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2013-12-10
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I must admit that any place with a focus on delicious and pretty desserts is huge drawing factor for me. Throw in a charming decor as well and I am sold. So when I learned about Pique Nique and saw photos of their place and desserts, I knew that I couldn't pass up a chance to check it out!I managed to find someone to have a little 'picnic' with me at Pique Nique and we went on a Saturday evening. We were expecting a queue especially since this was a weekend evening but we were rather throw
I managed to find someone to have a little 'picnic' with me at Pique Nique and we went on a Saturday evening. We were expecting a queue especially since this was a weekend evening but we were rather thrown off to find the place nearly empty. It got me wondering if Pique Nique might be more popular in the morning instead due to its breakfast and brunch menu...
Despite the uncertainty, we decided to stick to our original plan after actually seeing the place in person. The place looked very welcoming especially with the lovely array of sweets and desserts in the display counter at the entrance, which just seemed intent on beckoning us in. There were the Classic Chocolate Whoopie ($2.15) and pretty little Macarons ($2.15) ranging in flavours from Salty Caramel and Pistachio to French Chocolate. There were also cupcakes like Lemon Meringue Cupcake ($5.15) and Banana Split Cupcake ($5.15) as well as cakes like Chocorocco ($8.55) and Strawberry Cheesecake ($8.05). How can anyone resist such pretty desserts, right??
With its English Garden themed interior, the entire place was very tastefully decorated and had a homely, rustic charm to it. There was even a "tree" planted in the middle of the cafe, which added to the illusion of having a lovely picnic in the place. Due to the lack of crowd, the place was relatively quiet. That and the cozy ambience of the place made it very pleasant to hold conversations. We thought that Pique Nique would certainly make a nice stop to try out the desserts and enjoy a small chit chat while soaking in the environment. We were pretty impressed with the decor, so much that we took quite a long time to order our food because we spent the time trying to (secretly) take snapshots of the place! Fortunately, the staff were mostly understanding and patient with us!
Single Shot Espresso ($4.00) - leftThe cup of Espresso was not even half filled but this was probably roughly the portion for a single shot (about 30ml). This was quite concentrated in taste and there was a creamy foam on the surface of the coffee as well, but for $4.00, we found this to be really pricey and regretted not getting the Latte at $5.00 instead.
Hot Chocolate ($7.00) - right
The cup of hot chocolate didn't come with the fluffy cloud marshmallow like it mentioned on the menu, although the staff made sure to inform us of it. I was sorely disappointed about it, but nevertheless, we still wanted to try the hot chocolate. Fortunately, this came in a bigger and fully filled cup. This didn't look very smooth on the surface but it was slightly thick and the taste of cocoa was strong with a slight bitter aftertaste. It wasn't very sweet either although I'd have liked it to be a tad more so.
Hot Iron Waffle with Salty Caramel ($11.80)This was the best among all the food we ordered. The waffle was crispy on the outside and was quite soft and oh-so-spongy inside! The ice cream was thick, creamy and rich with a strong taste of fragrant vanilla. I found the caramel taste to be a tad light, but otherwise this was simply a delight to eat! We had originally planned to share this but ended up agreeing that we might as well have skipped the fries and got two portions of the waffles instead for each of us!
Whoopie Fries ($8.80)Initially fearing that the waffles might not be too filling for us, we also got the fries to share. Oh boy, bad mistake. The portion was HUGE and we struggled to finish it between the two of us. We ended up giving up and not finishing it in the end, which was kind of a waste. The fries itself was pretty nice although we found the seasoning powder to be rather dry; it was a tad grating on the throat after several fries. You definitely need lots of water with this. The sauce was disappointing though, just normal chilli and tomato ketchup with the mayonnaise in between. For the price, we would expect a better, or inhouse, blend of dip. Overall, this was something we felt we could do without in this meal.
Chococheese Cupcake ($4.80) It was a tough choice between getting a cake or a cupcake but we eventually opted for the cupcake. The Chococheese Cupcake was a chocolate cupcake topped with cream cheese and chocolate shavings. The price for the cupcake listed on their display counter was $5.15 but we paid $4.80 for it. Not sure if the cakes and cupcakes would be a little cheaper if you dine in, but we still found it to be a bit pricey at $4.80. However, the cupcake was decent and the chocolate shavings given were rather big pieces! The thick cream cheese topping was also quite delicious although we found the cupcake to be a tad dry.
Snickerdoodle Cinnamon Shortbread ($6.50)We noticed that Pique Nique was also selling "old fashioned homemade" cookies and shortbreads in pretty little packagings, which would make really great gifts! The cookies came in various flavours such as Chocolate Chip Walnut Cookies, Dannish Butter Cookies, Scottish Shortbread and Chocolate Butter Ball ($6.95 each). We bought the Snickerdoodle Cinnamon Shortbread to go, although we were also tempted to get the Chocolate Butter Ball too! This was priced at $6.95 but we got it at $6.50. I personally found this to be worth its price. The bite-sized cookies were coated with cinammon sugar and tasted strongly of cinnamon. They were also very crisp and crunchy and remained so even after a week! I'd highly recommend these cookies although I'd suggest finishing them soon after opening as these tend to expire quite fast compared to mass-produced ones.
After our not-so-cheap "picnic" ($50.50 for two person), we found the waffle and snickerdoodle cookies to be our best purchases yet - these were worth every cent despite the price. The espresso and whooper fries on the other hand were not exactly value for money although the portion of the fries was quite a lot and would probably be more reasonable if you are sharing the food and cost with a group of friends. The cupcake and hot chocolate were decent but perhaps a tad pricey. Service was also decent and the staff were generally friendly, understanding and patient.
The ambience, in my personal opinion, was certainly a major selling point. If you are looking to have a casual, laid back meal with friends or a date and cost is not a major concern, then a "picnic" at Pique Nique might be just for you! I certainly wouldn't mind coming back again for the waffle and to check out the other desserts like the macarons and cakes, and especially the other 'homemade' cookies!
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