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I'd heard great reviews of this place and was eager to try it out. As it turns out, from the pretentious try-hards hogging the limited seating to the mediocre food and limited menu, everything about this place screams overhype. The only good and real thing about this place is the coffee. Although their coffee menu is limited, their brews are rich, potent and full-bodied. A real zinger. That said, the coffee alone isn't mind-blowingly sublime enough to draw me back. I wouldn't go out of my way to a middle-of-nowhere place like that, just for coffee. Of course, coffee addicts may beg to differ. But, if you're nearby, at Lavender Food Centre or somewhere in the vicinity, you could swing by here for a strong cuppa coffee.

The Ham Omelette ($8.50) with Mushrooms ($2), toast, greens and half a supposedly grilled tomato (it was barely cooked). The omelette was average fare, and quite forgettable. Something a decent home cook could whip up easily.

The Pancake Stack with Blueberries ($10) was nice but pedestrian, and very reminiscent of Mickey D's version. And the abysmal number of blueberries were also quite miserable. 5 blueberries to 5 pancakes meant each pancake had its lone blueberry mate

We also sampled their cakes, which was such a big mistake. Their dry and uninspired cakes aren't worth the calories or moolah. The Old Fashioned Banana Cake ($4.50) was dry and lacking in that rich fragrance evocative of really good banana cakes fresh out of the oven.

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Hinoki is opened by the brother of the guy behind Tatsuya, and having heard a number of rave reviews about it, I was expecting a certain standard of Japanese fare when I visited this casual Japanese diner one night for dinner with Lips. I was surprised to find myself plainly unimpressed with Hinoki's fare. Even if I'd taken into consideration the attractively low prices of Hinoki's bento sets, the food just wasn't up to par, both in execution and quality of ingredients.

That said, the stellar service standards is a common thread between Tatsuya and Hinoki. Our cups of green tea were refilled promptly and the waitresses were attentive and sweetly accommodating. A teensy weensy gripe though, was that they shut down the air-conditioning of our area after 9pm. It got a bit stuffy and warm, which was such a mood-killer for lingering over tea and dessert.

We got the Hinoki Bento ($38++) consisting the following:

1) Buta Kakuni, pork belly simmered in soy and dressed with shredded radish and mustard, was pretty pedestrian. Not bad but not great either

2) Tempura: was poorly done, evident from its appearance. The tempura batter was thick and heavy when it should have been airy and light

3) Gindara Teriyaki: while fleshy and generous, was also another average dish

4) Chawanmushi was layered thinly with a viscous, gel-like, tasteless substance. I didn't like the texture and found no ostensible use for the addition of it

5) Sashimi Mori and Aburi Sushi: the fish was sinewy and tough, when it should have been melt-in-your-mouth and sweet

6) Salad, despite its miserably sad look, was fortunately saved by the refreshingly tangy wafu dressing

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We had:

1) Mango Pomelo Sago ($5.90) and topped it up with a scoop of Ice-Cream ($1). This fell short of our expectations. Too much condensed milk was added to this, so instead of a refreshingly light dessert tinged with sweetness, you get a heavily creamed, saccharine concoction. They should have just done away with the condensed milk for a cleaner, clearer taste

2) Double Boiled Milk with Baked Walnut and Almond ($5.50): The warm milk was light and plain, and had an old-school comforting flavour to it. The duo of diced walnuts and almond slices lent crunch while a drizzling of honey provided a little sweetness

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PS Cafe is one of those places I never really understood the fuss about. I always hear people rave about their food and how amazing it is, but, to be honest, having dined there a couple of times, I just don't geddit. Maybe the hype is why I'm rather unimpressed with the food. It just seems overrated. Mind you, the food isn't bad, but it is only alright and run-of-the-mill, and certainly not noteworthy. No major complains but nothing amazing either.

Even at the odd hour of 4 plus in the mid-afternoon on a weekend, we had to wait about 15 minutes for a table to be freed up. Maybe someone can enlighten me on why this place is so popular, hmm?

We had:

1) House Bolognaise ($26) was a generously portioned spaghetti tossed in a hearty homemade ground beef, bacon and tomato ragu topped with thickly grated parmesan for extra saltiness and crispy basil leaves for a peppery spice. Basic comfort fare that was commendable but not noteworthy

2) Triple Cheese Penne ($23) is like a classy version of the good ol' mac & cheese, with al dente penne oven-baked with triple cheese mornay for a layered but delicate cheesy flavour. A refreshingly tangy valencia orange and garden green salad on the side help balance out the rich textures of the cheese. A pretty solid effort but somehow unmemorable.

3) Truffle Shoestring Fries ($15) this was humongous. We were stunned when this arrived coz we thought this would make for a nice side dish, but seriously, this can double up as a main course on its own. It's just that substantial. The fries were crisp enough but unfortunately, the truffle oil was concentrated only at the top so they were the only yummy thing about this dish. The bottom fries were left unadorned, plain and boring generic french fries. This needed a lot more truffle oil tossed around to the lower rungs of the mound. And way more shreds of parmesan

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I really dislike the restaurant's open-air concept. Seriously, when will restaurateurs learn that going completely alfresco is just not suitable for Singapore's hot, humid and muggy weather? Even if the fans were twirling at full speed, all I felt was warm, muggy air. In the end, we were all perspiring throughout dinner!

Service was great though - smiley, cheerful and extremely prompt with the replenishing of our iced waters. Food-wise, they were pretty alright - grilled meats were moist and tender, and packed with just enough flavour. As and when it was applicable, we requested that the kitchen held off the cilantro.

We had:

1) Smoked Duck Platter ($28): pretty enjoyable. Tender, well-flavoured meat lined with fatty flavoursome skin, was paired with spiced rice, mushy black beans and grilled mild jalepeno peppers and onions

2) Grilled Chicken Fajitas ($27): served on a sizzling platter with sauteed onions and peppers, and accompanied by flour tortillas for wrapping, and classic Mexican dips such as sour cream and guacamole. The chicken was well-done, tender and moist breast meat that was well-marinated

3) Red Snapper Enchiladas ($25): house-made tortillas surrounding ancho chilli coated fish, topped with tomatillo sauce and melted cheese was served with Mexican rice. With the exception of the spiced rice, everything else was laced with cilantro. That said, the fish could have been fresher. The robust cilantro couldn't quite mask its slight fishy scent and taste