Only recently uncovered, Cakes Literally is yet another addition to the already booming site in Farrer Park, no less an of-standard one. I’m not complaining, because food enthusiasts like myself just can’t get enough of cafes, can we.The high contrast of colors exudes a simple yet sophisticated ambience. The pristine white urges you to sit down, unwind and have a cup of coffee and cake. Though they don’t house the most comfortable pieces of furniture, their warm hospitality and slow-dancing tunes make it all up. Run by a close-knit family, you can expect a fuss-free, rules-free kind of cafe-experience, while letting your hair down to sounds from artists like James Morrison and Colbie Caillat from their iPod (that was before a huge crowd of family, including children, came in and stole the mood away).A few words can sum up what Cakes Literally offers – Coffee, Tea, Cakes. Not the most extensive, but hey, simplicity is the way to go now in this fast-paced society, isn’t it.Latte ($4.50) :: When it’s coffee from Papa Palheta, you know it wouldn’t go wrong. Arguably the best coffee I’ve ever had, we further had another cup of Mocha ($4.80) just to fully satisfy our caffeine cravings since the brunch place we were at failed miserably. The Mocha was especially intriguing, as shaved Belgian Belcolade Dark Chocolate makes up the chocolate in the mocha. It was like in coffee heaven; high in acidity, aroma so sublime, and an overall impression that lasts.Valrhona Flourless Cake ($7.50) :: Not only is it flourless, it is also gluten-free, and 100% self-baked. + Mousse + chocolate shards + cocoa + venchi chocolate caviar in belcolade shell. I love the semi-cake semi-mousse overall texture of it, where you can still get a good bite but a soft and smooth one. For the more intense chocolate lovers, go ahead and sprinkle the cup of venchi chocolate caviar over your slice of cake. But to be honest, maybe I have a high tolerance but it wasn’t unbearable at all.Orange Almond Cake ($5.50) :: This, on the other hand, has a different texture all together. Surprisingly, I love the combination. It wasn’t as tangy as I had expected, which is good. Crushed almond is mixed in the cake itself, which I suspect gives the rough and grainy surface of the cake. While the flavor was satisfying, the texture did not quite float my boat.

I have no qualms that they will, like most small family-business, have consistent impeccable service. They’re constantly cheerful and approachable. If I am in the area, I wouldn’t think twice going through the glass door again.

Note #1: Only cash accepted.

Note #2: Prices stated are nett. No GST and service charge.

Note #3: They also sell whole-cakes.

We were extremely disappointed with our visit to The Dunearn, both in terms of the food quality and especially so for their unacceptable service level.

Upon entering, we were quickly ushered to our seats by a grumpy looking waitress who was rather impatient with us when we queried on some of the food items. Her answers were mostly a repetition of the information shown on the menu and provided little or no value-addedness to us.

The starters were served pretty shortly but where's the bread?! This is one item which should have been served almost immediately upon seated at any reputable fine dining restaurant. We found this rather strange and requested if we could have some bread to go along with the soup we ordered. And guess what, to our horror, the waitress actually replied, "NO BREAD" when we saw her serving a basket of bread to a Caucasian couple just moments ago. This is simply atrocious and we demanded to see the manager regarding this. The manager took some time to attend to us (with a cold basket of bread in hand) and came up with some lame excuse that the bread was not ready previously to pacify us, like seriously?!

Here's a snap shot of our orders that day. Don't be fooled by the visually appealing presentation as we found the quality to be befitting of the ambience and price we're paying for. Looks can be deceiving.

Iberico Ham, Cantaloupe Jello and Petite Salad
One of the better dishes served that meal. I found the salad and fruits jello to be pretty refreshing and complemented the ham well.

Chicken Gumbo
A disaster. The soup was quite salty with tiny bits of chicken skin (where's the meat this time round?!) floating in it. We were expecting something more hearty and were quite disappointed with what was served.

Baked Spatchcock with Red Wine Jus
A decent dish but nothing impressive about it. It somehow seemed slightly overcooked as the meat was tougher than usual.

Mullet Confit with Light Lemongrass Emulsion
The fish was well cooked but I could hardly taste any hint of lemongrass (one of my personal favourite scents) at all! This dish should have been more aptly named "Mullet Confit with Cream Sauce"...

Mango Mille Crepe with Chocolate Sorbet
Another disaster, period. The Mille Crepe was frozen and had this weird refrigerator taste which was a major turn off. The Sorbet was no much better as it was totally icy and hard. In retrospect, this dessert might just jolly well have been in cold storage for as long as we could image!

Overall, this will be our first and very last visit. Disappointing food plus frustrating service – couldn't image what more could go wrong!

Ivy is craving for crabs cos her friends "areoplane" her, so she asked if Angela & myself can help her satisfy her craving. We decided to check out the newly opened Momma Kong's Crab Shack at Mosque Street. Simple yet cozy environment. Great for friends gathering!

Menu were limited, so gotta wait for other diners to finish ordering before you get your hands on it. They should consider printing more copies to cater for bigger crowd. "Tools & bins" were also provided on all tables

We were there few minutes before the Happy Hour ends, so we got our ciders at 25% off! I have Pear while Ivy & Angle goes for Elderflower & lime.Our meal started off with Spicy Tangy Top Shell $15 - A little bit of sourness, sweetness & spiciness. Pretty good but I find it too watery. Spicy Ikan Bilis $6 is superb! Tiny yet crunchy. The girls asked for the belachan to put put aside in case it's too spicy. After the first few mouthful of it, the girls decided to dump the rest of the belechan into the remaining Ikan Bilis but soon regretted their decision cos it turn out to be really spicy, but it was terribly good! I asked if they sell the belechan on its own; sadly it is not available for sale now but they will consider selling it soon! Tofu Chips $6 is surprisingly soft inside & crunchy outsideThe crabs are $38 each or $110 for a set of 3 crabs. We decided to opt for the set of 3. We were deciding between Steam or Black Pepper Crab & finally decided on Steam Crab to check out the quality since I read somewhere that the crabs here are frozen. Thus, first on the list will be Steam Crab as this has got the mildest taste. Surprisingly, this is nicely done & couldn't taste that it's frozen. Next on the list - Crab in Bee Hoon Soup. The soup is however a little fishy but it gets better after adding the Hua Diao which is provided at the side. The Pretty Fried Man Tou $1.50 (min 2pc) is surprisingly sweet to eat on it's own. However, it was quite huge I couldn't even finish 2! Luckily we didn't order 2pc each Lastly, Chili Crab. The chili is not like the usual sweet & spicy type which you get in most hawker center. The chili crab here is a little spicy it musk the taste of the crab. The sauce is a little dry & I wish it was served with more sauce.

Service here were friendly & attentive; superb! I won't mind going back again to try the Black Pepper Crab & other new variants if available!

One of the reason beside that this place is super cheap is they have very good homemade thai chilli sauces which many places don’t have.All in all they have 3 types of chilli sauces which is suppose to go well with either seafood,meat or another type which is the so called similar to MK steamboat one.Personally I like the seafood one the most as it’s a bit more on the spicy side with a tangling citrus after taste.
Other than that,they have no set menu,everything is by ala cart order. However,most of the basic food for mookata are all listed in the menu like prawn,chicken,pork,beef..etc
I spent $24.40 for 2 pax which I think it was very cheap as usually I spent more than $25 per pax at other mookata place.
For more details you can read at my blog http://hannahchia.tumblr.com/post/59693306007/siam-square-mookata-the-hawker-centre-mookata

Despite being a Singaporean since birth, I have never ventured into Farrer Park. It doesn't look ulu on the map (being two stops away from Dhoby Ghaut). But somehow there is nothing there for me to venture. Recently I saw an Openrice article on nice cafes to hangout, and one of them is L'etoile cafe hidden in Farrer Park along Owen Road. The small but cosy-looking picture of it was tempting enough for me to travel to Farrer Park. It's a two-storey indie cafe along a stretch of shophouses. L'etoile means "star" in French, and it's also the symbol of this cafe.

I was quite pleased when I stepped into L'etoile. The cafe was very bright and made use of full length windows. The use of different types of mismatched furniture made the place very colourful and homely. The designer of L'etoile should deserve some award for making it look so pretty and inviting! There are several corners which you can just laze in with your group of friends or with your significant other. Some of my favorite corners:

#1 - By the window on second floor. I love how the curtains blocked out the harsh sun rays and gave the place a soft focus look. #2 - Cosy corner on first floor. #3 - Cosy corner on second floor. If you look carefully below, this table is actually a sewing machine table. Quite creative to use as a dining table and it gives the place a nostalgic vibe too. One bird kills two stones!Sad to say, the food was quite forgettable for me. The Matcha Azuki Chiffon Cake ($5.90) was coarse and too dry for my liking. The Chicken Wings ($8) were a bit bland and not flavorful enough, and the portion was quite small for the price. As for the Big Breakfast ($14.90) which was served with toast, potato wedges, mushroom, bacon, sausages, eggs and greens, unfortunately it was more variety than quality. The Strawberry Soda and Ribena Soda ($4.90 each) were nothing to shout about too. In addition, I don't know why but it can be very noisy when everyone speaks at the same time. I suspect it has got to do with the material used for the ceiling or walls which amplifies the sounds made.

To conclude, I guess the main draw of L'etoile would be its chill vibe, vintage and whimsical decor, instead of the food. There were a lot of couples and groups of friends there. L'etoile also has free wifi and some power plug points (not a lot though.. two hidden behind the big sofa on second floor and two near the window). They also have a collection of travel books and magazines which you can read. It's worth a first visit for a lazy weekend although I don't think I will be going back anytime soon.

For full review and more photos, please visit http://weekendeatwhatsg.blogspot.sg/2013/08/l-cafe.html