Frankie & Fern's

Topped with Malt Foam, Sea Salt Meringue, and Koshihikari Rice Crisps

It had a bland of sweet and salty notes. The rice crisps contribute a satisfying crunch, while the sea salt meringue leaves a lingering, pronounced saltiness on the palate

But I felt that it's looked more like an eton mess rather a parfait

Holland Village does seem to be quite a fascinating neighbourhood to check out of the late for avid cafehoppers these days; no doubt there has been some news of closures such as that of the iconic Sunday Folks that had been located in the neighbourhood since its founding, but the neighbourhood has also welcomed other notable entrants such as that of Surrey Hills Grocer which had opened its doors at One Holland Village. Frankie and Fern’s is also one of the new additions to the neighbourhood, with the cafe being situated at the roof top level of Holland Village Shopping Centre instead (the same building also houses an Island Creamery as well). For those whom are unaware, Frankie & Fern’s is a new concept by the same folks behind East Coast Commune. Considering how Frankie & Fern’s is located way above at Level 4 of Holland Village Shopping Centre, the entrance of the cafe can be described as pretty hidden; patrons visiting Frankie & Ferns’ patrons would have to take a lift at the lobby nearest to the location of UOB there to access the dining establishment — the entire establishment is decked out in an interior design they can be described as cosy much to the likes of a living room with a slight European flair. The interior, which features mostly white walls, cement-esque flooring and wooden furniture and fittings is well-lit by natural lighting from all that sunlight streaming in fro the windows surrounding the establishment; one can also notice the vast use of greenery around the space that helps to provide an element of life in the space as well. The menu of Frankie & Ferm’s is segregated into sections dedicated to Day, Evening, Drinks and Kids, with the menu for Day available to order from opening till 4pm.

Skimming through the menu that is served up at Frankie & Fern’s, one of the items which we had set our eyes on was their Butternut Squash Rigatoni — this is an item that is being listed on their Evening section of their menu that can be ordered all-day. The menu describes the Butternut Squash Rigatoni to come with elements such as goat cheese, sage, brown butter, and hazelnut — something which did remind us of one of our favourite pastas that we had come across a couple of years ago at another establishment which seems to have no longer carried the same item on its menu as well. Considering the crowd that made the visit to the cafe on a weekday brunch service, the food and drinks did take some time to arrive though they were somehow able to co-ordinate and ensure that all of our orders (with the exception of the dessert) arrive the table altogether. We recalled that we weren’t very impressed with the food that we have had during our visit to East Cost Commune; that being said, Frankie & Fern’s does seem like a concept that had worked on the shortcomings of East Coast Commune — there is generally some thought placed in the design of its dishes on the menu. Still, the composition still lacking of some form of finesse; the Rigatoni did provide some element of bite and is well coated with the butternut squash sauce — that being said, we did feel that there is a lack of integration of the various elements for a cohesive experience. For instance, the butternut squash sauce provided solely a sweet note on its own; there was a little bit of a mismatch against the pasta since there is a need for something savoury that would gel both elements together nicely.

Meanwhile, the sage played its own tune carrying its own aromatics amidst the dish lacking an element to bridge it to the butternut squash sauce — the chunks of hazelnut adding a nutty crunch to the pasta; might sound a little odd on paper but quite a common element for pastas comprising of such a composition of ingredients. The choice of goat’s cheese to be used in the Butternut Squash Rigatoni was a rather interesting one though we did feel like it could probably be better if they had considered to use Feta Cheese instead — the crumbly, soft and fluffy texture of the Goat’s Cheese did work well with the other elements to provide a good contrast, though we felt that the notes of the Goat’s Cheese was a little too distinct and strong which added an unnecessary complexity to the dish that could have been a little more subdued; the replacement of Feta Cheese would probably aid in striking that balance. During our visit, we had also tried other dishes such as the Roasted Short Rib Toast (listed on the Day section of the menu that is available only from opening till 4pm) that comprises of elements such as provolone, Russian dressing, Chimichurri and chili-pickled cucumber; this turns out to be pretty alright with the beef being reasonably tender and the Chimichurri cutting through the slight gaminess of the beef — the Russian dressing being almost close to that of an umami Mentaiko sauce on the side of the plate. For dessert, we went for the Mandarin Crema Catalana, Coffee Yoghurt, Coffee Tuile, Mint that is listed both in the Day and Evening sections of the menu; the Mandarin Crema Catalana itself seemed to focus heavily on the citrus-y notes of Mandarin Orange — perhaps a little overly so, with the texture of the Catalana being a little too frozen and stiff when served that made it feel more like a Semifreddo of sorts. Overall, Frankie & Fern’s does feel like an improvement when compared against our experience at East Coast Commune, though the lack of finesse in most dishes still feel particularly stark at the price tag of the dishes — still a cafe with a cosy and comfy environment to boast nonetheless.