The colour of this purple yam (Ube) ice cream was probably a clear sign that one should not be ordering, especially when it tasted more of a sweetened milk with a miscue of flavour essence. It was just too sweet to make me want to finish the scoop that costed S$6.00.

If a Goreng Pisang is too much for a snack, these addictive fried Banana Balls (S$2.00 for 5 pieces) would be the best sharing snacks with colleagues and friends. The only problem might be…… would you really share these calories with others after downing one?

At first glance, I was quite relieved that the festive cakes here were not overly generous on cream, but I thought that the Strawberry Hokkaido Cheese Roll (S$40.00) was a good call for those who loved Swiss rolls that came with Hokkaido cream cheese and sliced fresh strawberry as its filling.

To give the simple “log cake” a touch of Christmas looks, the restaurant would also throw in some cute decorative edibles upon request and subjected to availability. However, whole cakes would need to be pre-ordered at least 3 days in advance by 20 December 2022.

If a whole cake might be too much for your liking, one could actually get their sliced cakes, which would go at S$8.90 per slice. To me, it was still worth the deal. Who would not like a taste of natural and an experience of simple joy?

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One of the most beautiful things about the Eatup at Café&Meal MUJI was that the mains were made with simple cooking methods and fresh ingredients, making the first half of the meal seemingly natural and healthy by not overindulging using unnecessary seasoning and condiments.

The Festive Set, available until 28 December 2022, comprised 4 festive hot and cold deli dishes, a savoury Chicken Quiche and a bowl or either Carrot Cumin or Miso Soup, for S$21.80.

The deli dishes, namely the Pulled Pork & Smoked Cabbage Slaw, the Picked Tomato & Prawn Salad, the Plant-based “Chicken” Meatball with Cream of Corn Au Gratin and the Sous Vide Chicken Breast with Peach & Strawberries Salsa, were delicious to go with the Chicken Quiche. Among all the components, I gathered that each of them were delicate on their own, but also made the meal feel pretty complete as I went along. I probably was most pleased with their Chicken Quiche which had carrots and sesame filling and a touch of mushroom Shoyu reduction sauce.

The only awkward part of this meal was that the only cutleries provided were chopsticks and a dining spoon (not the most Western approach), but the meal was hearty enough without giving the sense of over-eating, which would usually happen during a festive meal. But in case if you would need to complete a meal with desserts, they would also offer a 50% discount on desserts, which I thought it would be silly to give it a miss.

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Staying true to Japanese influence during the festive season, Café&Meal MUJI came up with a Red Shiso Soda (S$7.90) that featured pronounced leafy notes of red Shiso and a touch of lemon and mint to make a thirst-quenching beverage.

Some might say that Shiso had an acquired taste, but I guess since I had tasted it before, revisiting those notes in this drink was not entirely unimaginable. What I thought was nice was also that the combination of ingredients were key to washing down the palates after a hearty meal.

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The Salted Caramel and Chocolate Cake (S$7.90) was a little surprisingly favourable cake in my opinion. Though the flavours were quite no-brainer as the name would have suggested, I found that the hidden chocolate chips in one of the buttercream inner layers added a bit of crunch to every bite of the cake. For a simple cake, that was a small plus.

For those who enjoyed their good-old Chocolate Peanut Butter Cake, this one did remind me of that, less the fragrance of peanuts.

A weak attempt by Starbucks to create a Christmas beverage that, perhaps, adopts the “red” in their beverage. Sadly, the Red Velvet Oatmilk Latte (S$7.80 for Tall size) tasted predominantly oat milk, lost its coffee flavours, and was nowhere near the colour scheme that I would have assumed to have.

But as a consolation, it did not taste sweet somehow, so I guess, it might have been a “healthier” choice among the range of Christmas drinks?

Dropping the pretense of a fanciful name, this Matcha Yuzu Lychee cake (S$11.00) was an elegant dessert that I thought was quite befitting of a Christmas-y theme, even though it might not necessarily be the case.

Within the not-too-sweet Matcha mousse was a layer of Yuzu curd supporting visible slices of real lychee flesh. With a good balance of sweet and bitter notes, I was immersing myself into a relaxing mood amidst the light jazz music at the background.

It was a chance discovery of GAMO when I was at Bras Basah Complex to grab some stationeries, and I was quite drawn to their pastry display, honestly.

It was also a comfortable ambience to sit down for a cup of coffee on a weekday afternoon. Their Ichigo beans, blended from the Columbia and Ethiopia region, featured subtle notes of strawberries, honey, lavender and mandarin, which gave it a mildly acidic but light on the palates. A hot, black coffee, at S$6.00 per cup, was also reasonably affordable under this cosy environment.

After a change of operators, the coffee shop was taken over to become Nam Wah Coffee Shop and offering a range of hawker favourites, but what I was most excited about was Ishiro Fusion Bowl which used to be housed at Nanyang Polytechnic.

Fast forward a couple of years, their menu seemed to have also expanded with a few more options. As I tried their Mentaiko Salmon Bowl (S$10.90), I was happy that they also topped the rice bowl with tempura crumbs for that extra texture. I guessed the greatest impression of this item was the extra creamy feel to the rice, as though the rice was coated with cream after mixing everything well. Then again, not everyone might like such a creamy feel, therefore I would say, proceed with caution.

But if there was something I would truly desire from this visit, was that they could really invest in plastic bowls, just for the sake of supporting environmental friendliness.

The Garlic Chilli Prawns (S$18.00) was a modest dish in my opinion, as it appeared to be a simple starter served with grilled country bread. In fact, I was slightly relieved that the chilli padi kick was not set in (unless when I ate the chopped chilli itself).

What was beautiful about this appetiser was that it was sautéed perfectly while still retaining the crunchiness of the prawns, yet able to infuse the fragrance of garlic and a gentle taste of char.

And then the greatest excuse to order their crowd-pleasing Truffle Kombu Fries (S$15.00)? Just say that there’s not enough bread to soak up the sauce. But wait, do we even need an excuse to order those fries?

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Tarte Flambée is a specialty of the region of Alsace, Italy, whereby the dough is very thinly rolled and topped with ingredients before being baked. Despite the thinness of the crust and the simplicity of the topping ingredients, they are usually delicious and flavourful.

And so when Mia Restaurant had their Honey Bacon Tarte Flambée (S$22.00) in their menu, I was pleasantly surprised by how crispy the crust was even though there was a good layer of mozzarella cheese covering it. On top of that, the bacon, caramelised onions and drizzled honey was also in a perfect proportion to balance out the sweetness with a touch of savoury delight, great for going around the table or for one person’s indulgence.

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