Restaurant Review: Crêperie des Arts

Another weekend, another weekend brunch place that comes highly recommended by this skinnyfat girl. This time, we go French and the restaurant is no other than Crêperie des Arts, a traditional French crêpes place that hails from Brittany, a region in the northwest of France.

So what are crêpes? Essentially it's a very thin pancake which is usually made from wheat flour (crêpes de Froment) or buckwheat flour (galettes). Crêperie des Arts does a selection of both dessert and savory crêpes. 


On the location- nice little place tucked away at Prinsep Street. It is pretty quiet and cosy. There aren't many seats indoors so it may get pretty crowded. There is a 2nd level seating as well but it was closed to diners when i went. The decor reflects the coastal nature of Brittany with all the fishing nets and fake seafood on the walls (was pretty amused by that). 

It's like dining in someone's home. You see little kids' art pieces pasted on the walls, a bar counter that separates the dining space from the kitchen, uncoordinated mix of furniture, absolutely homey.

Outdoor seating- not many tables as well. 

Traditional French crêpes are served with apple cider! I love apple cider, it's like drinking sparkling juice with that bit of alcohol. Would have gone for the sweet cider (i only take sweet alcohol) but they were out of that so i had to go with the 5% one. Somehow it still tastes a little bitter to me? This is $8.50 a glass which imo is a little pricey since the glass is kinda small to me? 

We ordered the duck rillette for appetizers. If you are concerned about your cholesterol level, don't have this dish. A little more on the preparation of this dish- the meat is cubed or chopped, salted heavily and cooked slowly in fat until it is tender enough to be easily shredded, and then cooled with enough of the fat to form a paste. Spread that buttery mix on the toasted bread and send it right into your mouth. I guarantee a direct transportation to heaven (not in the kick-the-bucket sense but that may happen as well. Ok that's some dark humour. Hur hur).  

For mains, we had the crowd pleasers- complete Forestiere (i think i ordered this or perhaps the one without the egg) and Saint Caradec.

The Complete Forestiere is a crêpe with ham, mushroom and a sunny side up egg in the middle. This is quite the perfect breakfast/brunch dish. Texture of a pancake with all my savory sides= yums. The crêpe is wafer thin, extremely crispy but slightly spongey in the middle. I think the texture of the dish is perfect- there's some crunch which is complemented by the moisture of the egg yolk. 

S had the Saint-Caradec which has scallops flambéed with Calvados and served with a creamy leeks fondue. It was kinda bitter to me, maybe it's the leeks or something. Love the plump and fresh scallops which were well seared and very juicy but they do look kinda pathetic sitting on such a huge crêpe. 


To state the obvious, i did not finish my crêpe and neither did S. They were surprisingly very filling. I think i ate less than half of mine so we doggy bagged (for the dog. :P Couldn't stomach any more crêpe after brunch). Because we were so stuffed, there wasn't any space left for desserts. Heard the flambéed crêpe Suzette is a good choice for a dessert crêpe so maybe next time round (if i do not over order again). 


S thought that it is kinda pricey for crêpes, the mains are about S$20++. Then again that's the price you have to pay for authentic food in Sg. Another authentic French crêperie would be Entre-Nous Crêperie at Seah Street. Should give it a try some day.

If you prefer pancakes, Strictly Pancakes is just next door. However, you've been warned, that place is like a hangout for pimply teenagers and the usual NS boys and uni kids. I would recommend FfT for pancakes just down the road at Queens if you want to avoid the canteen crowd.

Crêperie des Arts
44 Prinsep Street, #01-02/02, Prinsep Place
Tel: +65 6333 5330
Fri–Sun: 12pm – 2pm
Tue–Sun: 6pm – 11pm

Hawker Review: Song Fa Ba Kut Teh

On cold nights or rainy days, i often find myself craving for hot peppery soup and that's when i'll head down to Song Fa Ba Kut Teh to warm up my shivering tummy.

My favorite bkt is the clear soup (otherwise called white soup) which is packed with lotsa black and white pepper. Not a fan of the black herbal sort (too much herbs for me). I used to only eat at Founder's which has pretty decent bkt IMO but decided to give Song Fa a shot since i see it all the time at Clark Quay. 

Verdict? The soup is not bad, savory enough and is very aromatic. I still do think Founder's has really good soup but SF has way better ribs. The meat is so tender, it peels off the bone with a light tug of your teeth. The ribs absorbs the flavor of the soup so thoroughly you don't even have to dip it in too much dark sauce to give it the extra flavor. I have tried both the premium and the regular ribs here and the regular ones are much better. Trust me on this one. The regular rib is better than Founder's premium ribs as well. For $8 you would get the large bowl and that's about 6 ribs. On good days i can finish that by myself.

If you want more food, other dishes such as the braised intestines (really well marinated and clean), pork trotters (braised and melt-in-your-mouth meat!), chicken feet (i don't eat this) etc are pretty awesome too. If you like variety, you could go for the mixed soup of your choice- you could choose ribs, stomach, tail bone etc in the pork bone soup. Me? I'd just go for the regular pork rib bkt. :)

Love dipping the you tiao into the soup and then smearing it in the dark sauce before popping each golden babies into my mouth. The salted veggies are also a must order.

Simple comfort food to chase away the cold! Enjoy. There are 2 outlets along New Bridge Road, i always go to the air conditioned one. It's from the same kitchen and the prices are the same so why not dine in comfort right?

Song Fa Ba Kut Teh
11 & 17 New Bridge Road, #01-01
Tel: +65 6533 6128
Tues-Sun: 7am - 10pm
Closed Mon

Food & Travel Review: Eat Saigon - Sozo Cafe

My Vietnam trip was practically a cafe hunting trip. What best way to enjoy a holiday with lotsa nice coffee and desserts/pastry and simply zen out. Since i didn't do any research before i left, i basically counted on Lonely Planet for some of food options and i think Sozo was on it. Since it was along the same main street as my hotel, i decided to walk there to check it out. 

Sozo is unique from other cafes in the sense that it's mission is to help underprivileged Vietnamese families and their children to break the cycle of debt. Sozo has been providing training for employment for these families since 2005. Food is such an amazing thing because it provides sustenance and more. To me, food brings me joy (not because i'm greedy) and eating is a big thing at home since forever. Food brings family together- the preparation, the cooking, the feasting, the hanging out after and then more eating. So yea, great idea to use food to help these disadvantaged folks. 

The space is quite amazing (as all shops in Saigon are). The first time i popped by the store i thought it was just the ground floor but it turns out that there's more sitting space upstairs. Anyway, there is quite an array of baked goods such as muffins, cakes and cookies. They also do breakfast food (both Vietnamese and American) but i didn't try that.

I like the alfresco space upstairs- little balcony that looks out to the main street. Somehow it is just really quiet and serene upstairs despite the bustling traffic on the road. Feels like i'm chilling out at somebody's place.

This was breakfast before i left Saigon for Phu Quoc. Ice Blended Vietnamese coffee which was awesome. Boy that was some kick start to my hyper-energy for the rest of the day. The left is a Caramel roll which was nice when warmed up (absolutely bad when it's cold because it turns rock hard). The right is a carrot cake which is fabulous.

I like a good carrot cake but i seldom order it for desserts, simply because a lot of places don't make good ones. A good carrot cake should be very moist but dense at the same time. The cream cheese frosting is also very important to the entirety of the cake. At first glance, it may seem like there's too little frosting but the amount was just right, since the cake isn't very tall. The cake tastes very fresh as well and you can sill see and recognize the carrot bits in it, totally unlike what we usually see in Sg. Most of the time it looks like oxidised carrot (i don't think carrots oxidise but they always look like they do somehow).
So yea, great concept, great place, simple and hearty food that comes from the heart. Please support them!

Sozo
176 Bui Vien, District 1,Ho Chi Minh Ciy, Vietnam 
Tel: 095 870 6580 or 0909 306 971
Daily: 7:00am - 10:30pm
Email: info@sozocentre.com

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Food & Travel Review: Eat Saigon- Au Parc Cafe

Au Parc is another one of my favorite hangouts in the town area. I went there 3 times during my stay in Saigon. It's located in a colonial french shophouse with high ceilings (i love these shophouse features), full of light and life and of course good food. 

Like many restaurants in Saigon or Vietnam, Au Parc does a Mediterranean as well as some French food and some American/English. This is typical of most cafes in Saigon in order to cater to the expats working in Saigon. 

There are 3 different spaces for dining. The ground level is bistro-style. You can watch the preparation of your food along with the madness of the service stuff during rush hour. That or take a seat outside, al fresco style and watch the world scoot by (literally). 

The 1st floor has a Mediterranean section. Really cosy space and very Middle Eastern. What i love about this space is the natural light that falls in from the roof and how it reflects off the yellow walls to create that warmth that envelops the space. Bright and cheery. :) It's amazing how all the contrasting designs, patterns, colors, shapes and textures come together so well. Love the mosaic tiled table tops! 

Happy us with our freshly squeezed juices and breakfast!
The bagel is the best i've ever had and this trumps anything we have in Sg. Seriously we've been eating crap all these while. Starbucks bagel is like a rock compared to this. I honestly have no idea how they can create such an airy texture and yet maintain the chewiness of a bagel. Even the ones i had in NYC weren't like that. I'm not too sure what exactly should the texture be- dense and chewy? Or light and chewy? Any bagel expert out there please do enlighten us.

Anyhow, they are so generous with the cheese and it's really good and light cream cheese with a tinge of sourness and saltiness. Beats the lousy Philadelphia cream cheese that we usually get. We had a side order of jam and it's made from mulberry. How exotic right? Fragrant and with the right amount of sweetness. It's certainly not as sour as the usual fresh raspberry or blueberry jam.

This would be a perfect place for a wedding luncheon. This is what i'd call a positive space.

Went back a second time for lunch after visiting Cu Chi Tunnels. I wanted to try their quiche but they didn't make any the day i went. So it was a different sorta bagel for me. Bacon with melted Camembert and rockets. This is absolutely awesome. I was surprised at how full i felt after a half of my bagel even though it is really small.
So what do you do when you eat alone? You entertain yourself with lots of silly pictures of yourself eating. :) You can still have fun when you are dining alone! Tested and proven. :))

After a glass of fresh mocha and my bagel, i decided that i should still stuff myself with desserts! This is the only downside to dining alone- there's no one to share my food with and i can't have a variety of dishes for tasting! :(( Anyway, i didn't try the Nemesis Chocolate Cake (it looks like a chocolate truffle block) but it comes highly recommended by Z and i trust her taste in desserts since we essentially have the same tummies.
The cheesecake looks fabulous too but certainly too rich for my overly expanded tummy.
I chose the Earl Grey Creme Brulee because it looks small enough and i love tea/coffee desserts. It certainly didn't disappoint. Very thick pudding, creamy too. I'm not sure what is the perfect texture because i'm not a Creme Brulee fan but it tastes ok to my picky tongue. :P

Z and i went back on the last day of our trip for lunch. Gave the dip a shot because it has spinach and blue cheese and some other cheese in it! Yums. I love the pungent and saltiness of blue cheese but this isn't too overpowering. I was surprised by how refreshing the dip is. 

My drink was practically a dessert in itself. It's a Strawberry banana muesli honey smoothie. High calorie drink! 

The apple crumble is to die for. Extremely soft and melt-in-your-mouth apple slices (not chunks) accompanied by the buttery and crispy crumble and real vanilla ice cream! Vanilla ice cream is only real if they come with vanilla beans. The ice cream is a tad too sweet though but well desserts are meant to be sweet.

I was craving for some toasted focaccia and this satisfied my taste buds. Ham cheese and avocado sandwich. The saltiness of the ham is complemented by the creamy avocado and this made in heaven pair is sandwiched between the buttery focaccia. -sighs in contentment- Ok now i'm craving for this. Think it'd have to be Toast for breakfast.  
I would really love to be back for the quiche. I'm sure they do their pastries well. The menu is pretty extensive and it'd take at least 2-3 weeks to taste everything? Or perhaps longer since i already have my favorites. Do check it out if you are in Saigon.

Au Parc
23 Han Thuyen
Saigon, Vietnam
Tel: +84 3829 2772, +84 3822 3080
Email: auparc@gmail.com

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Food & Travel Review: Eat Saigon- L'usine Cafe

L'usine is what i would consider my ideal cafe. It is tucked away on the 2nd storey above a Vietnamese arts gallery. As i walked through the alley, what greeted me was a motorcycle parking garage which was kinda dodgy. Up the stairs i went and immediately i fell in love. This is quite similar to PS cafe but with a little more quirkiness.

High ceilings, open and airy space. Perfect place to while the afternoon away.  Notice the similarities to PS? This is more relaxing i feel, people just leave you alone to do your own thing unlike in Sg where the servers make you feel you've overstayed your welcome. 

I love the long benches in the different sections of the cafe. Perfect for gatherings. Doesn't matter if you are sitting next to strangers. Who knows if they may become friends right? 

Quirky wallpaper. Z thought it was a picture of some gentleman. I thought it was quite disturbing the first time i saw it. Then we realized it's actually Sun Wu Kong in a suit! This is not something i would have in my house though. Imagine those monkey eyes following you wherever you go. Shudders.
L'usine also has a retail space within the cafe. It feels very much like UO and looks exactly like an old warehouse. Love the natural light that filters in through the huge window panes and the little red bird cages from the wooden beamed ceilings. I bought a rubber watch (O clock) from italy and another foldable sports glasses from Sunpocket. Super cool stuff!

Finally onto the food. I can't say that i've tried much but their baked goods are out of this world. My favorite? CUPCAKES! The cupcakes are by Sweet + Sour and they are the moist-est thing you can find. I am no cupcake fan but i've fallen in love. Even the little cupcake place S brought me to in NYC couldn't beat this. I doubt Magnolia is as good. :P Great flavors- Chocolate, black and white, vanilla, choc-cinnamon etc. This is me eating my favorite flavour! Choc-caramel! 

This is the S'mores flavored one. Chocolate based cupcake with melted marshmallow top which is really creamy and light and not overpowering in sweetness. It has a hidden secret inside- graham swirls!!! How wonderful is that?

This is chocolate mint if i'm not wrong. Cute. But i'm not a choc mint fan so didn't try this.
The berry muffins are good too. Crusty muffin top with a moist interior and icing on top.
Cheese platter. Not sure what sort it is but both Z and i prefer soft cheese better. So creamy it spreads like condensed milk on the crackers. Yums. Z likens the biscuit to 'Chicken in a biscuit'. Could try that for a cheese platter next time!

The red velvet is not very consistent though. The one time i tried it was dry but Z's was moist. Cream cheese frosting was good though. 

I was so hooked on the cupcakes i had to have them for desserts after dinner so we packed them. Our second hotel in Saigon was at Oscar Saigon and L'usine is just around the corner from there. Yay!

About my favorite choc-caramel- look carefully at the center! There's a chunk of melted caramel inside. It's like a kinder bueno. Love searching for treasures and surprises and the center is my favorite part. :))

Enjoying my cupcake in the comfort of our room. I finished 2 cupcakes on my own. Z didn't get much. :P 

This is how Bliss looks like. Or Contentment. Or maybe Gluttony. A bit unglamorous but honestly the tummy was doing a song and dance session right there and then. :)) If there's a reason why i'd fly to Saigon for a weekend trip it would be for the cupcakes. 

So if you are headed there, pop by L'usine. And get me a cupcake when you come back? Tyvm!!

L'usine
Et la cafeteria de l'usine
151/1 1st Floor, Dong Khoi Street
District 1
Saigon, Vietnam

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