A new year and a new ice-cream shoppe for me to check out! Recently opening its doors along the Desker Road stretch, @theaphroditesg is the new kid in-town offering freshly churned ice-creams with Earthy and floral flavours.

Being an ice-cream connoisseur, I was excited to try a new ice-cream shoppe and Aphrodite did not disappoint. I'm always attracted to new and unique flavours and that's where Aphrodite entices. With flavours such as Blood Orange Sorbet, Salted Honey, Goat Cheese and their specially namesake Aphrodite - which is a blue cheese chocolate - dang I was definitely intrigued.

I decided to go with three scoops (cos that's just who I am as a person) and a waffle - choosing flavours of:

◾Blood Orange Sorbet
I normally tend to shy away from sorbet as I gravitate towards ice-cream and would rather get something creamy instead of icy. However, Aphrodite does sorbet really well and to my surprise it was just as creamy as ice-cream rather than a frozen icy mess. Let's just say I was impressed.

◾Drifting Snowflakes Jasmine
Now herbal tea flavours tend to be a hit or miss as sometimes it's too subtle but the one over here was definitely a hit. One spoonful and it was delectable yet intense Jasmine flavours all around.

◾Aphrodite
Now the pièce de résistance was none other than their blue cheese chocolate flavour. I was intrigued by this flavour the most and was pleasantly surprised to find that it tasted really good. The blue cheese notes comes as an aftertaste with a chocolate majority and both complemented each other. A must get for sure for any adventurous palates out there like moi.

If I had to be picky about stuff, well the waffle I got was sadly a tad overdone and it mostly had a burnt taste to it. The scoops of ice-cream were also less than pretty but that's just my photographer aesthetic speaking.

Aphrodite definitely does ice-cream justice and I was glad there was a proper ice-cream shoppe around the Jalan Besar area finally - the others around are just.... bleh. *Shade thrown*

Finally got my hands/sunk my teeth into @wearesunday's eyecatching ice-cream parfaits from their Bynd x Sunday Folks outlet over at Orchard.

Having seen this on my feed a couple of times, I was itching to give them a try. Sadly they were sold out on my first visit, hence I just had to make a second trip just for them.

They've since changed their parfait menu, offering two parfaits instead of three. I went with their Earl Grey Butterscotch - with their signature earl grey lavender ice-cream, butterscotch almond ice-cream, strawberry compote, tossed almond flakes, almond thins, crumbles, earl grey pudding and edible viola. This was a definite stunner and showstopper in my book. Delicious and gorgeous, there's not much else I can say about it!

The price was definitely at a premium but that's always been a Sunday Folks' staple unfortunately. Well, you get what you pay for and their sundaes and parfaits always deliver so alright alright alright.

Tucked within Adler Hostel is a quaint lil' cafe offering up French vibes, croissants and delectable ice-cream which is none other than @madameooze. Yet another place on my list - I finally decided to head down to check them out after constantly seeing their croissant x ice-cream combination on Instagram.

The cafe is decked out in an eclectic mix of furnishings - every corner an Insta-worthy spot for all y'all influencers out there. With French instrumental cafe music on the playlist, I definitely felt transported to the Parisian city that is France.

While Madame Ooze offers a few other pastries as well, their specialty is none other than their croissant vessel to pair with their selection of ice-cream. I'm not sure if the croissants are sourced or baked in house but either way it was good and the staff had the decency to toast it up prior to serving which I really appreciated. (Unlike many other places that serve up a sad rubbery cold croissant - *glances at Paris Baguette*.)

I went with Pistachio and White Chrysanthemum - both delicious Earthy flavours that were done perfectly. I was initially afraid that the White Chrysanthemum wouldn't taste as its namesake but I was pleasantly surprised to find that it tasted just as expected and actually even better.

The croissant served as a wonderful vessel for the scoops of ice-cream and I got to wondering why haven't I had this combination before?! Move aside waffles, you're old news - croissants are the way to go from here on out.

Nothing like a couple of entremets to chase the Monday blues away. I've always heard of @dear.nesuto, not to mention that I've constantly head to Tras Street - hence it's such a wonder why it took me so long to finally try their gorgeous desserts!

I headed there on a quiet Friday afternoon and thanked my lucky stars how I managed to score the last Queen Ispahan. While they do have sliced cakes as well, I stuck to their pretty entremet range:

◾Queen Ispahan [$9+]
A valrhona inspiration raspberry bavaroise with lychee compote, rose opalys namelaka and raspberry sablée, this was one of my favourites from Nesuto. You can't go wrong with the delicious combination of raspberry, rose and lychee. Delicately soft and sweet, it literally melted in my mouth with each bite.

◾Poire [$9.2]
An entremet consisting of vanilla light mousse, pear compote, Amaretto namelaka, hazelnut chocolate sponge and chocolate sablée. Another highlight from Nesuto is the Poire. Subtle fruity hints paired with vanilla and a slight tang from the Amaretto makes this a winner in my book. I even ordered it twice - though it was because I attempted to lift it off the cake and failed miserably, ruining the first one in the process. (Ah what I do for the gram.)

◾Summer Passion [$10.2]
With coconut meringue, passionfruit bavaroise, banana compote, coconut "Malibu" creme and coconut sablée - this is sure to invoke the passion of Summer. I found the flavour combination of passionfruit, banana and coconut quite intriguing and refreshing. Sure, passionfruit and coconut are a matchmake in Heaven but the inclusion of banana made it quite unique - in a good way for sure!

There's still quite a number of entremets and even sliced cakes that I'm itching to try over at Nesuto! Their desserts are superb and I do wanna thank them for being so chill with my photography antics while at their cafe!

◾Dumpling Platter [$20]
◾Braised Pork Noodles [$7.5]

Dumpling Darlings has been on my list of places to try for years. For years! Even after the opening of their second outlet - which I had to walk past many times as it was close to my previous place of work - I still did not had the opportunity to give them a try for a myriad of reasons.

Well, it was long enough and I finally made plans to head down to the OG @dumpling.darlings outlet to give them a try and I was not disappointed.

It was a no-brainer that I went for their platter of 15, with a mix of 5 different dumpling flavours at only 20 bucks! What a bargain. The flavours included:

◾Original
◾Veggie
◾Momo
◾Fried Pierogi
◾Smoked

...and they were all really good dumplings I tell ya. Each with distinct and unique flavours, I was actually surprised everytime I popped the next flavour into my mouth. Standouts for me had to be the Fried Pierogi - a truffle potato and bacon stuffed dumpling. While the Momo had a blend of interesting curry spices and Labneh. Yum.

To top it off, I also got the Braised Pork Noodles that consisted of pork ragu and soy tare. This tasted a lil' weird to me though, not good not bad but I definitely wouldn't go for it next time. The XO Prawn Noodles caught my eye on the otherhand. Next time?

Dumpling Darlings is definitely worth a visit. Their dumplings are for sure darlings - with exquisite taste and actually affordable pricing. My one gripe is the 45 minute dining time which is pretty abysmal but you gotta do what you gotta do with such a cramp space I guess - so make those reservations y'all!

One of the latest specialty gelato shoppe to open along the Tanjong Pagar stretch is none other than @cotta.sg! Unsuspectingly located on the second level of a row of shophouses, you should be able to spot a huge dangling balloon-like sign right in front of their entrance door.

Cotta specialises in gelato and intricate entremets that are all made in-house and has gelato elements to them! I had been eyeing their Trio - having seen it on my Instagram feed a couple of times and I just knew it was the dessert meant for me.

Essentially comprising of three cheeses - Tête de Moine, Gorgonzola and Parmigiano, this gelato centric dessert was tantalizing to say the least. I don't remember having a gelato based entremet before and boy, was this stunning in both presentation and taste. It was quite reminiscent of the cheese cakes I had a while back from Queic! The smooth cheesey gelato paired perfectly with the parmigiano crisp; all 3 cheeses complementing one another with a delicious balance of savoury and sweet.

I was so intrigued by their entremets that I didn't get the chance to try their gelato offerings and waffle. Time for a second visit! I do wanna thank the co-owner for being so gracious to my annoying photographer presence of course - a good thing I went on a quiet weekday evening to boot!

Nothing like ringing in the festive holidays than a box of 8 festive Småkager from none other than @leckerbaer.sg! I've been wanting to try their Danish desserts for the longest time ever since they landed onto our shores - and it only took the opening of their second location at Keong Saik for me to finally try them!

Leckerbaer was founded in Copenhagen, Denmark and are known for their Småkager - traditional Danish butter cookies. Everyday, you get a selection of 8 to choose from and they have specially curated a few just for Christmas.

Flavours included are:
◾Passionfruit
◾Milk
◾Hazelnut
◾Chocolate
◾Orange & Chocolate
◾Vanilla
◾Ruby Chocolate
◾Raspberry

Having known Småkager are essentially cookies, I was surprised to find that a couple of them are more like a mini-cake instead. These petite gorgeous treats were heartbreaking to eat and they all tasted pretty good that I couldn't pinpoint a favourite. Perhaps Ruby Choc? No, Vanilla. No, Raspberry? No, Passionfruit. It's all too difficult to pick!

I'm glad I finally got to try the Småkagers from Leckbaer and their larger tarts/bakes are worth checking out as well. Now their open faced sandwiches are the only thing that's left for me to try so a second visit is in order!

The iconic white/maroon cafe that is @coexistcoffee.co has opened its doors of their second branch - this time with a dark blue aesthetic and wooden terrace furnishings. I've been wanting to try their Hillview locale for a while now but sadly did not get the chance to do so, hence I was glad that they were opening a second location!

The menu over at their Keong Saik location seems to be geared more towards the working crowd - protein bowls taking the forefront. I must admit that I found that the menu wasn't as intriguing compared to their Hillview counterpart, but alas it looked good nonetheless.

◾Protein Bowl [$13+$3]
I decided to go with the baked salmon for an additional 3 bucks and it was worth it. Perfectly cooked and dang - almost melt it your mouth goodness. I also went for a base of couscous, Maple Roasted Pumpkin (which is also one of their toast options), Roasted Broccoli with Dukkah then topped with pesto dressing and furikake. It's a hearty protein bowl for sure and Coexist does it pretty well - but my heart is still with The Salad Stop.

◾Hummus Toast [$10]
One dish that caught my eye was their Hummus Toast. Also topped with sundried tomatoes, pesto and dukkah - this surprisingly blew me away. The flavour combination perfectly complemented each other with a mix of Middle Eastern pops. This is definitely one to look out for.

◾Coconut & Mango Tart [$12]
The hefty price tag is matched by the sheer large size of the tarts over at Coexist. Filled with mango white chocolate, coconut marshmellow and toasted coconut flakes - the coconut flavours played a dominant role in the tart. I was also pleasantly intrigued by the coconut marshmellow top - being so used to meringue instead on top of desserts. Still a lil' pricey for me though.

◾Iced Matcha [$6.5] & Chocolate [$7]
Well, I got the matcha for the gram but the highlight was their Hot Chocolate. Holy sht, it was by far the BEST hot choc I've ever had in my life. I'm still thinking about it honestly.

The second branch of Coexist is a nice new addition to Keong Saik and a great respite for the working folks of the area. I'm still hoping to check out their Hillview locale!

Back at @denzygelato again to satisfy the gelato craving! Nothing like having not one, not two but three scoops of gelato to pair with a waffle. That's the only way to go y'all!

Denzy is honestly heading to the top of my list as one of the best places for ice-cream/gelato, along with Creamier/Apiary/BOP. After having some subpar ice-cream from another place a couple days ago, the difference in quality compared to Denzy was staggering to say the least.

I always go for their Ruby Chocolate & Raspberries - an adult upgrade to the nostalgic flavour of Raspberry Ripple that I love oh so much. Their Roasted Bronte Pistachio and Black Sesame flavours are superb as well, with proper Earthy notes and flavourful taste.

The waffle at Denzy is pretty great to boot, perfectly crisp and one of the better waffles I've had so far.

I'm a big fan of Denzy for sure and I'll always head back for more whenever I'm in the area!

Apart from their famous Burnt Cheesecakes, standalone dessert shoppe @queic.singapore offers a couple other cheese related desserts as well.

This includes the oh-so-Instagrammable giant American Cheesecake Macaron. Sandwiched with creamy New York cheesecake filling and a citrusy compote of yuzu and orange - the fruity tang cuts through the cream cheese, making it well balanced.

A good alternative if you're looking for something less cheesy though nothing beats their OG Basque Burnt Cheesecake of course.

Everyone knows the matcha powerhouse that is @hvala_sg - a place that combines both the delectable Japanese tea and the arts. I've popped by the different Hvala outlets here and there but I didn't make a proper visit to try out their gorgeous desserts until recently.

One of the entremets that caught my eye was their Mont Noir. It was a tough decision to pick between the Noir and the Matcha Mont Blanc variation but I went with the Noir in the end.

Filled with chantilly cream, sesame feuilletine, sesame chestnut paste and almond frangipane. The Earthy dessert checked off all my sesame boxes, with a subtle hint of sweetness. Compared to their Matcha offerings, this was much more tamed and definitely helped to cut through the richness if you're having any of their Matcha drinks/desserts.

I still feel like I've not fully explored the menu at Hvala and I'm definitely down to head back soon.

I've actually been itching to try the gorgeous bakes from @mrholmesbakehousesg ever since they opened their doors here - but the crazy hype and long ass queues was killing my buzz and I did not want to experience the anguish of being told something was sold out.

Seeing as the craze and hype have migrated over to Eggslut, I figured this was finally my chance to try Mr Holmes!

Apart from their cruffins, Mr Holmes has a wide array of deliciously filled croissants as well. Their Lemon Meringue won my heart over - with an intense tang of lemon curd that I simply adored. Dang, I'm missing it already.

Well, I'm simply blown away by the bakes by Mr Holmes and can't fathom why I didn't try them earlier! I'll definitely head back to try more - especially since they have a couple of new items on their menu and I'm sure they'll release some Christmas exclusives soon.