The desserts and cakes served at Department Of Caffeine didn't look that fantastic hence we casted our eyes at FLOR Pâtisserie. This Japanese-styled cake shop serving authentic Japanese inspired French pastry was just a short 5 minutes stroll away.

While ordering, we feasted our eyes on the wide array of pretty pastries. It's a tough choice.

Their Ice Cheese Tarts ($3.40) are to die for! Plus you get to select from these 7 delectable flavours: Original, Mango, Strawberry, Caramel, Choco Orange, Green Tea as well as Yuzu & Maple. They are kept frozen in the fridge till ordered to maintain their freshness. I adore the intense cheese flavour packed within this small tartlet.

We have initial concerns that we will not be able to tell these exquisite fresh cream cakes apart but Earl Grey Choco ($6.95) with its delicate earl grey cream solved the issue with just one bite. The swiss roll of dark chocolate meringue and sweet banana goes really well as a package.

Mont Blanc ($6.95) is a swiss roll of special genoise sponge and chantilly cream, topped with whole sweetened Japanese chestnuts and delicate strands of French chestnut cream. It looks too good to be eaten!

We utterly enjoyed our weekend brunch. Department of Caffeine delighted us with their amazing breakfast offerings while FLOR Pâtisserie satisfied our cravings for sweet endings. They make wonderful complement for each other!

To read the full review with photos, please visit http://www.aspirantsg.com/department-of-caffeine-flor-perfect-complement-at-duxton/

The cafe service area is just this narrow strip of real estate, no hidden corners. The semi-industrial woody interior decor gave the cafe a no nonsense, pragmatic character.

With no spare seats around, customers are forced to put their bags and barang barang on the floor or have them placed on their laps. It can get quite unsightly, hope the management can provide a solution for this.

The cafe does not charge service fees so you have to queue and order your food. Magazines are placed near the counter for customers' browsing pleasure.

That's our French rose ($7) by Tea bone zen mind served in a dainty glass tea pot on a petite wooden tray. Hmm for $7, can give more rose buds? The rose tea commanded a light floral fragrance with slight tangy flavour.

Mork Speciality Hot Chocolate ($6.50) was supposedly a special blend of hot chocolate that offers greater emphasis on the cocoa flavour. It did achieved its objective ... by withholding sugar. We were not impressed.

Caffe Latte ($5) was pretty potent and definitely a great perk me up in the morning. Taste wise, it's quality caffeine but nothing outstanding.

Our Sausage, Mushrooms & Egg ($15.50) which consisted of English pork sausages with mushroom ragout topped by a sunny side up egg on toasted sourdough was first to be served. Hidden below the sunny side up was a generous portion of mushrooms. Thumbs up!

One of the cafe's 2 Main course & salad ($16 for regular salad and $18 for a large salad portion), Poached salmon with dill and mint sauce accompanied by Soba noodles with wakame, cucumber and sesame was up next. We were surprised that the entire dish was served cold even the salmon! But it was meant to be a cold dish so no fault of theirs. It tasted alright but not as attractive as a weekend brunch items.

I personally loved my Sundried tomato & herb waffles ($17). Served with bacon, scrambled eggs & maple bacon jam, it offers the perfect combination of all my favourite breakfast sides. It's like my breakfast dream come true.

But D.O.C Platter ($18) won hands down as our favourite breakfast item on their menu. Scrambled eggs & bacon wrapped meatloaf on toasted brioche served with tomato confit & cheese boccincini was a gorgeous sight to behold.

The runny eggs reminded me of Mcdonald's Big Breakfast but done so much better. The good people here are really generous with their meat and ingredients, look at that thick stack of meat!

The desserts and cakes served at Department Of Caffeine didn't look that fantastic hence we casted our eyes at FLOR Pâtisserie. We utterly enjoyed our weekend brunch. Department of Caffeine delighted us with their amazing breakfast offerings while FLOR Pâtisserie satisfied our cravings for sweet endings. They make wonderful complement for each other!

To read the full review with photos, please visit http://www.aspirantsg.com/department-of-caffeine-flor-perfect-complement-at-duxton/

Within just a short 20 minutes waitThe famous French roasted chicken Poulet Roti ($15.80 for half, $28.80 for whole) was served after the announcement of all the good news. Here's how the story for this supposedly amazing poultry goes - the entire chicken was brined for a full day in a traditional recipe before being placed in the rotisserie for a slow roast till the skin turns to a golden brown. We have to give it to the french when it comes to presentation. The sight of the beautifully roasted chicken was enough to whet our appetite and get us all hungry. On its own, the chicken was tender and succulent but not amazing yet. It only manages to hit home run with its home made mushroom Chardonnay sauce, that's what gave it the X factor.

Mediterranean Stew Lamb Shank ($15.80) consisted of baby lamb shank stewed with root vegetables and rosymary in its own jus infused with orange. The lamb meat was nice and soft but diners who are not comfortable with the distinctive smell of lamb should steer away from this dish. I am afraid I could not sense traces of orange infusion at all.

Braise De Canard ($15.80) was braised duck leg in sweet wine sauce on baby spinach topped with cranberry and glazed shallot. I came to the conclusion that the chefs here are pretty good with their meat. The dulcet wine sauce was truly an additional bonus!

Iberico Pork Belly ($15.80) consisted of braised Spanish iberico pork belly served with mashed potato, leek confit and double mustard. I am not sure if I am personally biased towards pork belly in general but it is just impossible to go wrong with this delectable part of the pig. Ladies need not be overly concerned. Despite the word belly, the meat was still pretty lean overall with mild hints of fats in every bite. This is definitely my favourite dish for the evening!

To sum it up, Poulet offers casual French dining that's decent and won't hurt your pocket.

For full review and photos, please visit http://www.aspirantsg.com/poulet-the-french-roasted-chicken-flew-to-chinatown-point/

Not known to many of the younger Singaporeans, the very spot where the cafe stands used to be the canteen of the former River Valley Swimming Complex. The cafe conserved the wall and floor mosaic tiles from its nostalgic 1970’s.

Bulk of the cafe sitting spaces are outdoors which makes it quite a 'hot' chill out place during the day. This was really a pity because I really loved how they spruce up the area with recycled pellets and the bright pink chairs. Nevertheless, I know where to bring my BFFs for post dinner coffee and cakes.

For those who can't take the blazing noon time heat (like me), you either have to call and reserve your table a few days in advance or keep your fingers cross. There are 2 table tops and a long side table in the air-conditioned area. Thankfully, we managed to secure one of the round tables. Overheard the owner sharing with his other customers that the kitchen behind the 'Keep Calm' wall used to be the swimming pools male changing room. What an incredible change of use!

The staffs were amazingly friendly and attentive. Coffee & tea were promptly served within minutes after we have made our orders. That's my cappuccino.

Both our orders were served together. Great job on the service! That's my friend's order of TFBB Champion Breakfast ($23.00) - a really heavy brekkie which consist of 2 poached eggs served on a toasted brioche, roasted rosemary potatoes, garlicky mushrooms, swirly sage chicken sausage and 2 chicken chipolata (to replace a side of beef bacon as he does not take beef). Despite his usual big appetite, he did not manage to clear his plate. The portion was just too huge.

I opted for Towkay Ng’s Egg Benedict ($11.50). Not sure why I kept calling it Towkay Neo, was there a Mediacorp drama with Towkay Neo previously? Anyway, mine was a much smaller breakfast with 2 poached eggs served on a toasted brioche, sauteed spinach, roasted rosemary potatoes and an Italian version of a Hollandaise. The treatment of the eggs was perfect but I am not that excited about Italian Hollandaise. It's a significantly watered down version of the original hollandaise, doesn't taste as sinful. As much as we would love to try Today's Special, our stomach had absolutely no more room for more.

Still, we went over to their cakes counter to check out their offerings. The Ab Fab Red Velvet Cake (Single $9.00, Whole 9" $90.00, Cupcakes (by the dozen) $4.50) looks absolutely stunning! Plus they use only valrhona chocolates to bake it.

Their Green Tea Almond Praline (Single $7.50, Whole $75.00, Cupcake (by the dozen) $4.50) -an almond praline butter torte is filled and covered with a delicious swiss meringue Macha butter cream looks equally desirable.

Thanks for making my weekends fabulous, baker boy!

To read the full review with photos, please visit http://www.aspirantsg.com/the-baker-boy-at-viridian-arthouse-made-my-sunday-fabulous/

Visiting Necessary Provisions was not part of our agenda on the Sunday morning. We have wanted to check out the breakfast scene at Carpenter & Cook but unfortunately the cafe was undergoing renovations. Apologetically, the kind lady at the cafe pointed to another cafe that was just 5 - 10 minutes' drive away at Eng Kong Terrace, Bukit Timah.

Thankfully with the GPS, we managed to work our way around the neighbourhood.

Finding the entrance to the cafe wasn't easy; we would have missed it if not for the kids and the vintage toy car.

It was hard to hide the disappointment from our faces when we saw the menu. This cafe is essentially a coffee joint, their breakfast choices were pathetic. There was only panini, toast and sandwiches, you can forget about egg benedict, egg florentine, pancakes and bacons etc. Surprisingly, they attracted quite a decent expatriate crowd. We reasoned that the coffee must be pretty good.

Despite having a number of service staffs around, we were expected to make our orders at the counter. The cashier lady shared with us that the cafe is currently two months old and they serve a kick ass cold latte.

There were also muffins, cakes, breads and other munchies up for grabs.

Here's the Cold Latte ($6.50) that I was talking about. It was served in the form of frozen coffee cubes with cold milk on the side. Simply pour the milk over and you have your latte. We figured that to optimise the flavour of the latte, you only pour the milk when you want a sip. I agree that the latte was outstanding.

The Warm Latte ($6.50) was equally good but not as fun.

They are serious about their beans, a small space was dedicated to house and showcase their coffee equipment.

Our first breakfast entrée Rosemary Chicken with Watercress and Parmigiano ($9.00) failed to impress in terms of presentation and tasted really ordinary.

My Banana Nutella Panini ($5) cannot be served plainer. Even MacDonald's Sausage McMuffin looks more enticing.

It's just nutella and bananas. I can seriously make this myself.

That's Toast with Cashew Butter and Jams ($4) for you.

Well, there was a Savoury Pancake ($6) that was not included in the menu. The main ingredients are dry shrimps, prawns and long bean. My Korean friend chuckled that the appearance resembles that of a typical Korean fried pancakes.

Coffee is an essential component of a cafe but I am not sure if it is enough to keep it afloat. Singaporeans I know loves late weekend brunch with popular breakfast items such as American Bacon & Sausage Breakfast Set, Egg Benedict etc. They are unlikely to patronize a cafe just because they serve awesome coffee.

To read full write up with photos, please visit my blog via http://www.aspirantsg.com/necessary-provisions-is-too-basic-for-brunch-eng-kong-terrace/