Vanda Botanical Desserts (313@Somerset)

There has been quite a fair bit that has been happening in the local F&B scene of the late, though one of those areas that hadn’t really seen things done differently for a while now seems to be within the gelato / ice-cream parlour space. Had been scrolling around social media recently and found out that Vanda Botanical Dessert had released a new Matcha Noodle Gelato — for those whom are not aware, Vanda Botanical Dessert is a takeaway gelato kiosk that had been operating at 313@Somerset for quite a while; whilst they did operate a location at Takashimaya some time back alongside the 313@Somerset outlet, that location had since closed its doors. Vanda Botancial Dessert is also noted for being an establishment that serves up their gelato with the ability to opt for mochi skin as an add-on; something which was also trending at the point of time when Vanda Botancial Dessert had entered into the local F&B scene.

For the Matcha Noodle Gelato, the marketing collaterals created for the item describes it to come with elements such as matcha noodle gelato, granola and chocolate sauce all in a butterscotch cone — what we had found out whilst ordering the item at the counter was that the matcha noodle gelato is also available as an add-on to a scoop of gelato, while the Matcha Noodle Gelato that comes as-is does include a topping of the patron’s choice (choices include granola, lotus biscoff crumbs and cornflakes) that comes as part of the item. For our order, we went for the Matcha Noodle Gelato as-is, and opted for the granola as our choice of add-on — this is despite the Matcha Noodle Gelato already coming with granola over the top as well. The Matcha Noodle Gelato from Vanda Botanical Desserts seem to have been inspired by the “chestnut noodles” that one would have come across in a Mont Blanc cake — the noodle aesthetic is being made using an apparatus that would dispense the matcha gelato to achieve its intended look much to the same that is used to create the chestnut noodles in a Mont Blanc cake.

Apart from the look of the gelato, Vanda Botanical Dessert hadn’t really changed the wheel here with the item; the matcha noodle gelato carried quite an intense flavour of the Japanese tea — the gelato coming with the bitter undertones that one would associate with the tea without a distinct hint of sweetness nor being too milky. The granola does add an element of crunch to the matcha noodle gelato, while the butterscotch cone was surprisingly light and crisp — probably coming slightly thinner than most cones that we have come across though still holds up against the wet elements pretty well. At $6.80 a cone, the Matcha Noodle Gelato does sound a little pricey for dessert on first impression — this is especially since the Matcha Noodle Gelato is all about the aesthetics. That being said, one does get quite a fair bit of ice-cream if they opt for the Matcha Noodle Gelato as-is; this is considering how the entire cone gets filled with gelato (except the granola and chocolate sauce forming the base within the cone) as opposed to scoops of gelato where larger gaps do exist — something worth trying for the curious.

Crafted with Australian Macadamia Nuts
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This was one of the better Macadmia flavoured gelato I ever had. Full of nuttiness in every spoonful

Waitress was highly friendly and we managed to get samples before we decided on a flavor. All black sesame, oolong, and vanilla was so tempting but we decided on the oolong mochi ice cream.

The oolong was strong yet tasted light, making subsequent bites much easier. However, the mochi was thinner and less chewier than would’ve preferred.

Nonetheless, a very good option if you’re around the area.

we got the 1 for 1 mochi gelato promo on vday!
- poached pear walnut
- oolong
total was $5.40 for both (usually it would be for one only) and it was extremely worth it imo, the pear sorbet was refreshing while the oolong was very creamy! the mochi skin was the most memorable part bc it was so stretchy and soft 😋

Oolong flavour was true to its name, but perhaps could be a tad too sweet for some. Right now there's a promo where if you leave a Google review you can redeem a free scoop. We did that and got the Pistachio which was nicely nutty but also a tad sweet. A pity they were out of mochi for the night.

We ordered the Chrysanthemum Goji Berry and Black sesame flavours! Overall felt like the mochi skin was gimmicky and way too sweet :( Foodies with major sweet tooth’s might be able to appreciate this a little more, but would wish that even their ice cream itself could have less sugar….