Checking out: Selfish Gene

Over one of the weekends, the weather was dreary for it felt like the rain was never-ending.  We did however find some time to try something new – checked out a coffee joint called ‘selfish gene cafe’ along Craig Road.

Since I was on a self-imposed one carb a day diet and trying very hard to stick my guns to the diet.  Decided that if I was going to have just a portion of carbs for that day, it better be worth it!  Heard that the lemon tart (available only on weekends) is really good, so I was hoping to sink my teeth into one of these tarts.  But unfortunately, by the time we got there, most of the sweets were already sold out.  We were left with only one choice.  ;(

Not exactly the top of my pick but well, thankfully it was a good piece of moist chocolate cake.  Totally worth the treat!

Coffee was dependable as well and the cafe was cosy and inviting, maybe one day we just might come back for Brunch.

selfish gene cafe

Address: 40 Craig Road, Singapore 089678

Telephone: +65 6423 1324

Checking out: baker & cook

After months of silence, the pal decided to wake up from her sleep and organise a get-together.  Fine by me, I just need to turn up.  The group chat on What’s app saw many messages going back and forth about the day to meet and the location.  The date was supposed to be on a Friday evening after work which the pal wanted to change to drinks at 9pm.  zzzz.. Honestly, I would have fallen asleep by the time we eventually met up.  Not the kinda Friday I want to be spending.  I rather head home after a simple dinner.  So we cancelled the date in view of a kinder time to suit me and the ex-boss’s timing.

The pal was sorely disappointed that we didn’t try to adhere to her timing so she sent out another text message asking if we were free on Sunday.  Turned out that the Man was away for a trip and the ex-boss’s other half was out-of-town as well, so Sunday afternoon worked out fine for us.  I wasn’t too hopeful that the said pal would turn up on time.  I mean 9 out of 10 times that we’ve arranged to meet, she’s been late.  But thankfully, the ex-boss’s company was the reason why I would go on this date.

We decided to check out Baker and Cook – a second outlet which was recently opened along Martin Road.  The first outlet at Hillcrest Road received rave reviews and I’ve been wanting to check the place out.  But knowing my paltry driving abilities, I would definitely get lost, so the second outlet along Martin Road was a better choice for our meet-up.

I’m not quite sure whether it was the rave reviews/ pics on Instagram stating how wonderful the food was at baker & cook but I was sorely disappointed.  The lemon tart that we ordered didn’t taste half as good as the others I’ve had.  My advice is to stay away from the pastries for they tasted bad when served cold.  I guess the very least the staff could have done was to ask if we wanted our pastries to be warmed up.  The coffee wasn’t all that great.  So the saving grace here?  The beef pie served with a side of rocket/tomato/feta cheese was the best we had for that afternoon.

Other than that, I don’t think that I will be making my way back here anytime soon.  Have you been to baker & cook?  If yes, I hope that you had a better experience and I would love to hear what you think of the place.

Checkin out: Nassim Hill Bakery, Bistro & Bar

Thanks to a rec by e from missus C’s reverie, I decided to go check out this place with Fashionista Cat in our long overdue coffee cum shopping date.  We decided to avoid the lunch-crowds on a public holiday and went for a late lunch instead.  Wasn’t feeling particularly hungry, so we shared a meal to keep the hunger pangs at bay.

I really liked the laid-back vibe that Nassim Hill Bakery Bistro Bar has to offer.  Tucked in a quiet part of town, the place is great for catching up with friends or over a book on a lazy afternoon.

Peeked over and had a look at our neighbours’ orders of Eggs Benedict, they didn’t look that great. This was followed by a verbal confirmation that it didn’t taste all that great either.  So completed skipped the eggs and went straight for the lunch menu of sandwiches.

We went for the Hot Rueben sandwich – a recommendation from e.  The sliced corned beef together with melted emmental, saurkreut, onions and Russian dressing on their signature Grimbergen Ambree beer bread was simply delicious.  The portions were good for sharing if you aren’t hungry.

Was in the mood for something sweet but the Almond French Toast nor the Wholemeal Belgian Waffle failed to tickle our fancy, so we had our cuppa and headed off in search of sweeter things ahead.

Nassim Hill Bakery | Bistro | Bar

Address:56 Tanglin Road, Tanglin Post Office, #01-03, Singapore

Telephone:+65 6835 1128

Opening Hours: 8am – 12am (Tuesdays – Sundays), closed on Mondays

 

Checkin’ out: Penny University

I love my hood.  I really do.  It’s got the best of all the amazing local food and sometimes, one will get pleasantly surprised with a couple of new finds.  Like this new artisanal coffee place that has recently sprung up.  Of course, I couldn’t resist making a pit-stop for a coffee break all in the name of checking out a new place. 

It was a dreary weekend and the looming dark clouds only called for threatened rainfall.  The Man and I had a couple of errands to run so to perk ourselves up, we decided to step into Penny University for a much-needed shot of caffeine.

I’m not going to proclaim I’m a coffee connoisseur because I really am not.  I can’t even tell how good the coffee is based on the roast, but I do know what makes a decent cup of coffee.   The Man’s tastebuds are slightly more discerning when it comes to what makes a good cuppa.

Was stuffed from lunch, so we ordered a cranberry scone to share.  The rest of the pastries and cakes didn’t seem to catch my attention.  Apparently, the kitchen does whip up occasional yummy bakes so I guess it really depends on your luck when you get there.  Guess, we weren’t that lucky that afternoon.

But the ambiance at Penny University made for a lovely place to people-watch, catch up on some reading or just to while the afternoon away before the start of a new week begins.  Looks like a potential new hang-out place. 

Penny University

Address: 402 East Coast Road, Singapore 428997

 

Checkin’ out: Chye Seng Huat Hardware Coffee Bar

Was supposed to go for an easy round of 9-hole golf with the Man on Sunday after our massage.  But it turned out, my massage therapist gave me a not-so-relaxing 90 minutes massage.  It was so super intense that it left me battered and bruised after the session.  I felt like I couldn’t walk and was certainly in no condition to do any kind of swinging on the green.  So we decided to go check out another new place – Chye Seng Huat Hardware Coffee Bar.

Opened by the folks who’s responsible for the success of Papa Palheta and Loysel’s Toy, Chye Seng Huat Hardware Coffee Bar looks set to follow in its predecessors footsteps.  I haven’t been to the former two, but have heard and read of the rave reviews by bloggers and friends.  So I’m pretty pleased to head down to their latest outlet to check out their offerings.

I’m no coffee connoisseur but I do enjoy a cuppa quite frequently, so I was pretty excited to see how good the coffee was.  Feeling a little famished from the early breakie we had, I glanced at the menu and spied a couple of items that would be really good as tummy-fillers (appropriately classified if I may add).

We were there at about 2.30pm on a Sunday afternoon and despite the light rains, it was pretty crowded.  It was probably the brunch / lunch crowd that we bumped into.  Thankfully, it wasn’t exactly a very long wait for we managed to get a counter-seat after about 10 minutes.

After securing our seats, the Man went over to the counter to get our food and drinks.  The coffee is freshly brewed and made on the spot.  The servers will not be sending you your drinks, so stick around and make sure you pick your beverage orders up before returning to your seat.

Like I said, I’m not too good with coffee language and sent the Man with the wrong order.  Not very pleased with my order of fresh brew and milk, I decided to go and get another cuppa.  This time round, I got the Espresso with Milk (yup, an equivalent of a latte).

A much more satisfying brew if I may add.

As for light bites?  The Man ordered the Hazelnut and Ginger Tea-Cake which I thought was really good.  I liked the light hint of hazelnut coupled with the ginger bits in the tea-cake.  A refreshing combination that I’ve not tasted anywhere else.  Many of the baked goods available at CSHH are made fresh from their kitchen and they run out pretty fast.  I saw a fresh batch of lemon madeleines that were placed on the counter and they looked awesome!  Pity the queue was too long and I was too lazy to rejoin the queue just to buy them back.  This definitely calls for another trip down I guess.

And because we felt like having something savory, we got the Breakfast Daily.  Today’s special was the Baked Ratatouille with an Egg.  Don’t you just love breakfast items that can be eaten at any time of the day?  This definitely was and made for a real satisfying snack.

I do hope we make another trip down soon.  Those beef patties that I spied some of the customers having looked super yummy.  And if we do come again, I’m going to bring me an empty tummy to fill up on food and coffee. 

Chye Seng Huat Hardware Coffee Bar

Address: 150 Tyrwhitt Road, Singapore

Telephone: +65 6396 0609

Opening Hours: Tues to Thurs, 9am to 7pm / Fri to Sun, 9am to 10pm

 

Checkin’ out: Henry Congressional

After a not-so-pleasant lunch at Menya Musashi over at Ion, I deliberately avoided the weekend crowds over at Orchard and suggested coffee at Henry Congressional to the Man.  Not a huge fan of crowds, he obliged.

Nestled in Henry Park  Apartments, Henry Congressional is a pop-up cafe that will be gone in January 2013 along with the rest of the estate.

I’ve been reading about Henry Congressional from some of the bloggers and was excited to try out the much-raved about Pandan Cake that’s baked from scratch using all natural ingredients. 

It was such a hot day, so skipped the coffee and went straight for the iced tea. 

The pandan cake was truly light and fluffy.  Almost couldn’t stop myself from stuffing my face with more cake.  The Man who’s normally a pandan cake fan took just a couple of bites of the cake cos I finished it off rather quickly.

And I was almost ready to step out of Henry Congressional but Y’s tweet stopped me from doing so.  Ended up with another dessert - Flourless Chocolate Cake in the tummy before heading out.  I was very stuffed thereafter but happy to have spent a lazy Sunday afternoon with a seemingly naughty read as the Man flipped glossy pages of the mags. 

Henry Congressional
Address: 44 Holland Grove Road, Singapore.
Opening hours: Wed& Thurs: 8am-10pm, Fri: 8am-12am, Sat & Sun: 10am-12am.  Closed Monday and Tuesday.

Checkin’ out: The Orange Thimble

Trying to keep up with a list of cool cafes/ hip new joints that I’ve never been before, I decided to start yet another list on my blog.    Our tiny island is becoming a lot more interesting with new places springing up in unusual places – we’re definitely spoiled for choice.  I don’t think I ever got round to checking some of these new places fast enough but at least I’m slowly getting there.. in my own time.. and that’s good enough for me.

After dinner at Ting Heng Seafood Restaurant, I was in the mood for some coffee and dessert around the Tiong Bahru ‘hood deciding between Drips Bakery Cafe or The Orange Thimble.  Asked the good people on my Tweet feed where I should head to and very quickly, the Imp replied and recommended The Orange Thimble.  I’ve been out with the Imp a couple of times and I knew I can trust the Imp’s taste when it comes to quality food and drinks, so off to The Orange Thimble we went.

What a charming cafe it turned out to be.  It wasn’t too crowded, think we were lucky to have escaped the weekend afternoon tea crowds.  Surveyed the menu on the board and went for the Piccolo Latte while the Man had his Choco Milkshake for dessert.  The cakes on displayed didn’t quite catch my fancy.

The variety of ice-creams, on the other hand, caught my eye.  I decided since I skipped carbs for dinner, I could have some dessert.  So a scoop of sea-salt caramel ice-cream it was.  But the server gave me the wrong flavour – the Earl Grey with Figs ice-cream – took 2 spoonfuls and decided that there was nothing sea-salt nor caramel in the ice-cream.  Thankfully, she changed the order and I did get my sugar fix.  The ice-cream was delightful, just the right tinge of sea-salt with almonds scattered sparingly in the ice-cream.

I was one happy gal!   I’ll like to make another visit here, this time round to try out the Shepard’s Pie and the Nachos.  A couple of the customers ordered those and my ears perked up when I heard the orders.  Have you tried either of those?  Any good?

The Orange Thimble

Address: Blk 56, #01-68, Eng Hoon Street, Tiong Bahru, Singapore