Caffe Vergnano 1882...

South Beach Avenue has increasingly become a ‘hot and hipster’ place for both the locals and tourists. Not only is it home to several impressive F&B establishments, they also have entertainment and beauty options. Conveniently located outside Esplanade Mrt Station, the spacious, modern and conserved architecture at South Beach Avenue is also a popular spot for OOTDs (outfit of the day).

Caffe Vergnano 1882 is one of the first few cafés that started when South Beach Avenue was fairly new and it was my favourite place to get my coffee/chocolate cravings fixed even up till today. Just two months ago, they rolled out a food menu which I was initially very sceptical about since they were more known for their coffees but you know what, they proved me wrong. The dishes were well-executed with an unpretentious presentation, and most of them were really healthy. So, the next time you heading there for coffee, do check out their wonderful food menu which I believe will be a hit among the health-conscious crowd! Also, to celebrate their first anniversary this September, they have a special promotion - Enjoy a 50% discount off your second cup of Cioccolata. T&Cs apply!

Caffe Vergnano is also very work-friendly. They have free plucks and free WiFi. You can do your work while enjoying good food and good coffee.

Capuccino // $5
The proportion of the cappuccino was nicely done up and it was very aromatic. Order a slice of cake to go with this comforting cappuccino.

Espresso + Sparkling Water
This was the first time I had an espresso with a sparkling water. It was refreshing and I thought it actually tasted quite good. You have that sweet and fizzy flavour from the sparkling water and the bitterness from the espresso. The combination definitely works!

Gianduja // $6.50
This was my favourite drink at Caffe Vergnano. I drink this everytime I visit them. I thought they balanced the coffee and chocolate very well, making it very addictive. Sip by sip, and by the time you know it, you have already finished the drink! A must-try!


Tomato Bruschetta // $6
The tomato bruschetta was sweet and very flavourful but I thought the bread was a tad too tough for me. Maybe I left it on the table for quite a while. So, if you happen to try this, eat it while it's hot!


Corned Beef Hash // $14
The potatoes were well-roasted and very flavourful. It wasn’t too heavy and we were all fighting to finish it. Forget about the carbs, this was definitely worth it! Egg was super runny as well.


Smoked Duck Salad // $16
The duck was well-marinated with a subtle smoky aftertaste. It was tender and paired very well with the refreshing mixed greens.


Honey Garlic Salmon // $19
The salmon was well-grilled, soft and melty. It literally melts in the mouth. I also liked the cauliflower mash! Definitely worth ordering!



Cinnamon Sugar Waffle with Coffee Whipped Cream // $11
Simple but full of surprises. The waffle was the fluffy kind and has a strong but not too overpowering cinnamon flavour. Calories worth gaining! 





Nearest Mrt Station: Esplanade
Location: 26 Beach Road, South Beach Avenue, #B1-17, Singapore 189768
What To Order: Coffee, Salmon, Smoked Duck Salad and Waffle
Café Rating: 4/5
Food Ratings: 7.5/10

Written by: Yong Wei Kai (Follow me on Instagram @yongweikai or @sgcafehopping)

.elia...

Good news to all café-hoppers! A new café is in the hood! Taking over the space by Oriole Coffee Roasters previously at Jiak Chuan Road, .elia is an unpretentious and homely café that offers specially curated menu where signatures from abroad are assembled with a personal touch. Inspired from all his travel logs, Founder-and-Chef Clint Seah has come out with an all-rounded menu that showcases the best produce of each season. Bistro by day, restaurant by night; .elia aims to serve customers a unique menu which is refreshed periodically. On top of that, .elia also serves pretty decent coffee. So, if you are looking for a nice place to fix your coffee cravings (I'm in love with their milkshakes), this is one place to go! 

In frame, a collage of the food (both lunch and dinner) served at .elia. Everything is freshly made in-house, including the pasta and bread. How impressive is that!


Crispy Pesto Chicken Sandwich (Available Lunch)
The sandwich was massive! No joke! I was shocked at how huge the portion was when it was served onto my table. The buttered bread was well-toasted and crispy which even though I tried not to eat it (cutting down carbs), the bread was simply irresistible! I particularly loved the melted cheese and avocado spread on the bread, and it paired very well with the grilled chicken. A must-try! If you are a veggie person, they also serve a huge bowl of salad on the side!

Pasta Genovese (Available Lunch)
The house-made pasta has a very good texture and it was well-cooked (not too soft or too tough). It had a strong truffle flavour which won me hands down. I could easily finish this all by myself. This was legit tasty!

Octopus
Some of you might be deterred by its looks but trust me, it is really delicious. It didn’t have a fishy taste and the octopus was really chewy and flavourful. I also liked how the kale complemented the octopus. Would definitely return to try this!


Wagyu Beef Shortrib
The Wagyu Beef was flavourful, fatty and very chewy. I’m not a huge fan of fatty beef but I believe most people would probably like this.

Lemon Curd Tart
I don’t know if they have this in their menu because I tried them (tasting portion) during their soft launch. The lemon curd wasn’t too sour and the tart was well-baked. If you happen to see this in their menu, you can go ahead and get it!

Chocolate Molten Cake
After trying so many over the top and fanciful desserts, the best dessert that can make you happy is always the simple one. This rich and creamy lava cake definitely put a smile on my face! Paired with the refreshing ice cream, this dessert is a life-saver especially on a hot sunny afternoon!




Nearest Mrt Station: Outram
Location: 10 Jiak Chuan Rd, Singapore 089264
What To Order: Pasta, Sandwich and Lava Cake
Café Rating: 3.5/5
Food Ratings: 8/10

Written by: Yong Wei Kai (Follow me on Instagram @yongweikai or @sgcafehopping)

Lowercase...

After working for about one year now, I’m starting to miss the carefree days in school. I miss hanging out with my friends in the school cafeteria, having late night supper outside school and all the other crazy things we do together. If time permits, I really don’t mind being a student again.

Recently, I was invited to Lowercase Café in LASALLE and it somehow reminded me of my university life. The buzzling student activities in the café sparked a nostalgic feeling in me and I really envy the students for having such a nice place to chill in school.

Besides offering an extensive range of modern Western cuisine at a very affordable price, Lowercase Café also serves in-house ice cream, cakes and waffle. They even have LIVE Band on Friday! So, if you haven't decide where to spend your TGIF this week, you know where to go! Also, show this blog post to any of the staffs to enjoy a 10% discount on all non-promotional items! T&Cs apply!

Flank Steak
I’m starting with my favourite dish at Lowercase! The Flank Steak was very well-marinated, and stuffed with flavourful chunks of Onion Red, Yellow Bell Pepper, Rockets, Mozzarella Cheese drizzled with Homemade Red Wine Sauce. It was so tender and juicy that I couldn’t stop myself after having a bite! The in-house mash was well-cooked, and definitely a very good side dish.


Atlantic Smoked Salmon Salad
One thing for sure, the salad portion is insanely huge! Not a very big fan of salad (this was too raw for me) but I believe if you belong to the health-conscious crowd, you will definitely like this. Generous servings of freshly cured salmon and octopus. Very refreshing if you are a veggie person!


Lemony Tuna with Mixed Herbs
This was the first time I’m seeing Cream Base Pasta cooked with Tuna Chunks (maybe I’m kiasu) and the combination totally works! It wasn’t too creamy (not jelat) or too dry. Noodles were well-cooked! I can foresee it being a very popular dish amongst the students because it was very filling. I had such a hard time trying to finish it!


Kimchi Chicken Burger
When I saw the name of the burger in the menu, my eyes began to sparkle! I always have a bias love for food related to Korea and I’m glad this burger didn’t disappoint! Chicken was well-marinated with Gochujang sauce – not too sweet and not too spicy. What I liked the most was the Honey-Garlic Topoki which came at the side and I thought they could give a bit more of it because it was legit delicious!

BBQ Smoked Duck
Pizza toppings were definitely flavourful but I didn’t quite like the texture of the pizza base. It was too soft for me. If the base was a little stronger, I would have enjoyed the pizza more.

Salted Egg Yolk Fries
Fries were pretty ordinary but the in-house salted egg yolk sauce was bomb! It was flavourful, spicy and has chunks of salted egg in it as well. Very addictive!


Lowercase also serves pretty good coffees that are not too acidic! Very enjoyable to drink!

Cheesecake
The cheesecake was not too bad! It was not sweet but I thought the milk flavour was overpowering the cheese!

Waffles with Ice Cream
This was the kind of waffles I like – Crispy on the outside, soft on the inside and buttery. I also picked two of my favourite ice cream – Pistachio and the very refreshing Cocktail Caribbean (Pineapple mixed with Coconut Sherbet). Definitely what you need on a hot afternoon!


Remember, show this blog post to any of the staffs to enjoy a 10% discount on non-promotional items!





Nearest Mrt Station: Rochor
Location: Blk D #01-01, 1 McNally St, Singapore 187940
What To Order: Kimchi Burger, Flank Steak and Waffles with Ice Cream
Café Rating: 3/5
Food Ratings: 7.5/10

Written by: Yong Wei Kai (Follow me on Instagram @yongweikai or @sgcafehopping)

The Bank Bar + Bistro...

Most of us (including myself) have the misconception that the restaurants in the CBD area are extremely costly. We are not exactly wrong to think this way but there’s still some really affordable restaurant in the CBD area that serves decent food and drinks. Situated in One Shenton, The Bank Bar + Bistro is one restaurant all office-goers should visit because of the food variety and of course cheap alcoholic drinks (I can already see sparks in the eyes).

Recently, The Bank Bar + Bistro has launched a brand new menu that features an extensive range of Western-Asian dishes at a reasonable price. Honestly, they have such a good load of variety that I had a hard time choosing what to eat. On top of that, they are currently having an All Day Drinks Special where beers like Tiger and Heineken as well as House Wines are priced at $8.90++ only. The best part – this promotion runs daily and if you are working near there, you are so fortunate! So, share this around with your colleagues and head down to the Bank Bar + Bistro to unwind yourself after a stressful day of work!
They are also very generous with the portion they served! Definitely very filling and satisfying! In frame, Seared Seabass, Butter Chicken, Spicy Prawn Salad, Steak Sandwich and Oriental Seabass Pasta. My personal favourite was the heavily spiced and flavourful Butter Chicken which got me bite after bite.


They have a wide range of drinks for you to choose from. Since it was so early in the morning, I decided to settle for their cocktails. Between the Lychee Martini and Chocolate Martini, I preferred the Chocolate Martini. The chocolate flavour was strong and it wasn’t overly sweet as compared to the Lychee Martini. 


Spicy Prawn Salad // $18
This Thai-inspired salad was refreshing, spicy and very appetising. It was well-mixed, vegetables were extremely crunchy and they were very generous with the prawn servings. P/s: it gets spicier towards the end! 



Seared Seabass // $25
The seabass was definitely well-cooked, not too tough or too soft, and it was flavourful. The cream sauce wasn’t too heavy and again very generous with the clams! This is definitely a very satisfying dish! 



Butter Chicken // $22
This was my favourite dish at The Bank Bar + Bistro! It’s rare to find Butter Chicken in a Western Bistro but you can have it over here! It was heavily spiced and very flavourful. I couldn’t stop myself from drinking the thick and creamy sauce. Chicken was also tender and flavourful! A must-try! 

Steak Sandwich // $19
The steak was well-marinated, well-cooked and very tender. Bread was well-toasted and crispy. I also liked how they added quinoa into their mixed greens which was so delicious! 


Oriental Seabass Pasta // $20
The pasta has a strong and aromatic XO flavour which I really liked. Honestly, this pasta was very addictive! One bite and trust me, you can’t stop. Seabass was nice as well. 

Homemade Fruity Plum Yogurt Popsicle // $4.50
This popsicle was a perfect way to clean out your palette after all the oily food. It was a tad icy and I really liked how the yogurt and plum complemented one another. There are also dried fruits inside it. Very pleasurable to the tastebud!


For more information, head to their website at http://thebankbar.com/homepage.html




Nearest Mrt Station: Downtown
Location: One Shenton #01-01, 1 Shenton Way, Singapore 068803
What To Order: Butter Chicken, Seared Seabass, Pasta and Salad
Restaurant Rating: 4/5
Food Ratings: 8/10

Written by: Yong Wei Kai (Follow me on Instagram @yongweikai or @sgcafehopping)
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Yong Wei Kai Founder of SgCafeHopping Promoting Singapore's food scene has always been my dream.

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