Cafes & Coffee ☕️

Actually really liked this! If you're a fan of chai and beetroot, this will be right up your alley 👍🏼 otherwise beetroot haters should steer clear because the earthy taste is quite strong.

Set up by the parents of Joan Bo Wen, a young lady with special needs, this social enterprise in Jalan Wangi (Potong Pasir is the nearest MRT station) trains and imparts kitchen skills to youths with special needs, and the cafe is run almost entirely by its team of young staff with special needs. The menu is pretty basic but the food is beautifully plated, generously portioned and delicious — it can certainly rival any cafe at the same price point! — and the service is cheerful and heartfelt. Out of our several favourites here, we highly recommend the Chilli Crab Pasta ($18), with a sauce that strikes the perfect balance between sweet, spicy and umami, and the delectable Rosemary Lemon Chicken ($12). For something less heavy, try teh Oriental Chicken Salad ($12).
Avg price: $20 per person
Photo by Burppler Cedric Lim

I have vivid memories of Coffee Bandit's pulled pork sandwich which left quite an impression on me, so the most natural thing for me was to order any pulled pork dish available at Fuel. Turns out, the Pulled Pork Tacos (which is the only pulled pork dish available here) did not disappoint. Packed in a crispy tortilla wrap, you could taste the nacho-like flavour while it packs in all that pulled pork and purple slaw goodness. Achieving the right balance of slaw and pulled pork, I was also amazed by the consistency of the pulled pork amidst that BBQ sauce smokiness and sweetness, spiked with just a short hint of spiciness from the cayenne aioli and shallots. Not being too moist nor too dry, the pulled pork was easy to eat, and fits just nicely without making one feel too bloated; even the slaw helps to lighten things by a bit. The side salad helps to perk things up a little, as it helps to cleanse the flavours of the tacos if it ever does get a little too much. At $13.90, it does achieve a balance in flavours, portions and quality for a quite a good price especially if you are looking for something comforting to have!

Out of the five items we ordered, this was our favourite. Café NIDO prides itself in making the patty in-house and we were told that they also add lard into the mix for that extra oomph. As if that wasn't indulgent enough, there's also a salty bacon strip and a jiggly sunny side up smacked between the buns. The accompanying sweet potato fries were not bad either.

Besides the ever-popular Short Rib Ragu, Duck Confit Pasta and Apple Crumble dessert which you will see popping up in many Instagram accounts, I feel that the Butternut Pasta ($17) is very underrated which deserves more recognition.
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Using fresh agnolotti, a type of pasta dough folded over a filling of butternut squash, it is cooked in a butter emulsion with mushrooms and finished with a sprinkle of garlic herb crumbs. The sweetness from the butternut squash definitely appeals to those with a sweet tooth while the butter emulsion and mushrooms add a savoury touch.
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South Union Park
Address: 101, Jalan Kembangan, Singapore 419139

It's always good to encounter uncommonly-found food. Like these Brussel sprouts for instance, which I came across at The Refinery.

Small but quite appetising overall, this dish had the crunchy halves of the vegetable cooked with Katsuo butter (butter that has a type of Japanese tuna incorporated although I am not sure how - none of the staff could explain it to me so it must be a secret 🙊). Personally, I could have done with a little less bonito flakes because it made things slightly fishy. Hmmm.... wait a minute, maybe this was the Katsuo in the Katsuo butter? 😳 The sweet pomegranate and crunchy roasted almonds however, I welcomed with open arms. They helped loads with the yumminess factor.

Braved the sun today and took a sweaty walk to South Union Park near Kembangan.
A very quaint cafe located in a residential area, they serve top notch food and without the typical shortcuts most cafes normally take. Their pastas are all made in house and even their Chorizo is made by them.
One of the stand out dishes, the mussels were fresh and tasted of the sea. Soft, plump (some were huge!) and salty, it went great with that savory, spicy broth.
#Burpple #BurppleSG #bodyplump #whyidonthaveabs #fatdieme #SouthUnionPark #worththesweatywalk

Dolce Tokyo has such decent food! Would usually order the creamy tomato pasta with slabs of smoked salmon but decided to take a chance and be adventurous. This is the Essential British - mashed potatoes, German sausages, toast with cheddar cheese and scrambled eggs 👍🏻

An unconventional Mac & Cheese, this dish is divinely baked to perfection! Crispy on the sides and top, the inside was moist with the pasta and it's companions. Don't miss trying this. On my recommended list.

As defined by it's name, this version of thick, creamy mushroom soup is another top hit of the cafe (we're guessing). It tasted freshly cooked, and beats Campbell's hands down anytime!

Never expected this to be so good. The patty itself is barely a patty, simply a generous portion of crab meat held together by the lightest, crispest crumbs. The chili crab sauce on the side is the bomb, the perfect dip for the fries. This is truly an example of the standard that cafes should strive for in their mains. I would give this ten thumbs up if I had ten thumbs.

I fell hard for this. Or it could be because I was ravenous. Nevertheless, there's no denying that the Portugese marinade-saturated grilled chicken patty was wonderfully tender, and the housemade peri-peri sauce was lipsmackingly spicy. Together with the Swiss cheese, aioli, fresh lettuce, tomatoes and onions, this was one burger that lived up to my expectations. Well, except for the chicken-to-bun ratio which still has room for improvement 😁