Cafe Food

Although the restaurant cafe takes inspiration from Sichuan cuisine, the desserts were just remakes on classics, such as tiramisu in a glass ($16), which featured a luxurious tiramisu pana cotta served with a side of biscotti and crumbs, as well as a plated version of baked cheesecake, which came with a raspberry sorbet. The tartness of the raspberry sorbet complemented the sweetness of the cheesecake, ensuring each mouthful was not too jelat.

Have you ever had ice cream with a croissant? I’ve definitely not! Dopa Dopa Creamery is a new ice cream parlour located at South Bridge Road, and they serve up a plethora of different ice cream flavours, from the very nutty flavours such as their homemade pistachio and hazelnut soft serves, to fruity flavours like their peach sorbet.

I definitely enjoyed the specaloos ice cream and it reminded me very much of the rich and creamy flavours you get from Pidapipo soft serve in Melbourne. A mix of rich caramel aromas with nutty flavours make up the specaloos ice cream, and it complemented the buttery and flaky croissant very well. I’ll definitely come back to try other flavours!

After hearing many reviews from my friends about the cafe, I decided to check it out on my own. Since I had a heavy lunch prior, I only had desserts. Besides cakes, the quaint cafe also serves up plated desserts, such as the apple pie here.
I found it rather lacklustre. The pie pastry was tough and hard to break into, whereas the apple filling inside was too much of a mush - I thought having chunks of apple pieces studded in the filling would gave a nice textural twist.

Located in the heart of the CBD, Grain Traders prises itself with its plethora of dishes that’s ideal for the health conscious. It feels like an atas version of zhap chye png that you can get at the nearby hawker centres, but an occasional indulgence is acceptable! With many different grains, proteins and vegetables to choose from, diners will definitely be spoilt for choice. I exceptionally love their furikake maize, which are generously coated in furikake. The maize also has a good char flavour, making it very addictive in my opinion.

If you’re a fan of soft, fluffy soufflé style pancakes, belle-ville definitely is the place to go. The brand originated in Japan and has landed on our shores recently, serving up slabs of flat wobbly goodness. The menu offers their signature pancakes with different flavours such as matcha, mango and even strawberry. What I like is that the pancakes are really soft and fluffy. If you compare them to the pancakes you get during macdonalds breakfasts, these are definitely 300x fluffier and tastier.

However, I also tried the millefeuille pancakes, which were disappointing. The pancakes were not flavourful, and had a strong alkali taste (probably from too much baking soda). Instead of ‘soft and fluffy’, the centre bits of pancake were raw and gooey.

Would I go back? Definitely. For their normal pancakes. Would steer clear of the millefeuille ones. I guess sometimes it’s better to stick to the originals than to try something different.

This place has been raved by many for its soft buns, slathered with a copious amount of rich Kaya jam. Although the buns weren’t the softest I’ve tasted, I did enjoy how the Kaya was so rich, with a lingering toasted coconut aroma to it.

The waiter shared that their cakes are not made in house, so most probably they’re made in a central kitchen or at their main outlet at Somerset?

Nevertheless, I enjoyed the sweet and nutty flavours. There’s a good ratio of sponge to cream, which makes for a palatable bite.

I tried the iced matcha tea latte, which was rich, thick and velvety. The slight bitterness of premium matcha isn’t overpowered by the sugar syrup.

The interior of Hvala is definitely a haven for a great #aesthetics shoot.

Although it definitely looks good for the ‘gram, the waffles at Wakey Wakey are lacklustre. It isn’t airy and crisp, just the way I like it.