The latest rave on the cafe scene has got to be My Awesome Café 真棒堂. Housed in the old Chung Hwa Free Clinic, My Awesome Cafe not only has a much talked/Instagrammed about entrance, the interior is another designer playground with vintage, restored and remade furniture carefully curated by its owners and i had the pleasure of chatting with Franck, the uber friendly owner, when i visited them for lunch.

If you found the tables and fans a little familiar, well, you probably have seen them in school. I love how the industrious space is lit by natural light and christmas trees in bulbs (because everyday should be Christmas).

According to Franck, the menu has expanded 3 times in their 1st month of opening, thanks to suggestions by their loyal regulars. The famed My Awesome Salad ($15) was suggested by the fitness instructors from the nearby gyms and you can be guaranteed a protein packed and healthy meal.

And it was really Awesome. Generous portion of mesclun with smoked salmon, tender herbed chicken breast, oh-so-decadent duck rillettes, avocado and tomatoes. The duck rillettes come from a small farm in France and it has that perfect buttery texture with the right touch of saltiness. The crusty bread was irresistible with freshly ground basil pesto.

The secret to such awesomeness is fresh produce. The leaves are flown in 3 times a week from Australia, and other produce like tomatoes and avocados are hand picked from Tiong Bahru market by Franck! Most of their ingredients are all carefully sourced from small producers so it's not just fresh but also really exclusive.

I had a Latte ($4.50) to go with my meal. The coffee is made from a blend of Colombian, Brazilian and Ethiopian (or is it Sumatran) beans and are roasted in Singapore by a small time roaster (secret is still in the bag). The robust flavors were complemented by the New Zealand grass fed cow milk. 

If you want something more substantial, well there are sandwich options ($12-$15) with fillings like Spicy Beef, Duck Rillettes (a must eat), Grilled Eggplant Hummus Dip & Tomato and more. The breads and pastries are baked fresh daily so you can be guaranteed of its freshness. I love their breads! If you are for something smaller, there are breakfast croissants (with runny scrambled eggs) along with other toppings.

As we were chatting, the fresh-out-of-the-oven desserts were making their way around the cafe and Franck offered me a taste of 2 of them, the Bread & Butter Pudding and Upside Down Pineapple Cake ($4.50 each).

I was surprised by how light and refreshing the Pineapple Cake was (only because i had this impression that it would be really cloying). Love the buttery cake base with the naturally sweet juicy pineapples.

The Bread and Butter pudding is certainly different from the usual rich moist and spongy suspect. This came served with a liquid whipping cream which is the more milky version of evaporated milk. The top layer is actually a croissant, which tended on the dry side from the baking but i enjoyed the bread bottom.

Come night time, My Awesome Cafe transforms into a bar serving happy drinks with their Happy Hour. There are some special beers too. Have them with the Cold Cuts Platter with home-made spreads for only $20/pax and comes with free flow of bread. I'd be damned if i don't finish them all. Vegetarians can feast on some really delicious vegetarian cold cuts too. Franck will also be introducing a Goats Cheese platter starting next week so look out for that!

So yes, My Awesome Cafe is really awesome. Great food, great vibe, great service. Kudos to Mr Awesome here for bringing us such good stuff. 

My Awesome Café 真棒堂
202 Telok Ayer, Singapore 068630
Weekdays: 7am – 7pm 

Weekends: 10am – 3pm

A good love story always begins with fresh, rustic bread. That's how The Missing Pan was started by by artisan bakers and husband-and-wife team Bernard Toh and Grace Chia in November 2013. I couldn't help but fall in love with this all-day bakery/brasserie that serves up freshly baked organic breads in their little shophouse along Bukit Timah Road.  

The first level is the bakery that spills out to the small alfresco area along the sidewalk. But hidden on the upper floor is a cosy brasserie where diners get to enjoy more elaborate meals. 

We started with the Bircher Muesli ($10), my go to when I want something healthier. TMP's version is smoother but you could still get the great taste of Granny Smith, muesli, puffed brown rice, oats, maple syrup, nuts, cinnamon in a yogurt mix. I love how tangy the dish was and it's a great starter to share but it certainly will fill you up if you have it as a main.

The French Toast Salpicon ($19) is a delightful plate with the many colorful fruits. It may look like an ordinary sweet french toast but it hides a huge secret within it.

Cut through that fluffy brioche and out spills a savory combination of chicken, spinach and mushrooms. Weird it is not, in fact I thought the gravy could be more creamy and savory. It's really a go-bold-or-go-home dish. The strawberry-smoked maple syrup was delightful with the toast though.

The 62 Degree Eggs Benedict with Smoked salmon ($22) is another favorite with diners. TMP got all the ingredients right; perfect salmon, creamy avocado, seaweed crumbs on crunchy sourdough but the somewhat weak in-house hollandaise sauce didn't managed to lift the dish. The overall taste was a lil blah.

I would love to have the Beetroot and Quinoa Salad ($12) but they ran out of the ingredients sadly. 

The Guinness Pot Pie ($24) got most of the things right. Hearty beef stew with Guinness topped with a buttery flaky puffed pastry. This is the perfect cold weather dish!

If you remember Uppercrust, well TMP's owners were behind that. They kept some of their best sellers such as the Pulled Pork Burger ($19).

There is quite a selection of desserts from the bakery and great with the coffee.

For desserts, the Mela Con Formaggi ($14) is a sweet-savoury combination of granny smith, banana caramel sauce, chocolate soil, citrus mascarpone, homemade honeycomb and parmigiano reggiano chips. I couldn't stop eating this one.

The Chewy Brownie Coffee Cheesecake ($7.20) will satisfy your coffee addiction. I loves the creamy cheesecake on top and the chewy chocolate brownie base. Delicious!

My mean cup of coffee complemented the sweets well. TMP uses a special blend customised by a local coffee roaster. The coffee is smooth with slight chocolatey undertones. If coffee is not your thang, there are milkshakes, ciders and a good selection of craft beers from Belgium and the United Kingdom.

The Missing Pan also offers hearty dinners such as Pan-Fried Red Snapper ($24) and roasted chicken. Or if you're like me, you can always have toast for dinner!

The Missing Pan

619D Bukit Timah Road, #01/02-01 Singapore 269724

Tel: +65 6466 4377 

Tue - Fri: 9am - 2.30pm, 6pm – 9pm 

Weekends: 9am – 4pm, 6pm – 9pm

Common Man Coffee Roasters has been creating waves on the coffee scene. Well, with the partnership of indie coffee father Harry Grover of 40 Hands, Australia’s Five Senses Coffee and the lifestyle conglomerate Spa Spirit Group, it is no wonder why and how CMCR is drawing in the crowd.

Located at 22 Martin Road, Common Man Coffee Roasters join the many artisan coffee shops e.g. Kith Cafe, Toby's Estate, Smitten in the Robertson enclave to provide us, brunch hungry Singaporeans with a reason to wake early on weekends. Be prepared to wait for your table but be thankful that breakfast doesn't run out because they serve an All Day Breakfast menu. 

The decor and vibe is very Aussie. I like the cool bar seats which plays with varying heights. And those spotlights sure do make me feel like i'm on Broadway.

I can't help but notice the sign behind the bar that says "Free Coffee and Doughnuts for the Unemployed". Well i don't see any doughnuts on the menu and you definitely would be paying an arm or leg for the pricey food that is served at CMCR. Really there is nothing Common Man about the prices. I mean god.. what did eggs become so expensive in Singapore?

Ignoring the little dishes for breakfast, the heartier options like the Common Man Full Breakfast, Turkish CM Breakfast are all in the mid 20s range. I have no qualms with spending 30 bucks on brunch with coffee but even i am feeling the pinch here. Expect higher prices for the lunch menu. Desserts also go at a whooping $12.

Organic Eggs Benedict ($24) with two poached eggs on top of tender braised ox cheeks and lightly toasted artisanal sourdough toast. This has been raved about by many. Well, at least it is a fresh take on the typical (but always satisfying) Eggs Ben.

The meat was very tender, the eggs flawlessly poached and the hollandaise sauce was rich and creamy in terms of texture. Everything felt rich i.e. on the oily side but it was a bland dish. I was expecting the braised ox cheeks to be more umami but it was just meaty. The hollandaise also lacked the tangy citrus taste. The richness of the dish was a little discomforting towards the end of the meal so it was a good thing that the portion is small?

My Mocha ($6) was stellar. W judges V and i and anyone who orders mocha because he feels that it conceals the quality of the coffee with the cloying sweetness from the chocolate. However, this mocha was nicely perfumed with the intense chocolate aroma and i thought it enhanced the flavor of the smooth coffee.

Common Man Coffee Roasters isn't for the common man but it's ok to indulge in an expensive plate of eggs once in a while i guess.

Common Man Coffee Roasters
22 Martin Road Singapore 239058
Tel: +65 6836 4695
Daily: 8am - 7pm 

Clinton Street Bakery serves the BEST Breakfast in New York City. There I said it. Even though i haven't tried all the breakfast places in NYC but it about tops all the breakfasts that i have had in my entire life. That's gotta be something considering i do Breakfast-Breakfast-Breakfast-Breakfast-Breakfast for my meals. And NYC agrees with me, because practically everyone in the city was there queuing to get a table at this coveted bakery/cafe/bistro/restaurant.

Despite our best efforts to get there early, the starving and jet-lagged us (mainly S) were told the wait was 2-3 hours. Desperation called for some random breakfast around the corner (which turned out to be decent), just so we could have a taste of the best blueberry pancakes in NYC (crowned by New York Magazine twice) and more.

The wait and additional calories consumed prior were all worth it when i took that first bite into my Eggs Benedict (US$15). Perfectly poached cafe free organic eggs sat on top the maple cured ham and the signature toasted buttermilk biscuit and given a generous pour over of a creamy, cheesy and full bodied hollandaise sauce. This is THE orgasmic combination and i think we should only do Eggs Ben on Biscuits from now on.

It isn't the most traditional Eggs Benny but who cares? Clinton Street Bakery is part Jewish deli, some Mexican stop and the rest American take out, but the best qualities of them mixed together, as said by owner/chef Neil Kleinberg. It's that kind of hearty food that comforts and warms the tummy when one is exhausted and starved, just as we were that morning.

Great ingredients maketh a good meal and Clinton Street Bakery sources their products from organic and quality farms so that means cage free eggs and chickens, seasonal and local produce, as well as prime quality meats and high grade maple syrup.

Their Award winning pancakes also had Martha Steward singing their praises. Their Wild Maine Blueberry with warm maple butter ($14) are so recognizable i could identify it anywhere. Texture-wise, it's like biting into a slightly salted and buttery cloud dusted with snowy icing. And that warm maple butter is simply divine. This is an excellence case of the whole is greater than the sum of its parts.

And guess what?! The above mentioned items are served ALL DAY. YESSSS! Even for dinner. That's how good and popular they are. The other 2 breakfast items available all day include The Clinton St. Omelette ($14) and the Huevos Rancheros (Mexican breakfast tortilla, $14).

I guess i'll never do lunch or dinner at Clinton Street Bakery. I'm sure that they do some good food as well but nothing can trump breakfast. If you wanna do the other breakfast items, they are served daily from 8am to 4pm.

Clinton Street Bakery
4 Clinton Street (btw. East Houston & Stanton)

New York, NY 10002 

Tel: +1 646 602 6263

If you want a quiet brunch in town, Nassim Hill Bakery,  does a good job of satisfying an egg craving. The outpost at the hidden part of Tanglin Post Office is nowhere to be seen from the main road. You have to get in, head up and navigate through the butchery and out to find it. I thought they were closed when i was looking for the place. The easiest way is to drive up Nassim Road and it's just next to the Post Office entrance. 

The place wasn't too packed on a Saturday afternoon. I don't think 1pm is too late for brunch. I hope it stays this way, though i've let out on this secret. Bistro and Bakery by day, Nassim Hill Bakery does a wholesome breakfast food for egg crazy people like me. At night, she transforms into a bar serving unique cocktails and the aromatic Grimbergen draught beers (A Belgian abbey beer first to debut in Asia and exclusive to Nassim Hill and 1128). A dinner menu is also available.

All breakfast sets comes with a basket of bread, all freshly baked by Freshly Baked (read review here), one of my favorite bakeries! Head Baker Audrey takes charge of the bakery section and supplied Nassim Hill Bakery with the same breads that is ever so perfect and familiar. The bread basket includes the fluffy white ciabatta, the yeasty and malty Grimbergen Ambree bread, fluffy Walnut raisin bread and cereal rye bread.

The Hearty Scrambled Eggs ($20) was creamy and runny and it was served with Swiss cheese, French Rosette de Lyon salami or prosciutto with our signature Grimbergen Ambrée beer bread.

Lovely Eggs Benedict ($20) on the airy white ciabatta pillows. Perfectly poached eggs with chunky succulent and sweet smoked ham, creamy hollandaise sauce with the right amount of acidity, what more can i ask for in a Benny? I reluctantly swapped a half of my benny with S's Hot Reuben, which i ordered for him because i wanted to try. Haha. 

I did not regret exchanging our dishes at all. Seriously, this is the star attraction at Nassim Hill. The Hot Reuben ($18) is a massive sandwich of sliced corned beef with melted emmental cheese, saurkraut, onions and Russian dressing on their signature Grimbergen Ambrée beer bread. This sandwich is absolutely appetizing and no one flavor overpowered the other. The malty aroma in the bread could be tasted in every bite. This is definitely my must-order from now on. 

Their coffees ain't quite impressive and neither were their iced teas. The mocha was way too sweet, even for the boy with the sweet tooth. Chocolate syrup=meh but i love the ginger snapps that came with it. Yums.

Adding to my list of yummy brunches in town!

Nassim Hill Bakery
56 Tanglin Road
Tanglin Post Office #01-03
Tel: +65 6835 1128
Tue-Sun: 8am - 8pm

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It seems like Japanese themed malls are all the rage these days. Just along Orchard Road there's the entire atrium at Plaza Singapura and now 313 Somerset has recently revamped its level 3 to house all things Nihon in terms of food and fashion. Taking over the terribly overpriced Blue Mountain is Japanese Italian Cafe Dolce Tokyo which serves an extensive variety of Japanese sweets, as well as other savory dishes.

With more than 50 variations of tea and coffee at Dolce Tokyo, ranging from lattes, frappes to shakes, it is no wonder why Dolce Tokyo is the perfect spot for shoppers to rest their feet after shopping, or for those looking for a sweet something to conclude their meal. 

I had the milky Iced Matcha Latte ($7) which was a welcomed relief after my hot yoga session. Would have preferred a more intense green tea flavor but this would suffice. The signature blended Iced Mint Yuzu Tea ($6.50) was a little too funky for me. The tea was quite sweet but the bitter aftertaste from the yuzu peel and the cool mint made me put the drink aside after 2 sips. Well i did give it a second chance.. 

I would say that the cafe is really more Japanese than Italian. Don't go expecting pasta or pizzas as sandwiches and crostinis are the Italiano representatives here. The Mixed Crostini Platter ($18) consists of the tomato concasse with chilled shrimps, salmon roe, tamagoyaki, smoked salmon (we had parma ham instead). Mix and match your own. These are pretty good for sharing and i love the crispy grilled multigrain bread that is from their central kitchen.

All day breakfast is also served here but i'm not impressed with the food. With Wild Honey (read review here) just next door serving better quality breakfasts at similar prices, i really don't see myself paying $22 for the Smoked Salmon Benny here. That's not to say it's terrible tasting. It's decent, just not worth the price tag. My advice? Stick to the Japanese dishes. 

The Hiyashi Chuka ($17/19) is one of our favorite dishes of the night. Cold Somen with strips of tamago, cucumber, carot, ginger, ikura, gammon ham, nori, wolfberries and shrimps; drizzled with a light sesame sauce. I can never say no to cold Japanese noodles. It's so easy on the palate I could finish it all. 

If you like Curry Rice, the one at Dolce Tokyo is pretty decent and rich in flavor. Each order (original $16; omu rice $19) comes with a stick of skewer (choose from a selection of 4). The Teriyaki Pork Belly skewer is well marinated and tenderly braised just like the chinese kong ba. The 3 side dishes changes daily; we had the baby octopus, potato salad and marinated jellyfish. Another hit with us.

A Sukiyaki styled hotplate is also available. We had the Ebi Toji ($12) topped with a Pork Chorizo Sausage. S loved every bit of this because sukiyaki is his nemesis. Add on $5.50 for a bowl of rice with miso soup or $8.90 for a slice of cake/dessert of the day.

I'm quite a fan of the Unagi Fried Rice served in a hotstone bowl ($20). This comes with a skewer as well. Flavorful fried Japanese pearl rice which is slightly sticky and fluffy. Good quality unagi, comparable to any decent Japanese restaurant, was served. My favorite part of the dish has got to be the crispy burnt rice at the bottom. Crunchy!

Now on to desserts. The Japanese style cakes are light and fluffy. The Yuzu cake is made the traditional way, a little more grainy and dry. However, the yuzu paste was refreshing and not too sweet. The chef insists on using Japanese ingredients for the cakes, which kinda translates to higher costs. This slice will set you back by $11.50 but it's a huge slice that can be easily shared between 2-3 pax depending on your appetite.

I absolutely adore the Green Tea with Goma Sesame cake. This is moist and light and rich in the black goma and matcha flavors. The matcha-goma crumble on top really takes the cake, literally and figuratively. I would have this anytime. Highly recommended. 

The Dolce Tokyo’s signature Dessert Bento ($18.90) is a combination of desserts in tasting portions. Shiratama (a popular Japanese rice cake) with Konnyaku Jelly, Panna Cotta with Caramel and Marshmallow, with Brownie and Vanilla Gelato all in one dessert box (ours was replaced with carrot cake and matcha ice cream). It's a little haphazard and none of the above impressed me. I ate all that kantan jelly even though it was tasteless because i was told it will improve my complexion. Beauty be the death of me. 

Located at Level 3 of 313 Somerset next to popular Japanese fashion stores Uniqlo and Lowry’s Farm, Dolce Tokyo is a relaxing spot for customers to wind down and mingle with friends over a nice meal or cakes. Give it a shot. Follow my recommendations and you won't go wrong. 

Dolce Tokyo

313 Orchard Road, #03-23, 313 Somerset Mall 

Tel: +65 6836 5612

Sun-Thu: 11.30am – 10.30pm 

Fri, Sat, Eve PH: 11.30am – 11.00pm