65 9853 7558 (Reservations)

Visited Sep 2025