Came here on a Sunday evening on a kind invitation to find the place sparsely populated - perhaps due to its relatively unknown location. Many people also would not have thought that a cafe existed inside a bookstore.
A pity, as the set up is really comfy, with plenty of window seats available so you can watch the hustle and bustle of Orchard without being stuck in it. Bright cheery decor added a vibrant feel to the place - perfect spot for chilling out and catching up, especially with those comfy chairs.
Unfortunately, the food was a hit and miss for me. I tried a number of dishes so I could give a more balanced reviews:
Cheesy beef pastrami ($10.50) - one of their hot sandwiches. I find the beef quite nice but there was too much cheese making the whole dish very salty. They also drizzled a sauce on top of the cheese which just killed it. Bread was toasted nicely though, and the accompanying greens were given a nice zest with vinaigrette.
Mushroom Macaroni and Cheese ($9) - This was very strange to us. The bowl was only half full and had the mac and cheese in a broth. Yes, broth. I couldnt figure out what it was - melted cheese could not have melted down that much. Servings of mushrooms were little too. A pity - it could have made it as the pasta and cheese (the normal melted ones) combi was actually quite nice.
Ultimate beef meatballs ($4) - This was a signature which you can choose to have it as a sandwich if you like. Its 3 meatballs for $4 but you also have the option of 7 pcs for $8.50. The meatballs were a larger size than expected and honestly quite nice but it came with the inside a little cold, which was a disappointment.
Baked potato wedges with mixed herbs ($7) - This was to me the best of the evening. Fat wedges with skin still on baked to a nice firmness and sprinkled with herbs like rosemary (I think?) etc.
Soup of the Day ($5) - served with breadsticks - we had mushroom soup and it was good and didnt taste like it came out if a can. Good effort for a simple cafe.
Cafe Latte ($6) - Came with a cute latte art but unfortunately there was too much milk with too little coffee and tasted bland. Iced Cafe Mocha Mint ($7) - Nothing to complain about according to my dining companion.
Signature Affogato ($6) - This was indeed nice! Cold ice cream thrown into hot expresso. Nothing to not like in my books!
Cakes - I also tried their Red Velvet cake and some mocha coffee cakes which were forgettable.
For a cafe with 2-3 staff, I salute them for having a expansive menu. But perhaps they can trim things down a little and focus on bringing the quality up a notch.
Service was alright with food not taking too long to be served. Prices were mostly reasonable too.
I would still come back of course, but perhaps just for drinks and chilling out.
I went on a Saturday afternoon and was glad to see the café not packed like the rest of the Orchard Road. The first impression of the place was nice and quiet. It is part of the book store so it does make sense to have a café there where people can read and relax over a cup of coffee. The decoration pretty much used books to decorate; you can see books on the wall and above the light bulbs. This should enable people to get into a reading mood fast.
Next to the food, since it is our first time there, we decided to go for the chef recommendations. Below was our order: Soup of the Day (Cream of Mushroom), Norwegian Smoked Salmon Sandwich Ultimate Beef Meatball Pasta, Cappuccino and Iced Lemon Tea.
Soup of the day (Cream of Mushroom): The accompanying bread was cold and hard. Personally I prefer them to be warm and soft. Although the soup was supposed to be cream of mushroom, but it tasted more of potato and celery soup to me. Nothing out of extraordinary.
Norwegian Smoked Salmon Sandwich: This came in a generous portion and looks good in presentation as well. One bite into it, it makes me want to eat more. The bread is warm and soft, with the thick smoked salmon slices, lettuce and mayo makes a prefect combination. I would recommend this to everyone.
Ultimate Beef Meatball Pasta: With such a name, I was disappointed when the dish was served, three small meatballs on a small serving of pasta. I do wish the meatballs do come in a larger portion since its name has Ultimate in it. The meatballs are a bit dry for my liking even thought they are quite flavorful. The sauce and pasta tasted like any normal pasta. Nothing wow about this dish.
Overall the food can be pretty much hit and miss, of course there are other mains and desserts which I have yet to taste. I might be back to try some other mains. However, I would remember this place if I need a quiet place to relax and read a book, with food and drink to accompany me through an afternoon. After all, where can you find such a peaceful place to read in Orchard Road.
So rare for me to meet a friend who has a car on a Friday evening so we decided to explore somewhere ulu. That's why we ended up here, with ending the night at Wimbly Lu in mind of course.
Our reservation was made for 7pm and we arrived just on dot, and probably just in time too as the crowd started swelling at about 7:30pm (so book before you go!). The place reminds me alot of Pepperoni @ Greenwood - pizza place in a quiet neighborhood. And happy to say that the food is good too. And cheaper.
Burratina Con Prosciutto Crudo ($16.90) - fresh cheese imported from italy and served with parma ham - this is so refreshing after you get used to the other processed cheese elsewhere. A nice blob of super fresh cheese served separately from the parma ham ( tomatoes and salad). The parma ham and tomatoes were good but the salad can be fresher though. You get to drizzle your own olive oil and vinaigrette and the combi makes a nice light appetizer. The only thing is, serving it separately takes up alot of table space which is tight if you're sitting at a table for 2pax. Parma and Rucola Pizza ($16.90) - My default order at a good pizza place anywhere. The pizza base is one of the best I've ever tasted - not too thin not too thick with just enough to make you feel that its still a pizza base. It comes with this alluring smokey taste which was the draw for me. Generous portion of ham too!
Service was alright - pizza came very quick and water was served promptly. Nothing bad about this place so far I must say. A place with pizzas equivalent to Peppropni (Greenwood) standard but cheaper and nearer for me. Niceee~
So much has been said, printed, blogged, pictured etc etc about this relatively new chocolate / dessert place. So I had to try this after the pizza next door. And nope, they don't take reservations so come early to grab your seats. Accordingly to the staff, 8pm is still safe but not 8:30pm and beyond - which turned out to be true.
Still full from pizza, I decided to go for something which does not look so sinful and petite enough to look that way.
Root beer float cake ($7.90) - served with only vanilla ice cream - I think they actually meant 'served only with vanilla ice cream' but oh well. The chocolate cake is good but very dense, and the root beer is not too evident although there is a very very slight tinge of something different in the taste. Basically I wouldnt be able to say it has something to do with root beer if I dont look at the name of the cake.
Molten lava chocolate cake ($6.90) - The traditional chocolate dessert and tastes that way - rich dark quality chocolate molten in the middle, served in a souffle cup. (I cant remember the price exactly but it is around there...)
They also have an interesting list of fruit beers and a whole lot of other stuff on display, and the richness of most of the desserts make it hard to try too many at one go. Worth a return visit but I wouldnt come all the way here if I dont have a convenience of a car. They also have a small food menu too so this can be one-stop if you dont fancy trying your luck dropping by only after dinner. Coffee is no good so skip it.
Had been curious about this pancake place since I read about it on 8days, and finally got the chance to try it this afternoon. They are located quite opposite Katong112, directly facing the HK cafe next to 112. You can look out for the cutest (fat) sheep mascot signage along the shophouses, or the actual sized sheep plonked at its entrance.
We were the first customers to step in at slightly past noon on a weekday which was surprisingly to me. The decor is nicely cute with a simple yet colourful setup. Seating could not have been more than say 35, including 2 corners of cosy seats.
The menu was simply done up but with plenty of offerings of pancakes (savoury or sweet), dotted with bites like truffle ruffles (truffle fries) and an interesting coffee menu that comes with visuals of what they are. Nice touch. And they have a very interesting beer & ciders and bottled tea menu. I like!
Okay, the food. All 5 of us had savories (each comes with 2 pancakes) and I only tried one so here goes:
Breakfast Mambo Combo ($14) - A delicious combo of ham, bacon, poached eggs, and chipolata sausages - I decided that all breakfast-y stuff should stick together. The portion is not overwhelming and really, its a comfort platter. The sausages were done crispy on the outside which is always a plus, and the poached eggs done well. But the bacon was too oily, and the ham tasted like it was plain old shoulder ham - disappointing. And the pancakes were....not fantastic which was a huge negative for a place which supposedly specializes in them. They were too dry and left a weird aftertaste in the mouth. Not fluffy at all. So much so that one of us thought it was frozen pancakes until we saw the chap pouring the batter.
Chicken Kebab Blab ($12) - chicken chunks, crunchy capsicum, juicy cube pineapples, mini eggs, and white grilled button mushrooms threaded on a kebab - a colourful plate and generous chucks of the ingredients.
Mushrooms and Tiger Prawns ($15) - buttery grilled portobello mushrooms with juicy tiger prawns - this looked the best: a huge mushroom sitting in the middle of the 2 pancakes with 2 medium tiger-ish prawns nestled within it.
Fishy Flaps ($14) - battered fish fillets with house-made tartar sauce and coleslaw - fish ad chips with pancakes.
Service was okay but it seemed like it was only 1 staff outside and 1 staff inside cooking. But the food took a really long time to arrive as I guess the chaps only had 2 hands. At least they arrived hot. The place also started to fill up around 1pm with students and teenagers, after school maybe.
I'm quite disappointed that a pancake place cant get it pancake right. Sigh. But if I'm in the vicinity, I dont mind returning just to try their beers :)
Brunch on a busy Saturday at Wild Honey's Scotts Square outlet as we didn't fancy standing in line for a table at the Mandarin Gallery store.
Thankfully this outlet takes reservations but do book early as I overheard a wait staff informing a dejected walk in customer that 1 week advance reservations are recommended. And the full house, coupled with a 90 minute per table dining window proves her point.
The place isn't big and certain tables are placed quite close to each other (go for those at the side if possible), which makes for hush conversation. Oh wait, I forgot. The whole place is so noisy that I probably wouldn't be able to hear myself shout. Okay, that's an exaggeration but by golly, it sounded like a marketplace! You can basically throw any notion of a peaceful and relaxing brunch out of the window!
Scandinavian - I'm no big fan of salmon and this dish wasn't about to convert me. The grilled fish was pedestrian, if I may say. And the hollandaise sauce atop was just too mild to be of much use. I did like the bed of crisp rosti though.
English - I didn't quite take to this dish either as I thought that the scrambled eggs could have been milkier and the bacon, a little less charred at the corner. The potato cubes could have also been a little more crisp instead of coming across as limp and soggy. And the signature brioche left me sorely disappointed. I had envisioned something along the lines of Guy Savoy's Brioche Feuilletée aux Champignons et Truffes but this was just a dense block of bread which I certainly couldn't appreciate.
Caribbean - Greedy us had the "Caribbean" for afters as it seemed like the only dish that qualified as dessert on the menu. As much as I hate to say it, it would have been a pleasant ending to the meal if only there weren't consistency issues. For example, some of the waffles were noticeably darker than the others and some mango slices made me cringe with their sourness. To be fair, I loved the passion fruit syrup/cream and the idea of combining fresh mangoes and bananas with crispy edged waffles. Now if only they worked on their consistency...
I don't know about you, but $82 for a 2 pax brunch in a less than soothing setting coupled with average quality food, does seem quite over the top. I seriously fail to understand the hype. Herd mentality at work, maybe?
&Made has been highly regarded and much raved about and thus understandably a big crowd on a Sat evening, but to our surprise we waited only about 10mins for a table of 3. They dont take reservations as well so do come early if you want to give this place a shot.
The 3 Little Pigs ($23) - bacon, pork filet, and chorizo patty shitake mushrooms, Japanese cabbage, Shibazuke pickles, yuzu-kosho mayonnaise - I decided this was exciting to try, and it turned out to be a good choice! The patty was extremely flavorful mostly from the chorizo. The shitake mushrooms were left whole on the bun which I thought was a little odd and they didnt do very much for the burger in general. The cabbage added a good crunch and blended very well with the mayonnaise. The accompanying fries had too much salt on them unfortunately - remember to order unsalted!
The Kimchi ($22) - dry-aged beef, homemade kimchi, spicy yogurt, coriander and lettuce salad - Looked good and apparently tasted good too.
White Chocolate ($12) - (sorry didnt quite capture the description) - a dessert one of us had - it received only mediocre reviews unfortunately.
Service was nothing to complain about and our orders came surprisingly fast even thought it was full house. But it was just really stuffy inside - not sure if the aircon had broken down or has it always been like this?! And we did see Chef Bruno Menard walking around talking to customers, which is always a nice touch.
After so much hype about this place, I came out feeling a little mixed to be honest. While the food was mostly nice, I wonder if the Michelin Star reputation had made me expect more out of the meal - I just didnt get a wow.
But that being said, it is a good place to try and it's still fun eating at such an establishment. You'll still enjoy the experience no doubt :)
Colleagues and I picked this place for a staff lunch as they were having a 1-4-1 buffet lunch promotion with UOB cards - at $40 per pax with a maximum of 8 diners per card. This works out to be $20 per pax which was a superb value considering that some set lunches out there are a similar range.
Appetitzers - there are plenty of appetizers to choose from eg potato salads, DIY salads, mushroom salads, tomato salads etc which comes with a range of dressings. There is also a cheese board with 4-5 types of cheese and crackers. Most of them are quite nice, including the cheeses. There's also a sushi platter.
Soups & bread - We had 2 choices of soup that day - salted veg duck soup and minestrone. Both were not too bad honestly, and I liked that they thought to have 1 asian and 1 western soup. Didnt try the bread which looked sad.
Seafood - I didnt expect cold seafood for such a promotion but they did have them - prawns, mussels, scallops. I only tried the prawns which were okay but I've tried fresher ones at other places though.
Hot dishes - Mostly asian selections eg. hokkien mee, sotong & fish in dark sauce, assorted roasted meats, crab meats, stir fried veg, and butter prawns with curry sauce. I remember a western dish of potato fritata which were disappointingly soft.
Desserts - Quite nice but not wow. More mini cakes on offer eg. cheesecake, chocolate banana, orange chocolate, walnut maple pie, swiss roll, lychee jello, bread butter pudding, a simple fondue, and asian desserts like pulau hitam.
Service was okay and plates were cleared quickly.
I wouldnt pay the original price of $40 per pax but with the UOB 1-4-1, its worth a shot. And the selection is not too bad too.
(sorry for the bad photos - I never quite know how to take nice buffet pics!)
I have to agree with some of the previous reviews and concur that this outlet suffers from a lower quality of food served complete with poor service.
I came here for a Sat dinner and the place was just packed at 7pm. The seating was small and filled with chitter chatter all round. Proscuitto Crudo Di Parma ($24) - this is my usual order at a pizza place and I would have to admit this was done not too badly although the crust was a little burnt. The serving of parma was generous too.
Calamari ($10) - Disappointingly soggy. Couldnt figure out why but it was. The batter tasted like it was good but too bad it was extremely let down by the sogginess.
Service was very sporadic - some staff has difficulty understanding English which made things even worse in the chaos of them trying to serve food and take orders simultaneously. A coke was served when I ordered a hoegarden, and the table beside me had red wine served when they ordered white wine.
I picked this place for a birthday celebration after reading about it in a magazine, plus this area's not too crowded for a Friday evening which is a plus point too. They had given our table of 5 a table right smack in front of the counter and the wine display so we started off the evening a little awkward with other guests routing / hovering around us looking at the wines.
The menu was limited with only a few mains and a handful of salads:
Atlantic Sea Bass ($18) - with roasted, fricassee of sprouting roots - the sea bass was seasoned nicely but the skin was soggy instead of crispy. The accompany greens and mushrooms were average, and some of the baby potatoes were undercooked and crunchy.
Herb Roasted Lamb ($22) - with onion, cherry tomato confit, and potatoes - I didn't have this but the one who did said it was good.
Steak Frites ($20) - with bernaise or mustard sauce - 3 of my friends ordered this with different done-ness and they came cooked the same - pink and slightly bloody in the middle. My friend who asked for well-done asked the staff to bring the dish back as it wasnt right and it came back with the outside more cooked but the insides were the same. So he basically just ate the sides and the accompanying fries.
Truffle mashed poatoes ($5) - This was the best dish of the day although I would have preferred it to have more bite instead of being super smooth, and they were very generous with the truffle oil. But we found a notable piece of aluminum foil halfway through.
The staff didn't seem to be too concerned about my friend's uneaten steak so I proactively gave feedback about that, plus the aluminum foil in the mash. She simply said thanks for the feedback and that she'll inform the chef. Her nonchalant attitude, plus a chef who doesnt know or care about his steaks, made me cast a negative vote for this place. Sorry it just didnt do it for me.
1=SGD 0.0587
This review is late, sorry!!
Came here on a Sunday evening on a kind invitation to find the place sparsely populated - perhaps due to its relatively unknown location. Many people also would not have thought that a cafe existed inside a bookstore.
A pity, as the set up is really comfy, with plenty of window seats available so you can watch the hustle and bustle of Orchard without being stuck in it. Bright cheery decor added a vibrant feel to the place - perfect spot for chilling out and catching up, especially with those comfy chairs.
Unfortunately, the food was a hit and miss for me. I tried a number of dishes so I could give a more balanced reviews:
Cheesy beef pastrami ($10.50) - one of their hot sandwiches. I find the beef quite nice but there was too much cheese making the whole dish very salty. They also drizzled a sauce on top of the cheese which just killed it. Bread was toasted nicely though, and the accompanying greens were given a nice zest with vinaigrette.
Mushroom Macaroni and Cheese ($9) - This was very strange to us. The bowl was only half full and had the mac and cheese in a broth. Yes, broth. I couldnt figure out what it was - melted cheese could not have melted down that much. Servings of mushrooms were little too. A pity - it could have made it as the pasta and cheese (the normal melted ones) combi was actually quite nice.
Ultimate beef meatballs ($4) - This was a signature which you can choose to have it as a sandwich if you like. Its 3 meatballs for $4 but you also have the option of 7 pcs for $8.50. The meatballs were a larger size than expected and honestly quite nice but it came with the inside a little cold, which was a disappointment.
Baked potato wedges with mixed herbs ($7) - This was to me the best of the evening. Fat wedges with skin still on baked to a nice firmness and sprinkled with herbs like rosemary (I think?) etc.
Soup of the Day ($5) - served with breadsticks - we had mushroom soup and it was good and didnt taste like it came out if a can. Good effort for a simple cafe.
Cafe Latte ($6) - Came with a cute latte art but unfortunately there was too much milk with too little coffee and tasted bland.
Iced Cafe Mocha Mint ($7) - Nothing to complain about according to my dining companion.
Signature Affogato ($6) - This was indeed nice! Cold ice cream thrown into hot expresso. Nothing to not like in my books!
Cakes - I also tried their Red Velvet cake and some mocha coffee cakes which were forgettable.
For a cafe with 2-3 staff, I salute them for having a expansive menu. But perhaps they can trim things down a little and focus on bringing the quality up a notch.
Service was alright with food not taking too long to be served. Prices were mostly reasonable too.
I would still come back of course, but perhaps just for drinks and chilling out.
Rating given:
I went on a Saturday afternoon and was glad to see the café not packed like the rest of the Orchard Road. The first impression of the place was nice and quiet. It is part of the book store so it does make sense to have a café there where people can read and relax over a cup of coffee. The decoration pretty much used books to decorate; you can see books on the wall and above the light bulbs. This should enable people to get into a reading mood fast.
Next to the food, since it is our first time there, we decided to go for the chef recommendations. Below was our order: Soup of the Day (Cream of Mushroom), Norwegian Smoked Salmon Sandwich Ultimate Beef Meatball Pasta, Cappuccino and Iced Lemon Tea.
Soup of the day (Cream of Mushroom): The accompanying bread was cold and hard. Personally I prefer them to be warm and soft. Although the soup was supposed to be cream of mushroom, but it tasted more of potato and celery soup to me. Nothing out of extraordinary.
Norwegian Smoked Salmon Sandwich: This came in a generous portion and looks good in presentation as well. One bite into it, it makes me want to eat more. The bread is warm and soft, with the thick smoked salmon slices, lettuce and mayo makes a prefect combination. I would recommend this to everyone.
Ultimate Beef Meatball Pasta: With such a name, I was disappointed when the dish was served, three small meatballs on a small serving of pasta. I do wish the meatballs do come in a larger portion since its name has Ultimate in it. The meatballs are a bit dry for my liking even thought they are quite flavorful. The sauce and pasta tasted like any normal pasta. Nothing wow about this dish.
Overall the food can be pretty much hit and miss, of course there are other mains and desserts which I have yet to taste. I might be back to try some other mains. However, I would remember this place if I need a quiet place to relax and read a book, with food and drink to accompany me through an afternoon. After all, where can you find such a peaceful place to read in Orchard Road.
Rating given:
So rare for me to meet a friend who has a car on a Friday evening so we decided to explore somewhere ulu. That's why we ended up here, with ending the night at Wimbly Lu in mind of course.
Our reservation was made for 7pm and we arrived just on dot, and probably just in time too as the crowd started swelling at about 7:30pm (so book before you go!). The place reminds me alot of Pepperoni @ Greenwood - pizza place in a quiet neighborhood. And happy to say that the food is good too. And cheaper.
Burratina Con Prosciutto Crudo ($16.90) - fresh cheese imported from italy and served with parma ham - this is so refreshing after you get used to the other processed cheese elsewhere. A nice blob of super fresh cheese served separately from the parma ham ( tomatoes and salad). The parma ham and tomatoes were good but the salad can be fresher though. You get to drizzle your own olive oil and vinaigrette and the combi makes a nice light appetizer. The only thing is, serving it separately takes up alot of table space which is tight if you're sitting at a table for 2pax.
Parma and Rucola Pizza ($16.90) - My default order at a good pizza place anywhere. The pizza base is one of the best I've ever tasted - not too thin not too thick with just enough to make you feel that its still a pizza base. It comes with this alluring smokey taste which was the draw for me. Generous portion of ham too!
Service was alright - pizza came very quick and water was served promptly. Nothing bad about this place so far I must say. A place with pizzas equivalent to Peppropni (Greenwood) standard but cheaper and nearer for me. Niceee~
Rating given:
So much has been said, printed, blogged, pictured etc etc about this relatively new chocolate / dessert place. So I had to try this after the pizza next door. And nope, they don't take reservations so come early to grab your seats. Accordingly to the staff, 8pm is still safe but not 8:30pm and beyond - which turned out to be true.
Still full from pizza, I decided to go for something which does not look so sinful and petite enough to look that way.
Root beer float cake ($7.90) - served with only vanilla ice cream - I think they actually meant 'served only with vanilla ice cream' but oh well. The chocolate cake is good but very dense, and the root beer is not too evident although there is a very very slight tinge of something different in the taste. Basically I wouldnt be able to say it has something to do with root beer if I dont look at the name of the cake.
Molten lava chocolate cake ($6.90) - The traditional chocolate dessert and tastes that way - rich dark quality chocolate molten in the middle, served in a souffle cup. (I cant remember the price exactly but it is around there...)
They also have an interesting list of fruit beers and a whole lot of other stuff on display, and the richness of most of the desserts make it hard to try too many at one go. Worth a return visit but I wouldnt come all the way here if I dont have a convenience of a car. They also have a small food menu too so this can be one-stop if you dont fancy trying your luck dropping by only after dinner. Coffee is no good so skip it.
Rating given:
Had been curious about this pancake place since I read about it on 8days, and finally got the chance to try it this afternoon. They are located quite opposite Katong112, directly facing the HK cafe next to 112. You can look out for the cutest (fat) sheep mascot signage along the shophouses, or the actual sized sheep plonked at its entrance.
We were the first customers to step in at slightly past noon on a weekday which was surprisingly to me. The decor is nicely cute with a simple yet colourful setup. Seating could not have been more than say 35, including 2 corners of cosy seats.
The menu was simply done up but with plenty of offerings of pancakes (savoury or sweet), dotted with bites like truffle ruffles (truffle fries) and an interesting coffee menu that comes with visuals of what they are. Nice touch. And they have a very interesting beer & ciders and bottled tea menu. I like!
Okay, the food. All 5 of us had savories (each comes with 2 pancakes) and I only tried one so here goes:
Breakfast Mambo Combo ($14) - A delicious combo of ham, bacon, poached eggs, and chipolata sausages - I decided that all breakfast-y stuff should stick together. The portion is not overwhelming and really, its a comfort platter. The sausages were done crispy on the outside which is always a plus, and the poached eggs done well. But the bacon was too oily, and the ham tasted like it was plain old shoulder ham - disappointing. And the pancakes were....not fantastic which was a huge negative for a place which supposedly specializes in them. They were too dry and left a weird aftertaste in the mouth. Not fluffy at all. So much so that one of us thought it was frozen pancakes until we saw the chap pouring the batter.
Chicken Kebab Blab ($12) - chicken chunks, crunchy capsicum, juicy cube pineapples, mini eggs, and white grilled button mushrooms threaded on a kebab - a colourful plate and generous chucks of the ingredients.
Mushrooms and Tiger Prawns ($15) - buttery grilled portobello mushrooms with juicy tiger prawns - this looked the best: a huge mushroom sitting in the middle of the 2 pancakes with 2 medium tiger-ish prawns nestled within it.
Fishy Flaps ($14) - battered fish fillets with house-made tartar sauce and coleslaw - fish ad chips with pancakes.
Service was okay but it seemed like it was only 1 staff outside and 1 staff inside cooking. But the food took a really long time to arrive as I guess the chaps only had 2 hands. At least they arrived hot. The place also started to fill up around 1pm with students and teenagers, after school maybe.
I'm quite disappointed that a pancake place cant get it pancake right. Sigh. But if I'm in the vicinity, I dont mind returning just to try their beers :)
Rating given:
Brunch on a busy Saturday at Wild Honey's Scotts Square outlet as we didn't fancy standing in line for a table at the Mandarin Gallery store.
Thankfully this outlet takes reservations but do book early as I overheard a wait staff informing a dejected walk in customer that 1 week advance reservations are recommended. And the full house, coupled with a 90 minute per table dining window proves her point.
The place isn't big and certain tables are placed quite close to each other (go for those at the side if possible), which makes for hush conversation. Oh wait, I forgot. The whole place is so noisy that I probably wouldn't be able to hear myself shout. Okay, that's an exaggeration but by golly, it sounded like a marketplace! You can basically throw any notion of a peaceful and relaxing brunch out of the window!
Scandinavian - I'm no big fan of salmon and this dish wasn't about to convert me. The grilled fish was pedestrian, if I may say. And the hollandaise sauce atop was just too mild to be of much use. I did like the bed of crisp rosti though.
English - I didn't quite take to this dish either as I thought that the scrambled eggs could have been milkier and the bacon, a little less charred at the corner. The potato cubes could have also been a little more crisp instead of coming across as limp and soggy. And the signature brioche left me sorely disappointed. I had envisioned something along the lines of Guy Savoy's Brioche Feuilletée aux Champignons et Truffes but this was just a dense block of bread which I certainly couldn't appreciate.
Caribbean - Greedy us had the "Caribbean" for afters as it seemed like the only dish that qualified as dessert on the menu. As much as I hate to say it, it would have been a pleasant ending to the meal if only there weren't consistency issues. For example, some of the waffles were noticeably darker than the others and some mango slices made me cringe with their sourness. To be fair, I loved the passion fruit syrup/cream and the idea of combining fresh mangoes and bananas with crispy edged waffles. Now if only they worked on their consistency...
I don't know about you, but $82 for a 2 pax brunch in a less than soothing setting coupled with average quality food, does seem quite over the top. I seriously fail to understand the hype. Herd mentality at work, maybe?
See all my pictures here.
Rating given:
&Made has been highly regarded and much raved about and thus understandably a big crowd on a Sat evening, but to our surprise we waited only about 10mins for a table of 3. They dont take reservations as well so do come early if you want to give this place a shot.
The 3 Little Pigs ($23) - bacon, pork filet, and chorizo patty shitake mushrooms, Japanese cabbage, Shibazuke pickles, yuzu-kosho mayonnaise - I decided this was exciting to try, and it turned out to be a good choice! The patty was extremely flavorful mostly from the chorizo. The shitake mushrooms were left whole on the bun which I thought was a little odd and they didnt do very much for the burger in general. The cabbage added a good crunch and blended very well with the mayonnaise. The accompanying fries had too much salt on them unfortunately - remember to order unsalted!
The Kimchi ($22) - dry-aged beef, homemade kimchi, spicy yogurt, coriander and lettuce salad - Looked good and apparently tasted good too.
White Chocolate ($12) - (sorry didnt quite capture the description) - a dessert one of us had - it received only mediocre reviews unfortunately.
Service was nothing to complain about and our orders came surprisingly fast even thought it was full house. But it was just really stuffy inside - not sure if the aircon had broken down or has it always been like this?! And we did see Chef Bruno Menard walking around talking to customers, which is always a nice touch.
After so much hype about this place, I came out feeling a little mixed to be honest. While the food was mostly nice, I wonder if the Michelin Star reputation had made me expect more out of the meal - I just didnt get a wow.
But that being said, it is a good place to try and it's still fun eating at such an establishment. You'll still enjoy the experience no doubt :)
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Colleagues and I picked this place for a staff lunch as they were having a 1-4-1 buffet lunch promotion with UOB cards - at $40 per pax with a maximum of 8 diners per card. This works out to be $20 per pax which was a superb value considering that some set lunches out there are a similar range.
Appetitzers - there are plenty of appetizers to choose from eg potato salads, DIY salads, mushroom salads, tomato salads etc which comes with a range of dressings. There is also a cheese board with 4-5 types of cheese and crackers. Most of them are quite nice, including the cheeses. There's also a sushi platter.
Soups & bread - We had 2 choices of soup that day - salted veg duck soup and minestrone. Both were not too bad honestly, and I liked that they thought to have 1 asian and 1 western soup. Didnt try the bread which looked sad.
Seafood - I didnt expect cold seafood for such a promotion but they did have them - prawns, mussels, scallops. I only tried the prawns which were okay but I've tried fresher ones at other places though.
Hot dishes - Mostly asian selections eg. hokkien mee, sotong & fish in dark sauce, assorted roasted meats, crab meats, stir fried veg, and butter prawns with curry sauce. I remember a western dish of potato fritata which were disappointingly soft.
Desserts - Quite nice but not wow. More mini cakes on offer eg. cheesecake, chocolate banana, orange chocolate, walnut maple pie, swiss roll, lychee jello, bread butter pudding, a simple fondue, and asian desserts like pulau hitam.
Service was okay and plates were cleared quickly.
I wouldnt pay the original price of $40 per pax but with the UOB 1-4-1, its worth a shot. And the selection is not too bad too.
(sorry for the bad photos - I never quite know how to take nice buffet pics!)
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I have to agree with some of the previous reviews and concur that this outlet suffers from a lower quality of food served complete with poor service.
I came here for a Sat dinner and the place was just packed at 7pm. The seating was small and filled with chitter chatter all round.
Proscuitto Crudo Di Parma ($24) - this is my usual order at a pizza place and I would have to admit this was done not too badly although the crust was a little burnt. The serving of parma was generous too.
Calamari ($10) - Disappointingly soggy. Couldnt figure out why but it was. The batter tasted like it was good but too bad it was extremely let down by the sogginess.
Service was very sporadic - some staff has difficulty understanding English which made things even worse in the chaos of them trying to serve food and take orders simultaneously. A coke was served when I ordered a hoegarden, and the table beside me had red wine served when they ordered white wine.
Poor service plus disappointing food. Sigh.
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I picked this place for a birthday celebration after reading about it in a magazine, plus this area's not too crowded for a Friday evening which is a plus point too. They had given our table of 5 a table right smack in front of the counter and the wine display so we started off the evening a little awkward with other guests routing / hovering around us looking at the wines.
The menu was limited with only a few mains and a handful of salads:
Atlantic Sea Bass ($18) - with roasted, fricassee of sprouting roots - the sea bass was seasoned nicely but the skin was soggy instead of crispy. The accompany greens and mushrooms were average, and some of the baby potatoes were undercooked and crunchy.
Herb Roasted Lamb ($22) - with onion, cherry tomato confit, and potatoes - I didn't have this but the one who did said it was good.
Steak Frites ($20) - with bernaise or mustard sauce - 3 of my friends ordered this with different done-ness and they came cooked the same - pink and slightly bloody in the middle. My friend who asked for well-done asked the staff to bring the dish back as it wasnt right and it came back with the outside more cooked but the insides were the same. So he basically just ate the sides and the accompanying fries.
Truffle mashed poatoes ($5) - This was the best dish of the day although I would have preferred it to have more bite instead of being super smooth, and they were very generous with the truffle oil. But we found a notable piece of aluminum foil halfway through.
The staff didn't seem to be too concerned about my friend's uneaten steak so I proactively gave feedback about that, plus the aluminum foil in the mash. She simply said thanks for the feedback and that she'll inform the chef. Her nonchalant attitude, plus a chef who doesnt know or care about his steaks, made me cast a negative vote for this place. Sorry it just didnt do it for me.
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