Kith Cafe + Nectarie

Since it has been quite awhile since i've had all-day breakkie sessions, i welcomed my dining partner's suggestion to try this small cozy place by the river (well, a portion of the Singapore river at least) that specialises in breakfast items all day.

menu board

When we got there, we realised its really small, there are only 3 tables inside (1 long 8-seater one, and 2 small 2-3 seater ones), and a few more of varying sizes dotted outside. However, one thing is for sure, the ambience spells "relax", and surrounding you are couples, families and friends chit-chatting away.

cafe latte & long black ($3+)

toast with scrambled eggs($7.50) + smoked bratwurst sausage($3.50) & home-made strawberry jam on the side

bacon & eggs toasties($5.50) + smoked bratwurst sausage($3.50) & sauteed mushrooms($3.00) & green apples on the side

Well, the menu comprises of 4 main sections for food items, namely "Toast", "Toasties", "Pasta" & "Sandwiches", with each section having a few combinations/flavours to choose from. Since the 1st 2 sounds more unique, we tried 1 item from each. As we are afraid that the portions are too small for us, we added some extra sides to fill up our tummies. Generally, i would say the quality of food is not too bad, but pretty homemade (i.e. you can probably do the same thing in your own kitchen too, and much cheaper), so it didnt really "wow" me. That said, it is a nice place to chill out if you like quiet environments, and sit down with a book (or iPhone these days).

Reservations are not allowed, but there is free parking in the condo where it is located in (just mention that you are going to "Kith Cafe" to the security guard").

Kith Cafe

7 Rodyk St

Watermark @ Robertson Quay #01-23

http://www.kith.com.sg/

After our not-so-full lunch, we head to Clarke Quay for some cold dessert on a hot day.

lavendar honey (background) & boysenberry ice cream ($4/scoop)

strawberry cream tea ($6.50)

Nothing much to comment about the ice cream, except that it is creamy enough, and a nice treat on a hot afternoon, albeit a tad too expensive. Strawberry cream tea reminds me of a certain tea in TCC/Coffee club.

Nectarie le Dessert Patisserie

Blk C, The Cannery

#01-05 River Valley Rd, Clarke Quay

http://www.nectarie.sg/

Javier's Rotisserie & Salad Bar

Its gonna be a short one for "J", as there is really nothing much to say about this place. A "brother" branch by the same owner behind Astons, its dining concept is similar to Kenny Rogers, where you choose a main dish first, then choose your side dishes, just that for Javier's, your side dishes are laid out buffet-style for you to pile on your plate.

Offering the usual fares like roast chicken (either 1/4 or 1/2), honey ribs (1/2 or a rack) or roast beef (5 or 10 oz), all (or most) of the mains come with a standard set consisting of a serving of all-you-can-eat sides (both hot & cold) and a serving of soup. Basically what they do is give you a big plate with your main dish on it, and leave it to you to fill up your plate with as much side dishes as you can, before scooping your own soup (as much as u can fit into their soup bowl) at the end before you pay up. Good for big eaters, as you can load up your plate with carbos to fill yourself up, because the portion of their mains isnt that big.

glimpse of the sides area

Their cold sides consist of the usual salad fare like lettuces, brocolli, mushroom (raw ones, mind you), potato salad, pasta salad, coleslaw, corn kennels, baby carrots, tomatoes, cucumbers and various types of dressings.The hot sides consist of potato wedges, mashed potato, sauteed corn, sauteed brocolli, sauteed mushroom, etc.

There will be 2 choices for the soups, and i think they change it occasionally. The ones i had were either cream of chicken or vegetable consomme.

Vegetable consomme - flavourful, but a little too peppery, ingredients not worth eating.

I had the 5 oz roast beef ($18.90), and as you can see, its just 1 slice of beef which looks nice and pink. In actual fact, yes it is medium done (although i would prefer medium rare, but you don't really get to choose your doneness because it is kinda precooked), but the cut i got was terrible. The portion covered by the black pepper sauce in the picture, is actually just fat and tendons, NO meat! So all i get to eat out of the beef, is just the pink area you see in the picture. Lucky i m not a big eater. And to add, the black pepper sauce is really too spicy, maybe the mushroom sauce might be a better choice.

I took a few sides from both the hot and cold section to make up for my miserable beef, clockwise from top left, potato salad, pasta salad, corn kennels & baby carrots with caesar (or is it ranch) dressing, mashed potato with brown sauce, sauteed mushrooms, sauteed brocolli and potato wedges. Generally, the sides are pretty average in standard, good enough to put into your stomach, but not good enough to remember and come back for more.

All in all, i will not make a special trip here, and i probably will not recommend friends here (unless you just wanna eat salad, which they sell at $8.90/serving), unless we need a quick meal before/after movies. Aston's is definitely better.

Javier's Rotisserie & Salad Bar

B1, Cathay Cineleisure

Ippudo Tao

Ippudo Tao is the 2nd branch of Ippudo Group which was started by Japan's Ramen King, specialising in their signature tonkotsu broth ramen, and injecting the passion of the Ramen King for modernising Japan's traditional cultures. When their 1st branch in Mandarin Gallery first opened, their queues were endless, so i decided to wait till the hype has died down, before giving this infamous Kyushu Ramen shop a shot.

Wall art

Open bar counter

Beef kushiyaki

Tasting kushiyaki - brussel sprout, beef, pork, chicken, bacon-wrapped-asparagus

Honestly, the saltiest kushiyaki i have ever tasted. Really not worth trying again. Nuff' said.

Ippudo Shiro Ramen

Boiled Tamago

Shiro Ramen is Ippudo's original ramen made from tonkotsu broth served with Hakata thin & straight noodles. Soup was pretty flavourful, noodles were cooked just nice. Charshu wasn't too interesting as it was a little on the hard side, but 1 of the nicest part of the ramen is their Tamago (separate order, doesnt come in the basic bowl). Akin to what the Cantonese call 糖心蛋 where the whites are firmly cooked but the yolk is still runny in the middle, i enjoyed this egg a hell lot!

Tao Kuro

A new invention for the Ippudo Tao branch, this ramen rendition consist of thick chewy noodles (think mee pok) in a Shoyu Tonkotsu broth with special blended miso paste and black garlic oil. More flavourful but much oilier and heavier than the Shiro, the noodles are also cooked well enough, and good for eaters with "heavy" palates.

All in all, nothing too fascinating for me, and a little too expensive.

Ippudo Tao

UE Square

http://www.ippudo.com.sg/about-ippudo-tao/