Iris Cafe

Got to know about the existence of the fairly new Iris Cafe that had recently sprouted up at one-north; it does seem that Solaris within one-north had seen some Korean establishments open their doors in the building in recent times (another F&B establishment being CU Mr Bull; a recent addition to the building as well). Located right beside CU Mr Bull, Iris Cafe occupies a shop unit facing out towards Fusionopolis Walk with Nexus @ one-north directly facing it. The interior of Iris Cafe is tastefully decorated; the use of wooden furniture with metallic accents amidst the white walls that matches its wooden carpentry gives off a fairly homely and comforting look that is pretty on point and similar with most humbly-run Korean establishments out there — the well-spaced seatings and tall ceiling also gives it a spacious vibe providing patrons with comfort and privacy amongst different groups of diners. An establishment that describes itself as a “Korean cafe & dining” concept on their social media pages, Iris Cafe is a location that serves up both traditional Korean fare and Korean-Westeen fusion fare; they also do offer a variety of brunch dishes as well. A range of desserts and bakes are stocked up in their display case and display chiller located at the counter; beverages available at Iris Cafe includes canned beverages, espresso-based specialty coffee, smoothies and ades and a small selection of alcoholic beverages.

One of the dishes that had caught our attention whilst scrolling through the menu would be the Spicy Webfoot Octopus Rice with Cheese that is being listed in the Authentic Korean section of the menu. This item is being described as one that comes with elements such as webfoot octopus, spicy sauce, sautéed vegetables, rice and mozzarella; it also comes with a side dish of kimchi that comes in a small saucer by the side. The dish that probably left the strongest impression with us, we felt that this could be described as a rather good version of a kimchi fried rice that was done almost to the consistency of a paella — the short-grain rice being sufficiently moist and soft whilst having absorbed all of the flavours of the spicy sauce which was pretty much like Gochujang; think a mix of sweet, slightly tangy and a spicy note that should be pretty manageable for those whom are tolerable to moderate levels of spiciness. The webfoot octopus provided a slight chew for a variance of textures, while the addition of mozzarella that seemed to have been blown-torched provided a stretchy and gooey texture with a slightly cheesy note to the dish. Overall, quite an appetising dish that found us yearning for more.

We also went for the Buldak Pasta during our visit to Iris Cafe — this is an item that is listed on the Pasta section of the menu and comes with elements such as Korean Spicy Chicken Sauce, Grilled Chicken, Parmesan and
Linguine; much like the Spicy Webfoot Octopus Rice with Cheese, the item also comes with a small saucer of Kimchi on the side. The Buldak Pasta does feature similar flavour profiles to the Spicy Webfoot Octopus Rice with Cheese, though the only qualm we did have about the dish was how it came a little oily for us. We were told by the lady behind the counter that their Sweet Potato Cake is one that was baked in-house and was also one that was freshly-baked earlier during the day; going for one slice of the cake during our visit there, the cake featured elements like pastry cream, chopped pistachio and a layer of mashed sweet potato sitting in between the two layers of sponge. The mashed sweet potato provided a natural hint of sweetness usual of the root vegetable, while the chopped pistachio layered around the sides of the cake provides an element of crunch. We did feel that the sponge cake was a little too dense and stiff to slice through — lacks the fluffiness that and lightness that would make the cake slightly easier to have.

The Iced Black that we had went for comes with a fruity flavour profile and clean finish — a rather good cuppa for a perk-me-up. One thing about Iris Cafe is seemingly true here — the establishment does feel like one that brings upon an interesting alternative for those working around the one-north area; definitely a spot that serves a rather different genre of food that differs from the existing dining options available there. It does seem that Iris Cafe is seemingly better with their Authentic Korean dishes rather than their version of Korean fusion fare, though we have yet to give enough menu items a go given their extensive selection of dishes to conclude so. No doubt there are some hits and misses here, but Iris Cafe is probably still worth a shot if one doesn’t mind shelling a bit of money whilst in the ‘hood here.