Twenty Grammes : amidst the heartland

This cafe nestled in the heartland of Ang Mo Kio, near to Cheng San Food Centre and a stone's throw from Ang Mo Kio MRT station. They are currently at 2 locations, their main outlet at North Bridge Road and this outlet that opened in October 2015. They are famous for their waffles and handmade ice-cream, and this particular outlet is also known for its exclusive Yuan Yang Waffle ($15) which consists half of Charcoal waffle and other half is Belgian classic waffle with soft-serve ice-cream and hazelnut sauce.

The Charcoal waffle itself is priced at $8.50 and it is at $12.00 if with a single scoop of ice-cream. I opted to have it with the Seasalt Caramel ice-cream that is also served with their signature salted egg sauce. Subsequently, an additional scoop of ice-cream is at $3.00 each if I remember correctly.

I also ordered an Iced Cafe Latte ($6.00) to go with it and it was served in a couple of minutes upon seated down and waited for another 5 minutes more for the waffle to be served. The Iced Cafe Latte had a mild coffee flavor with just enough of milk taste to balance up the bitterness in the coffee and to give it the desired sweetness. 

Even though the Charcoal waffle though tasted just normal but it was fluffy and slightly crispy on the outer layer. The salted caramel ice-cream was rather creamy with a slight hint of saltiness which balanced up the level of sweetness. 

The salted egg sauce did not have much of the salted egg flavor and it also did not enhance the overall flavor as much. Or, maybe, it just did not go well with the salted caramel flavor.

TWENTY GRAMMES
Block 529 Ang Mo Kio Avenue 10 #01-2353 SINGAPORE 560529
Operating Hours: 12.00 pm to 10.00 pm (Sun to Thu) / 12.00 pm to 1.00 am (Fri & Sat)

GRUB at Ang Mo Kio-Bishan Park : A Quiet Birthday Lunch

I went on my birthday to have lunch by myself. I have always been wanting to dine there since their opening in May 2013. The cafe is located in the midst of the park and not too far from Ang Mo Kio Avenue 1. When i was walking towards the door, a service staff spotted me and she opened the door and held it for me then i was ushered to be seated, menu was presented right after.  There were only another 2 occupied tables at that time, it was an ideal place for a quiet birthday lunch.

Another service staff came over with a glass of iced water while i was still looking at the menu and deciding what to eat. 

I decided to go with the crispy Fish Burger for $14.00 and added $2 for Iced Honey Lime Juice drink then changed the fries to Mentaiko Fries for $3.

The Iced Honey Lime Juice was served right after, it is basically a glass of honey water with slices of lime added to infusing flavor. 

Crispy Fish Burger is one of their signature dishes that are really popular. It consists of a big piece of nicely fried breaded fish fillet, it was crispy on the surface and still moist within. The fluffy and soft burger buns are sourced from a local bakery. 

It was served with chilli sauce, tartar sauce and mentaiko aioli, the same one that is served with their mentaiko fries. 

This was my first time eating mentaiko fries. The thick cut fries were served with the mentaiko aioli garnished with a few shredded nori seaweed. I have never like those truffle scented fries but the mentaiko fries are simply addictive, the combination was unexpectedly delighful which i really enjoyed.

GRUB

510 Ang Mo Kio Avenue 1 (Ang Mo Kio-Bishan Park 1) SINGAPORE 569983

Operating Hours: 11.00 am to 3.00 pm / 5.30 pm to 10.30 pm

Lady M Confections : A So-so Experience

It was raining afternoon, a heavy torrential downpour actually. I decided to take it slow and do something that i do not quite usually do, like spending a lazy afternoon in some cafe, having coffee and enjoying cakes. 

Lady M has recently opened in Westgate at Jurong East.

I decided to have Strawberry Shortcake ($9++) and Iced Cafe Mocha ($6++). Apparently, the service staff mixed up the order. I was served the hot Cafe Mocha instead, when i highlighted, the female service staff referred to the order chit, and said, 'He must have made the mistake.' She changed it and served right after. I was a bit surprised that they served the cold version in a plastic cup for that amount charged. I guess they must have recycled the hot one by pouring it into the plastic cup then added ice cubes to make it cold as the presentation seemed a bit too messy. This has somewhat discounted my first impression of their service standard.  

The classic Strawberry Shortcake was quite nice though not particularly outstanding as i have eaten some better ones. The vanilla sponge cake was light and fluffy with a couple of strawberries sandwiched in between the layers with the whipped cream. The texture of the whipped was perfect and nicely sweetened to give just the right sweetness.

The overall experience was just so-so.

LADY M CONFECTIONS

. 3 Gateway Drive #02-25/26 Westgate SINGAPORE 608532

Operating Hours: 11.00 am to 10.00 pm (Daily)

. 1 Fullerton Road #01-10 One Fullerton SINGAPORE 049213

Operating Hours: 11.00 am to 11.00 pm (Sun to Thur) / 11.00 pm to 12.00 am (Fri & Sat)

. 181 Orchard Road #01-27 / #02-07 Orchard Central SINGAPORE 238896

Operating Hours: 11.00 am to 10.00 pm (Daily)

Prince Coffee House

Read about my favourite Beef Horfun and Chicken Pie in my article on Makansutra.

PRINCE COFFEE HOUSE 

249 Beach Road SINGAPORE 189757

THE BAKERY CHEF : An afternoon of nothingness

It was raining very heavily on that day and i badly needed a place to wait for the rain to stop. And i happened to be in the vicinity of this one of the most talked about cafes in town and i thought of their beautiful rainbow cake from this cafe and decided to drop by. We were greeted upon entered then asked to take a seat. The order has to be made at the counter and i offered to pay after it was done but i was asked to do so later. Their attentive service has definitely left an impression. 

Their beautifully done Rainbow Cake ($5.80) is a must try. The taste aside, the prettiness of it has already brightened my gloomy day. I was really eager to have my first bite at that moment. The Red Velvet Cream Cheese Cake ($5.80) came next. It was another piece of really pretty cake. Then, came my Cuppuccino ($4.90). 

It was a squarish piece of cake in 6 different colors that is topped with a delicious layer of fresh cream and nicely decorated. I enjoyed what i tasted, the sponginess was pretty distinctive though i could not quite make a comparison with other rainbow cakes as this was my very first piece.

The Red Velvet Cream Cheese Cake is another excellent choice. The fresh cream did not taste really sweet but delightfully well-balanced.

This heartland cafe is definitely worth a revisit. I would even purposely make a trip to here for good cakes. It was such a perfect afternoon and i really could not ask for more.  

THE BAKERY CHEF

Block 161 Bukit Merah Central #01-3711 SINGAPORE 150161

Hours: 10.00 am to 9.00 pm (Friday to Monday ) 10.00 am to 7.00 pm (Tuesday to Thurday) 

Flee Away Cafe at Dunlop Street

Flee Away Café is started by Fann Hui Leng and Wendy Cheong as a mean of escapade from the buzzing city life. You can find your granny type of sewing machine as well as the seats salvaged from the old cinema in this retro café.

Their specialty is Le Char kuay, it is a little like the dough fritter snack that is better known as You Tiao but their version came with filling of your choice. You can either choose a Char Kuay as sandwich or tortilla wrap ($15.50).

The other must-try item has to be their specially created Beef Hash Pie Tee ($12.50). It is none other than kway Pie Tee shells with corned beef as filling. For dessert, their waffle with Gula Melaka pudding ($$8.50) is a strongly recommended choice. Another interesting choice has to be Ang Gu Kueh with ice-cream ($8.50).

FLEE AWAY CAFE

70 Dunlop Street SINGAPORE 209398