As we all know, Tiong Bahru (the area that I happened to grow up in) is now a hip and yuppie hangout with lots of cafes and upscale restaurants such as Open Door Policy and Ikyu. However, the most famous cafes there will have to be Tiong Bahru Bakery and 40 Hands. The former for their croissants and the latter for gourmet coffee.
The family decided to go there for brunch before my brother headed off to the newly established “We Need a Hero” barbershop that belongs to the Spa Espirit Group (think House, Tiong Bahru Bakery, Skinny Pizza, Browhaus and Strip). Walking along the streets of Tiong Bahru now, it kinda feels like Notting Hill to me but with an Asian twist. I am also glad that some childhood stores and even clinics, have not left the area!
Anyway, we decided to have our brunch at PoTeaTo and no guessing that they have a HUGE selection of teas from the name. You are also greated by a decoration reading ‘I Love Tea’ too.
PoTeaTO is a small cafe that has been decorated to be rather minimalist with that slight industrial, unfinished feel. The tables are tiny and cramped together, which can also be described as cosy.
As for the menu, we were there at noon and were told that they were only serving the Weekend brunch items as well as the sides. Mains such as Fish & Chips were relegated to dinner.
I ordered the Salmon Tomato Quiche Tea Set (S$12++) with Lemon Earl Grey being my choice of tea. I must say that the tea was very fragrant and they didn’t bat an eyelid when I requested for honey. Kudos to them for that. The set is definitely a lot more worth it than ordering both separately because a pot of tea is already S$7++ while the quiche alone was priced at S$9++.
The quiche was delicious and it comes with a very small side salad that was drizzled with quality vinaigrette. My only grouse with it is that it had too much pastry. It was quite ironic that I would’ve probably preferred a quiche from Delifrance.
My mum ordered the Mushroom Spinach Quiche Tea Set (S$12++) and she had the same comments. Too much pastry and not enough mushrooms and spinach.
If you don’t want to order any of the brunch meals/sets from their menu, they also do ala carte orders such as toast (S$1.80++ per slice) and scrambled eggs (S$4.80++). I also overheard from the next table that PoTeaTo’s signature side dish is their Sweet Potato Fries, which we didn’t try.
We did try their White Chocolate Cheesecake (price not known as my dad paid for it) which was gorgeous. Don’t mind the brownish hue in this photo, which is a result of the lighting. The slice was quite generous and is larger than what you’d normally get in other cafes. I liked that they used a digestive biscuit base and the white chocolate taste was prominent without it being overpowering. I also liked the texture of the cake because unlike your New York style cheesecake, this was lighter and less cheesy. Reminds me a lot like the cheesecake that my ex-colleague makes. This made up for the quiche earlier and definitely made me a lot happier when we left.
I guess I wouldn’t mind going back to PoTeaTo for their cakes and teas. Wished they came up with tea sets (cake + tea). That’d be my choice.
PoTeaTo
78 Yong Siak Street
#01-18
Singapore 163078
Tel: +65 6221 2488
Email: eat@poteato.sg
Website: www.poteato.sg
Leave a Reply