Drury Lane is a cafe that is easy to fall in love with. It seems to have it right - an interesting and easy to remember name, shophouse in Tanjong Pagar, all day breakfast. And there's no way you can miss this red engine cafe along Tanjong Pagar Road.Upon entering the cafe, I immediately fell in love with the cosy ambience. There are two storeys. The lower storey is where the kitchen is and also where the brewing of coffee is. There are some bar tables as well as some seats that were constructed from wooden crates.

If you don't want to smell like your breakfast later, I recommend you head upstairs.

Loved the upstairs which felt spacious, unlike other cafes which made me feel like I am constantly touching my neighbor's elbow. Ok I exaggerate. The rustic and simple decor offers a respite from the stressful week. Time seems to slows down and you get some thinking sorted out. Nice place to hangout with your friends and loved ones too. The menu is a simple one page comprising of breakfast favorites such as big breakfast, eggs, french toast and pancakes. I can't help being curious about some of the names of the dishes, such as Big 94, Cloud 9, Cloud 9.4. I guess it should be something to do with their address 94 Drury Lane. They also served espressos, daily brews and teas. You place and pay your orders at the counter on the first floor and you are given a table number (in the form of a paper cup).

I got the daily specialty brew of Bokasso Ethiopia ($5, below) which had a good balance of bitterness and acidity. This small cup gave the perk needed for the morning. For tea lovers, kick start your day with English breakfast tea ($6, below), which came in a pot. Tea was from The 1872 Clipper Tea Company and it was full-bodied and robust. The 1935 Toast ($8, below), a French toast with peanut butter jam and two bananas. While the banana were sweet, it was well complemented by the saltiness of the peanut butter in the toast. Nice comfort food on a lazy weekend morning. The Cloud 9.4 ($12, below) might look like ordinary pancakes but a surprise awaited as I bit into it. There were pieces of ham embedded in the pancakes, making the pancakes a little salty. And the pancakes were very fluffy. If there was a Fluffy Index from 1 to 10, I would give it a level of 10 and McDonald's pancakes a 2. If you love your pancakes to be fluffy and soft, this is the one. However, I find it a bit too oily for me and by the time I finished my first pancake, I was too overwhelmed to start the second one. Perhaps you can request them to make it less oily. Also, the turkey bacon was too hard for me. The cafe has free wifi and the password is stated on the receipt. Service was attentive and rather fast. Did I also mention that there was no service charge and GST? Given that there were many other popular cafés in the vicinity, I felt Drury Lane is worthy a try too. I don't usually frequent cafes because of their overpriced food. I mean, $20 for a eggs, sausage (and GST and service charge on top of that) which I could whip up myself? So I'm glad that Drury Lane's breakfast menu looks affordable (food prices range from $8 to $12), and it makes a good laid-back place with a chill vibe to hang out on a weekend. I don't mind going back to try their other food soon.

The weather is so hot these days that sometimes I just want to chill in aircon places only. Another great way to hide from the heat is to eat a bowl of cold dessert. In the field of desserts, one of my favourite types would be the Hong Kong style desserts.. Now I am able to find a piece of Hong Kong in Singapore. That will be along Liang Seah Street which has the three big players in the Hong Kong dessert scene: Desserts First 糖水先, Ah Chew Desserts and Ji De Chi. I observed that Desserts First is usually the most crowded, especially after dinner time.

During peak hours (i.e. after dinner, lunch), sharing tables with strangers is a must if you are with friends in small groups. That's because the tables are mostly for big groups. I went during off-peak hours during a weekend afternoon and there was no crowd. Mandarin pop songs were played which made me felt like I was in Taiwan instantly.

The menu is on the table. After you decide what you want, proceed to order at the cashier.If you are a durian lover like me, you must try the Durian Shaved Ice ($6, below). Either Durian Shaved Ice or the Durian Snow Ice. They used real D24 durians. Look at the top .. It's real durian fruit which was rich, sweet and pungent. Every bite delivered a robust and icy durian taste. Chomping on the shaved ice and the smooth and creamy durian - a great way to relief from the heat. However, be careful if you are eating with a Durian hater. He/She might squeal in disgust if he/she catches a whiff of that durian smell which I insist it is fragrant! The Green Tea Snow Ice with Red Beans ($5, below) was also a winner. It carried a bit of bitterness with the "just nice" amount of sweetness. The accompanying red beans were sweet and complemented the green tea well. The "snow ice" were firm yet soft and melts in the mouth, making it a refreshing treat on a hot day. The mango desserts are also their specialty. The Mango Snow Ice ($5.50, below) is my favourite! The mangoes were not overly sour but sweet. Layers of the "snow ice" were smooth and each of them were rich with the sweet and slightly sour mango taste. Mixed with the cubes of mango, it was heavenly! The accompanying nata de coco pieces were also very nice and addictive to chew on. Waffle with Nutella and Bananas with Vanilla Ice-cream ($6.50, below) was perfectly done too. The waffle was crispy and the combination of nutella sauce and bananas was excellent. The vanilla ice-cream was sweet and creamy. Atop the hot waffle, it was a delicious treat. Service speed was average and not fast, maybe due to the long preparation time needed to make the "snow ice". However, be patient and you will be rewarded A tip is to avoid dinner/lunch times as you would need to wait for some time for a seat. The portions are also very big and it's a good idea to share if you are a small-eater. Overall, we loved this place very much. This place is a must-try!

For full review and more photos, please visit http://weekendeatwhatsg.blogspot.sg/2013/09/desserts-first.html

I swear my eyes were blinking with excitement when I heard there is a new Caribbean restaurant near Chinatown.

After all, it's the first time we have a restaurant (and the one and only one so far) in Singapore that offers Carribean cuisine. Set up by a Trinidad native. I immediately googled where is Trinidad. A search shows that the fastest air ticket from Singapore to Trinidad takes 30 hours *gasped*.

I was surprised to be able to get a reservation easily on a Friday night. The cosy restaurant is located at the last of the stretch of shophouses (same stretch as Esquina) along Jiak Chuan Road in Keong Saik/Chinatown area. I like the typical shop-house decor immediately even though it wasn't close to what I had imagined (I did harboured some fantasies that it will look like a movie set from Pirates of the Caribbean).The chill vibe and rustic decor offers a comforting respite from the hustle and bustle of a busy work week. There weren't a lot of items on the menu. A look at the drinks menu and Lychee Ooh Lala ($17, below) caught our attention immediately. A concoction of white rum, lychee liquer, lychee syrup, sugar syrup, lime juice, mint leaves and sprite, it did sound good. I liked that it wasn't very heavy on the bitterness and quite refreshing to drink.. Tasted some what like drinking a zesty lychee sprite. The food menu did not have any pictures of the dishes so we just went with what sounded nice. The sides ranged from $8 to $12 and the mains ranged from $24 to $34.

We got Wings n' Tings ($12, below) as one of the sides. It's actually boneless chicken fillets which was a good thing otherwise it will be messy to eat. The chicken meat was a bit tough and it was accompanied by a slightly spicy salsa sauce that tasted very much like spiced barbecue sauce. Eating with my eyes closed confirmed that my palate was eating sweet barbecue chicken. I was hoping to find a more exotic taste hence it was a little disappointing that it tasted like chicken in smoky BBQ sauce. The next side we got was the Slipper Lobster Cocktail ($15, below), which was avocado with marinated Slipper lobster served with mango and pineapple salsa. When the waiter served the plate, I actually asked, "What's this?". The lobster meat was in tiny pieces and mixed with cubes of mango and pineapple. In the centre was a big piece of avocado. Maybe I should have noted earlier that the description started with Avocado and the lobster was just a supporting role.Moving on to the mains, we had the Caribbean Jerk chicken ($24, below) with textures of sweet potato and Jerk BBQ sauce. Jerk chicken which is native of Jamaican is done by dry-rubbing or wet-marinating the meat with a very hot spice mixture. The chicken was fork-tender and flavorful. However, we weren't very impressed with the Jerk BBQ sauce which tasted like normal smoky barbecue sauce. I can't fault them for this dish but it was just not within our expectations as we thought Jerk sauce should be spicy.The last course The Catch of the Caribbean ($26, below) came with pan seared fish, coconut breaded prawns, pumpkin puree served with souscaille and Creole sauce. Visually impressive, it looks like a beach with a cave. The "beach sand" was actually the pumpkin puree. The fish, again, tasted very familiar and after a while I thought it tasted like the steamed garoupa served during Chinese weddings. Again, there was nothing wrong with this dish. It was well executed but it was just that I was expecting a stronger, exotic and a more multi-dimensional taste. Somehow I felt the creamy pumpkin puree did not complement the fish well. I liked the prawns which had a subtle coconut taste. Service could be faster and more attentive. Given that the place was quite empty on a Friday night, slow service is not exactly acceptable. My glass of water was never automatically refilled throughout the night.

Overall, expect food that is cooked well but don't go there expecting exotic or unusual tastes. You won't get anything too crazy or mind-blowing. Caribbean cuisine is more familiar than I thought.

Although it didn't turn out as hyped as I initially thought it would be, the ambience of the restaurant is quite lovely for a "liming" session. Liming is a Caribbean urban term meaning hanging out with friends. They have a bar on the second level for some liming after dinner too. Personally, it was quite an eye opener to Caribbean cuisine. And I must count my blessings that I didn't have to fly for 30 hours to get to its hometown in order to try it.

For full review and more photos, please visit http://weekendeatwhatsg.blogspot.sg/2013/09/lime-house.html

Check out their website for a list of the flavours they have! They have really interesting flavours e.g. D24 Durian, Earl Grey, Teh Tarik, Avocado, Gula Melaka, Kaya Toast and Lychee Martini. A single scoop costs $3.30, double scoop for $5.30 and triple scoop for $7.40.Here's our waffle with Earl Grey and Lychee scoops ($10.10). Loved the fluffy and buttery waffles. And their scoops were of generous size! The Earl Grey ice-cream had the earl grey tea flavour and fragrance. The Lychee ice-cream was tropical and refreshing, had bits of real lychee and sweet. Strongly recommend the lychee ice-cream.Here's the shop front.. Not sure if you are digesting the important information in the pic.. Yes LICK cafe has daily promotions on weekdays. It's quite a nice place to have desserts especially after dinner/supper at nearby Ponggol Nasi Lemak.

I actually thought that I was going to Punggol for this Nasi Lemak stall until I googled the address. Although it is named Ponggol, this Ponggol Nasi Lemak stall is located along Tanjong Katong Road instead. As if it is not confusing enough, it has two branches : the main branch in Kovan and this is the other branch in Tanjong Katong.

At first sight, it might look like a coffee shop, but there is only one stall - Ponggol Nasi Lemak. There is another small drinks stall behind the Nasi Lemak stall. It is a norm that one has to stand around and wait for others to finish their food as this popular stall seems to be always fully packed.

There are no set meals. Only ala carte dishes are available as the owner wants the customers to have the freedom to choose what they like. Prices are steeper than other normal Nasi Lemak stalls, ranging from $5 to $8, depending on what you order. For instance, my personalized Nasi Lemak (below) comprising of one chicken wing, luncheon meat, fish cake, peanuts and ikan bilis cost me $5.30. Given the wide variety of dishes available, allow me to assist you to narrow down on what I think you should order:
#1- The chicken wing is a must-order. Fried to golden crisp perfection, the chicken wing was crunchy on the outside and juicy on the inside. I am not sure what ingredient was used but I thought I tasted some prawn paste taste.
#2 - The peanuts and ikan bilis. Crunchy and crispy.
#3 - The Otah. Spicy, soft and disintegrates in the mouth.

For me, the sambal chili is the most important ingredient in Nasi Lemak and it can spoil the whole dish if it is not good. Ponggol Nasi Lemak's sambal sauce was one of the best I've eaten. I can totally eat it on its own. It was sweet, spicy and delivered the kick to the overall Nasi Lemak experience. Smile to the auntie and ask politely more sambal chili sauce (which was what I did, although my friend koped some of my extra chili sauce while I wasn't looking). The coconut and pandan taste of the rice was aromatic and subtle, just nice and normal.

Overall, a great place to have Nasi Lemak for supper!

For full review and more photos, please visit http://weekendeatwhatsg.blogspot.sg/2013/09/ponggol-nasi-lemak-tanjong-katong.html