This new cafe on Neil Road is the offspring of Sarnies, another crazy packed cafe that I've yet to try (ZOMG call myself a food blogger).
Well The Lokal checked off all the boxes on the hipster cafe checklist and they even went as far as to throw in a $40k Slayer machine. Oh that sexy beast took me on an intense ride with his latte ($5.50) and I must say it was all very smooth. And a little nutty too. The beans are from Sarnies and they have their barista consultant, affectionately known as the K Man, who is overseeing the coffee making for now.
Many would go for the signature Veal Schnitzel Burger ($28) served with a tangy grilled pineapple and red slaw but we skipped that because chunky chips weren't available that day! Instead, i opted for the Roast Beef on Rye ($17). The sandwich was a combination of perfectly caramelized onion and thinly sliced sautéed beef. The flavors were a little sweet and could be sharpened with a stronger mustard than the current grain mustard crème fraiche. It was a good roast beef sandwich nonetheless.
The Roast Chicken Panini ($15) was good too. The filling included huge juicy slices of fresh tomato (not the cheapo Malaysian sort), copious amount of avocado mash, crispy pancetta and salty roast chicken meat. The bread was our favorite among the lot of sandwiches we had, partly because it's a little more pillowy and chewy.
A healthier option is the Smashed Avocado with Ricotta Sourdough ($18). The ricotta is made in house, along with their yogurt as well. It was simply topped with some pomelo and almonds, drizzled with olive oil. I liked the separate components of the dish but it came together rather plainly. A touch of honey could make this a better dish in my opinion but that's just my preference.
I was looking forward to the Banana bread with Hokey Pokey ice cream ($12) but was sorely disappointed when I bit into the soggy bread cloyingly soaked by the citrusy syrup. We wondered where the ice cream went to as well (i swear i didn't take forever to grab a shot). Instead we had a sour cream sorta mixture on our dish. I couldn't bear more than a full bite of this one but K had no issue finishing it for us.
Overall, The Lokal is a decent place for a hearty sandwich and it's probably going to be really packed on the weekends. A little bird told me that the Sarnies people are gonna be opening another cafe soon so do watch out for them!

For more reviews, visit www.ms-skinnyfat.com

Miam Miam is a French-Japanese cafe and they serve the usual Fusion Japanese cafe stuff e.g. pasta, baked rice, soufflé, matcha latte and of course french toast. Knowing that they do not take reservations, we made it down early to the Bugis Junction outlet on a Friday evening and an empty restaurant welcomed us (but not for long).
Drinks first, the Iced Matcha Latte with Softee ($8.80) was actually pretty decent. Great green tea flavor with a milky flavor, though I still prefer the intensity of Nana's Green Tea.
Iced Earl Grey with Softtee ($6.80) was bleah. The tea was too weak and the softee lacked in the cream department. Take note that water is charged at 50 cents a cup.
Gave the other savory dishes a try as well. The Riz Noir ($15.80) is a Squid Ink Black Rice and Scrambled Omu Egg. The portion was surprisingly small though. A rather disappointing dish that lacked in smokiness. The rice while moist was also on the salty end. Eggs were nicely done though.
The Miam Miam Spaghetti ($15.80) was typically Japanese with a light savory sauce made from French butter, shoyu and some secret sauce. Well, looking at the ingredients (processed sausage, bacon, some vegetables and mushrooms and a soft boiled egg), it seemed like a randomly thrown together plate of home cooked noodles and indeed it tasted kinda like that as well. Not to say that it's not nice but i would expect better ingredients.
If you are a fan of saucy food, then the Riz Au Curry ($15.50) would be for you. Sweetish rich Japanese curry with soft rice, minced meat (almost non-existent) pork sausages, broccoli cheese and egg. Everything kinda drowned in the curry. The flavor of the curry was alright but maybe just go easy on the sauce?
Now the redeeming grace of Miam Miam would be their desserts and there are pancakes, souffles and parfaits. Honestly, there's one thing that you definitely should order and that's the French Toast.
Disappointing mains aside, the French Toast ($9.80) was every bit as good as everyone promised. Soft fluffy brioche cubes that had the texture of clouds. They're paired with the thoroughly whipped heavy cream, it is close to clotted cream but lighter in taste (but sweeter) and texture. Absolutely delicious with the smoky maple syrup. I would have drenched the toast with it but there wasn't enough. Have this as a main course instead!
Matcha Souffle ($10.80) was undercooked and very wet inside. The texture is that of whipped raw egg whites that are pandan flavored. I could hardly taste any matcha.
The Chocolate Molleaux Dessert ($9.80) fared better with the rich chocolate taste though i found it on the cakey end. The softee was too icy and lacked in vanilla. That said, i wouldn't mind having this again.
Conclusion, Miam Miam is better for its sweets. The mains will fill you up but you wouldn't be quite satisfied. Maybe the pasta is alright. I don't know. But as for me, i'll stick with the French Toast and Matcha Latte for now.

For more reviews, visit www.ms-skinnyfat.com

Sip on the Melbournian Axil Coffee Roaster beans pulled by Sarah Jane (formerly from Immigrants) or E-gene (who pulled his way around MEL). Coffee is little acidic with medium finish. My latte wasn't quite full bodied or milky though. While it's not quite my style, it was sufficient in packing a punch to last me through my afternoon meeting. Coffee is priced between $3 to $6.50.
OMC also stocks B.A.O's pastries. I simply love Christophe's croissants, well the French makes the best croissants! The Chocolate pain is also amazing. Get them to heat it up for that crispy flakiness. Better still, have them with honey ham and melted cheese ($6). Cakes are also available and I was seduced by a Salted Caramel Banana Cake.
For something a little more than sweets, OMC does all-day-breakfast with a lean but mean menu, all of which come out of a pizza oven! Talk about easy to make but delicious food here!
Love the description of the Gashouse Egg aka Toad in hole aka Egg-in-the-bread-with-the-hole-in-the-middle ($10). It's more of a snack I feel. I really do have a monster appetite for breakfast food. The dish is really simple, they really do just make a hole in the fluffy brioche, crack an egg in, top with cheese and into the oven it goes. Almost a croque madame.
Really there's no need to be fancy for brekkie when the ingredients are good (hello ooooozy yolk). What's special is that bacon jam which is smoky, meaty and sweet. I could do with a thick layer of that in the toast anytime. Satisfying flavors, a little dry on the edges, not so satisfying portion but that helps save space for other food.
The Broiche French Toast ($10) is another popular item and it looked freaking amazing with the homemade berry compote, candied walnuts and fresh cream. Of course the dust of sugary white completes the instagram worthy picture.
OMC is a great alternative to the super packed Habitat Coffee which I failed to visit TWICE! Well I guess I'll just have to explore the rest of the Thomson cafés until Habitat becomes less crowded. Anyhoo, great vibe at One Man Coffee but do go early or be prepared to wait as well due to the extremely small space.

For more reviews, visit www.ms-skinnyfat.com

For more reviews, visit www.ms-skinnyfat.com

Indian Fine Dining is a rarity in Singapore and one of the famous one is no other than Rang Mahal at the swanky Pan Pacific Hotel. Well, there's no need to break the bank though as Rang Mahal has opened a younger and more contemporary sister restaurant at Naumi Hotel. Table by Rang Mahal is a relaxed bistro-style dining concept from the award winning group.
V and i started with a clear asparagus soup (a little salty for our liking) and the Chilli Cheese Kulzza. The fresh fluffy bread packed with mild yellow cheddar, piquant chili and fresh coriander was extremely addictive and tasted way better than it looked.
We then sampled the Executive Set Lunch which is available in both non-vegetarian and vegetarian options. The dishes were elegantly presented on a wooden tray and i liked that the portions weren't huge and there is a variety of items. Each set is served with a choice of naan and comes with some sides. From left to right): Dal Tadkewali- yellow lentils tempered with onion, tomato and cumin; Brown and red rice pilaf with cumin and Gobi Matter- cauliflower tossed with peas, ginger and coriander. The rice was the most boring of the lot.
Here is the Tandoori Mushroom and Tandoori Paneer Tikka (foreground). I loved the fresh button mushroom in herbed spice yogurt (very creamy) but the paneer (Indian cottage cheese) was rather plain imo. I would have preferred it cooked with creamy spinach (call me boring but wev).
The non veg version: Murg Angar and Tandoori prawn. Tender cubes of chicken in a yogurt and red chili marinade. The tiger prawn is a little on the dry side but kinda expected as it had undergone the tandoori treatment.
I must say that Table does really good breads. The naans were also irresistible and i keep mopping the lentils up with them. I wished there were other gravy though. A wholesome five grain flour is used to prepare the naan (quinoa, soya, ragi, sorghum and gram).
We ended the meal with some Table’s Pop, a sugar-free popsicle made with fresh raspberry and coconut infused with chia seeds. I never quite enjoyed the iciness of popsicles as it kinda compromises on the robustness of the flavors.
The Masala tea rounded up the meal nicely. Rich, thick and flavorful but there could always be more spice.
As Table by Rang Mahal is the resident restaurant of Naumi Hotel, it does everything from breakfast to supper and drinks and includes international fare as well. The buffet breakfast is priced at $22/pax, while the executive set lunch is priced at only $15/pax. Do check them out if you're looking for a different Indian cuisine dining experience from the usual greasy hawker spots.

Original: Watch out Tiong Bahru, Jalan Besar is the up and coming cafe area with its current mix of Chye Seng Huat Hardware, Windowsill by the Woods and also The Bravery Cafe. Brunch called for a trip to The Bravery at Horne Road and i was hopeful that it'd be as good as The Plain and Ronin as it's opened by the same folks.

Typical sign-less cafe but this time I even had a hard time finding the door! As for the decor, well it's one thing to be minimalist, another to be 'can't be bothered' and this seems to fall into the latter category.

Unfinished wooden planks on DIY metal frames and concrete slabs make uncomfortable tables and chairs that are also potentially hazardous and the electrician obviously wasn't paid to do his job with the lights. Tables are wooden planks on top of simple metal frames and concrete slabs. The general environment felt make-shift and the noise level was deafening despite the 60% capacity when i visited. Not quite a place to hang around for long.
Coffee is made using the same Genovese blend from Brazil, which is robust but not acidic. The Lavender latte ($5.50) had a fragrant aroma and was lightly sweetened but there's a light bitter aftertaste that wasn't present in the flat white. Perhaps that came from the dried lavender.

Great Flat White ($4.50) with superb crema. Drinks like a dream.
The food menu is rather limited, as with the usual The Plain and Ronin style but the regular eggs on toast, pancakes and some savory mains and sandwiches were available.

The Brave Begedil ($17) was a Bravery recommendation. Poached eggs with Turkey Bacon (wert no real bacon?!!) and Avocado on Corned Beef Begedil Hash. If you don't know what Begedil is, it's a Malay potato patty with onions and coriander. I was looking forward to digging in and that was when I noticed my missing avocado. And it was only after i asked about it was i told that they ran out of avocado and the replaced it randomly with another slice of turkey bacon. I was really frustrated that did not ask me before they did that. Oh the same thing happened to the customer next table too.

It was a further slap in the face with the overdone poached eggs and papery whites. Nothing in this dish stood out and the bacon was terribly dry and sweet. I should have ordered the Beef Steak Ciabatta ($13.50) which had good reviews on the juicy rump steak silvers or that Ricotta Cheese Pancakes.

Spotty service was yet again displayed with our second order. We ordered the Crostini ($7.50) shortly after the Begedil and it was only served when we were way done with the first dish. I think I spent a good 10 mins playing with the leftovers and the crostini still didn't come.

Well at least it was a huge portion when it finally came. Well sauteed Aubergine (aka Eggplant aka Brinjal aka that mushy plant) cooked with Chickpeas, served on on Sourdough Toast with Mint Leaves and Crumbled Feta Cheese. This Vegetarian Greek breakfast is a departure from my regular brunch items but I found it rather refreshing with the sharp kick from the feta.

For full reviews, visit my blog at www.ms-skinnyfat.com