FIRE at 1-Atico: Argentinian fare at Ion Orchard

FIRE at 1-Atico

FIRE at 1-Atico is an Argentine restaurant located on the top floor of ION Orchard.

At the top of ION Orchard

The entrance starts on the 4th floor of ION Orchard.

ION Orchard, Level 4

At the top, the space, 1-Atico, is shared by two restaurants – FLNT (Peruvian) and FIRE (Argentian).

FLNT at 1-Atico (Peruvian restaurant)

It was one of those rare days that I had some personal time to spare, and actually possessed the time and space to dine solo.

(Not that I don’t enjoy eating out with family or friends, but my schedule for the past few years has been so endlessly packed that such solitude has become a rare occurence).

Short stairway separating FLNT and FIRE at 1-Atico

The staff greeted me at the entrance and walked through the space at 1-Atico. Heading upwards, FIRE slowly came into view.

To the FIRE side. No pun intended.

As one walked up the stairs, the impressive seating area slowly came into view.

Dining area: FIRE at 1-Atico

There was also a wine storage and bar area, but to access it, a staff has to walk you there – they aren’t keen on letting diners wander there alone.

Large array of wines

The staff kindly showed me to my seat.

View from my seat

The view was a real treat – it’s not often that one gets a glimpse of the surrounding Orchard area from this perspective.

On a sunny day

Here’s the bag of the day: Hermes Constance 18 in rose confetti. 

Hey cutie

American Express: Global Dining Credits

Both FLNT and FIRE at 1-Atico participate in the American Express Global Dining credit benefit. With the American Express Platinum Charge Card, card holders can enjoy S$400 worth of statement credits of which S$200 is for local and S$200 is for overseas spend.

As such, within Singapore, diners will receive up to S$200 in statement credits upon spending locally at participating restaurants.

Menu at the time of visitation

For full information on Amex statement credit benefits, check out this post here).

On the side, both FLNT and FIRE at 1-Atico are also part of the 1-Group dining establishments, and qualifying spend gives 10xcelerator in membership rewards – In Amex terms, this means that diners earn 10 membership rewards points for every full S$1.60 spend, or 10 times the membership rewards points.

For me, at the time of visit, I had already used part of my dining credits (S$161.55, to be exact) at another restaurant, MONTI (read about it here!), and had some leftover credits (a balance of S$38.45) to burn.

That day, at Fire at 1-Atico, I decided to go for the three-course set lunch menu.

Decisions

Inspired by this post and want to apply for an American Express credit card? Apply through one of my referral links and receive either bonus Membership Rewards points or statement credit:

• The Platinum Charge Card: Use this referral link and receive up to S$900 statement credits and Samsonite Choca Spinner 68/25 (worth S$700) when you apply and minimum spend criteria is met.
• The American Express Platinum Card: Use this referral link and receive up to S$350 statement credits when you apply and minimum spend criteria is met.
• American Express Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer Ascend Credit Card: Use this referral link and receive up to 38, 000 Krisflyer miles and S$50 statement credits when you apply and minimum spend criteria is met. 

Disclaimer: the views and opinions expressed on this page are that of Happy High Life and may not necessarily reflect the position of American Express. Happy High Life is not responsible for any decisions made by readers. The terms and conditions for each credit card's application and usage may be subject to change by American Express. Therefore, readers are recommended to check any matters with American Express or its partners; the list of all benefits of the Platinum Charge Card can be found here.

Beyond Bread and Butter

While waiting, as usual, some complimentary bread arrived.

Onion Thyme Bread Roll and Butter

The Onion Thyme Bread Roll was so good and flakey, I actually wanted more. However, the complimentary bread was limited to just one piece and diners have to order more bread if they wished.

Why not, I thought, and decided to try a different kind of bread.

Charred Sourdough and Smoked Sea Urchin Butter

To be honest, I was a little hesistant to order this – a few pieces of bread and butter for *gasp* – S$13? I can buy at least TWO whole sourdough LOAVES from some places with that amount!

But here, the bread, brushed with wagyu fat and smoked over a grill, was something else. The butter was also insanely rich and luxurious – hints of sea urchin permeated through it. All in all, at the risk of a bad joke,  the bread was a bit of the land and sea… or a surf and turf. 

Fragrant as hell. Sinful as hell too.

A truly close rival to the bread basket at JAAN by Kirk Westaway.

Three-Course Set Lunch

The 3-Course set lunch menu at FIRE comes with an Apertivo (appetiser/starter), Plato Principal (Main), and a Postre (post-main / dessert). 

For the starter, I ordered the Heirloom Cherry Tomatoes and Roasted Corn Salsa.

Heirloom Cherry Tomatoes and Roasted Corn Salsa

Flavoured with arugula pesto, red onion, basil oil, and feta cheese, the tomatoes were fresh and tangy. The sauce leaned on the slightly sour side, but it was more of an astringent taste that reminded me of tomato seeds.

See the round yellowish-white bits? That’s the corn salsa.

For the main course, I went for the Plancha Seared Sustainable Sea Bass.

Plancha Seared Sustainable Sea Bass

The Sea Bass wasn’t just light and nicely fishy – the whole filet was fresh, soft, and near-melty. There was just the right amount of grease, and when paired with the vegetables everything just went so well together. 

With Eggplant Caponata, Charred Preserved Lemon, Fennel Salad

The three-course meal ended with a lovely dessert.

Warm Dark Chocolate Fondant

The Warm Dark Chocolate Fondant was essentially a lava cake. It came with slices of orange, and the inside was a sweet dark chocolate and orange sauce laced with chocolate crumble bits.

Dark Chocolate and Orange sauce

A bittersweet velvety thickness in all the right ways. Just the nice way to end a good meal. 

Warm. Moist. Velvety.

Overall Thoughts: FIRE at 1-Atico

First off – the location and view is a thousand times of WOW, but dont’ get carried away by the pictures.

Follow the sunlight and shadows carefully:

Lunch in the Sun?

During lunchtime, if its sunny – the seats by the window can heat up real quick. This wouldn’t be an issue during dinner, but at midday few people (locals at least) actually want to stay near the windows.

Food wise – it was awesome. Even the complimentary bread was one of the most special I’ve seen, and I honestly wished that they were open to giving more to diners rather than just that one free piece.

Onion Thyme Bread Roll

FIRE at 1-Atico was well-staffed with people who were polite, friendly, and knew the menu inside out. They also stuck around quite a bit and respond quickly to customers. However, if you’re the kind that gets conscious because you think that they’re watching you, it can feel a bit awkward – while they really don’t stare, they are definitely are very present. Generally, the servers were super attentive though – so it was a win in my books. 

Do I wish to return? Oh Yeah.

American Express Platinum Charge Card (Image source: American Express)

Inspired by this post and want to apply for an American Express credit card? Apply through one of my referral links and receive either bonus Membership Rewards points or statement credit:

• The Platinum Charge Card: Use this referral link and receive up to S$900 statement credits and Samsonite Choca Spinner 68/25 (worth S$700) when you apply and minimum spend criteria is met.
• The American Express Platinum Card: Use this referral link and receive up to S$350 statement credits when you apply and minimum spend criteria is met.
• American Express Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer Ascend Credit Card: Use this referral link and receive up to 38, 000 Krisflyer miles and S$50 statement credits when you apply and minimum spend criteria is met. 

Disclaimer: the views and opinions expressed on this page are that of Happy High Life and may not necessarily reflect the position of American Express. Happy High Life is not responsible for any decisions made by readers. The terms and conditions for each credit card's application and usage may be subject to change by American Express. Therefore, readers are recommended to check any matters with American Express or its partners; the list of all benefits of the Platinum Charge Card can be found here.

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