For more details and pictures, please visit:
http://cheesemafia.blogspot.sg/2012/12/the-orange-thimble-eng-hoon-street.htmlThe Orange Thimble stands as one of the many cafes located around Thiong Bahru. Known for its coffee and some of their desserts, the cafe is simplistic with a no frills menu at affordable prices. The English ($11.50), comprises of 2 eggs (sunny side up), pork sausage,streaky bacon, sauteed mushrooms, roasted tomatoes and home-made baked beans served with 2 slices of toast. A very basic big breakfast dish, and we liked the decent portion. The Orange Thimble Egg Mayo (Veg), was Egg mayo mixed in a special spice blend, crunchy watercress and tomato served with wholemeal bread ($8.50). The sandwich was rather large in portion, and shaped in a adorable heart-shaped fashion. The egg mayo was well seasoned and I liked the concept of including wholemeal bread on the menu.Miss Portobella (Veg), was Portobello mushroom baked in honey and balsamic vinegar sauce, topped with melted cheese and caramelized onions and garlic served with wholemeal roll ($7.50). The mushroom was well marinated and lusciously topped with melted cheese. Simple, but satisfying.I wouldn't be back specially for the food. Despite the limited menu, the simple and affordable breakfast dishes that makes The Orange Thimble a good place to hang out for brunch.

For more details and pictures, please visit: http://cheesemafia.blogspot.sg/2012/12/the-mayor-of-tiny-town-cantonment-road.html

The Mayor of Tiny Town is a cosy cafe located along Cantonment Road. It was pouring heavily in the afternoon when we were there and we were glad to seek relief from the rain in the warm cafe.The weekend special was the Teriyaki Chicken with Mashed Potato ($14.90 with drink). We loved the dish. The teriyaki chicken was flavoursome and tender, presented on a creamy bed of mashed potato. The Blue Salmon ($15.90) was Seared salmon fillet with Bols blue curacao infused lemon ginger mint tea butter on baked eggplant puree with mixed greens. The dish particularly outstanding despite the interesting description and intriguing flavored butter. The baked eggplant puree was rather tasteless and tasted rather odd with the salmon. The portion could have been bigger and the flavours, stronger.Nothing beats a cup of coffee water a meal.Cosy place for hangouts.

We made a trip down to the 152-year old tea house, Tsujiri Tea House, established in Kyoto Japan by Riemon Tsuji, specialising in green tea drinks and desserts. The cake counter was almost bare and understandably so because the store only features O-maccha Chiffon Cake ($4.2) and O-maccha Roll cake ($4.50).We made a beeline for the O-maccha roll cake, served with a dollop of of whipped cream and red bean. The roll was average, it became a little too overwhelmingly sweet after a few bites into the cake.

We were spoilt for choice with the other choices as the menu spans a wonderful variety of various green tea combinations. With some recommendations from the staff, we proceeded with Tsujiri Shaved Ice (O-maccha), comprising of layers of matcha flavoured shaved ice and matcha ice cream, topped with chestnut, mochi balls and red bean paste. We loved the bitter-sweet matcha ice cream which was filled with green tea goodness. O-maccha Milk Ice Blended ($5.50/M, $6.50/L) had a beautiful combination of matcha, milk and ice, presenting a rich yet refreshing drink for the afternoon.

Never too much green tea, we'd love to be back for the other items on the menu.

For more details and pictures, please visit: http://cheesemafia.blogspot.sg/2012/10/wrap-roll-star-vista.html

The Star Vista has recently opened with a string of bustling new eateries, and Wrap & Roll is one of the restaurants on the list. Singapore has seen an increase in the number of Vietnamese eateries in recent years and I was excited to visit the place, being a fan of Vietnamese food. The placemat contains instructions that guides you on how to make your own wrap. The table contained a quadruple compartment condiment dish which was definitely under utilised with only two condiments set on every table. We ordered a Gỏi ngo sen, Lotus Shoot Salad with Prawns to start our meal. The portion was dismally small, but the salad was wonderfully appetizing with its tangy sweet and sour sauce that gave the assortment of vegetables and prawns a boost in its flavours. You could stack the salad onto the prawn crackers and consume them like tapas, but we had them separately and it worked for us too.The Phở bò xào, Stir Fried ‘Pho’ Noodles with Beef was delish. The rice noodles were large white sheets that were used to for some of the rice rolls, and the texture was a quite different from your usual kway tiao as they were softer and tended to clump together, which worked well when stif-fried with the beef sauce. I would have preferred the beef to be more thinly sliced as some pieces were a little touch, but I enjoyed the additional dose of vegetables thrown in.

The Bò cuộn lá lốt, Gilled Beef in Vine Leaves is another dish that you must try. The minced beef is neatly wrapped in vine leaves and the dish is served with an assortment of mint leaves, cabbage, star fruit, vermicelli, sauce, and sheets of rice rolls. We had fun putting our own rolls together, although it got a little messy when we piled too much into a roll.

The beef roll was good on its own. The beef was juicy and nicely grilled to give a hearty robust flavour. Definitely something that I would order again.

The menu is rather limited and the portions are rather small, but it's a good place if you want to get a light bite, the food is pretty good.

Ki has been on my to-go list since about two years ago when I've read about their desserts online. We finally made our way there on a Saturday afternoon after a hearty brunch session. The store is shared between K ki and The Little Drom Store, and I was a little suprised at how small the store was. There was only a counter with about 11 types of sliced cakes and a drinks menu. Being our first time there, the staff was very helpful and explained the components in each cake so that we could decide on what we wanted. K Ki has been on my to-go list since about two years ago when I've read about their desserts online. We finally made our way there on a Saturday afternoon after a hearty brunch session.

The store is shared between K ki and The Little Drom Store, and I was a little suprised at how small the store was. There was only a counter with about 11 types of sliced cakes and a drinks menu. Being our first time there, the staff was very helpful and explained the components in each cake so that we could decide on what we wanted.

Our first pick was The Little Red Riding Hood, which comprises of 70% dark Valrhona chocolate mousse cake with a raspberry centre. I thought it was rich yet light and smooth at the same time. This would sit well with chocolate fans. 

Our second pick was Emily, a champagne mousse cake with a strawberry centre. I was intrigued by its description but disappointed with the actual taste. I felt that the flavours did not really blend well together, leaving a slightly odd after taste on the palates. The mousse was overly soft, which was something I did not really enjoy as well as it felt like I was only having flavored whipped cream. A nice place to chill out, but perhaps only once just for the experience. The items failed to impress, perhaps due to the high expectations that were pegged to the place.