Ronin Cafe Singapore

Brunch spots are popping up everywhere these days. If you open a cafe and you don't at least offer weekend brunch, you're pretty much screwed. But if you only do an average one, you wouldn't survive long in this competition. #sadbuttrue Well the people at Ronin must have gotten it right i guess. These same folks behind The Plain and The Bravery have been operating at 17 Hong Kong Street for a while now and it's packed despite not having a sign.

I liked how dim and broody the industrial space is. The cemented floors, naked bulbs and cinema chairs contribute to the sulky hipster type.  Well you can brood if you're not seated at the communal tables, or you can continue brooding because that's what hipsters do.

Drinks first. Ronin uses the same Genovese blend as The Bravery and The Plain. Low acidity, super strong and aromatic. Love the crema. Latte goes for $4.20. 

For something refreshing and sweet, go with the Wicked Mocha ($5.50), a mint mocha that tastes like After Eights. Go for the hot version for a more intense flavor.

Do not miss out on the Matchatone ($5.50)! This is by far my favorite matcha drink. It is actually an intense matcha paste served with steamed milk. I love scrapping the green tea sludge and eating that instead of mixing it all in. Slurps.

Here comes the food. The non-existent menu (they really don't have a copy anywhere) only has a few items, a couple of sandwiches, eggs, french toast and some pastries on the counter. My advice is to search online for the available items instead of straining your memory trying to figure out what you wanna order when the waitstaff recites the menu. Anyway here's what we ordered.

We had the famed Dirty Ronin ($12). Hard sandwiches are so in these days. I enjoyed the crispy panini which has a nice crusty shell but it still maintained that fluffy porous texture inside. Servings are huge by the way. So this comes with a lightly spiced salty chorizo. How they get the meat so soft i have no idea but it is really more like spam (not the chinese Ma Ling sorta luncheon meat though). There's some miso mayo, fried egg and cheese in this. Taste wise it's not bad, though a different kinda lettuce would have been better.

The scrambled eggs ($9) have this amazing taste and texture. It's extremely milky but it's not the runny sort. However, it wasn't like the eggs were dry. Well.. it's like an egg pudding? Anyhoo, you gotta try it for yourself. It's perfect with the nicely buttered crunchy toast. Add on the freshly made sausage ($4.50) which comes in pork or lamb to satisfy your meat craving. Avocado and Portobello available as add ons too. 

If you, like me, enjoy a sweet and savory combination, have the French Toast ($14), a fluffy and eggy brioche topped with fried bacon and crunchy and tart Granny Smith apples. Absolutely adored the maple butter! I could do with more bacon though. Oink. 

We really enjoyed brunch at Ronin though it's really packed during brunch time. The waiting isn't too bad because the service is pretty good. The girls are really chirpy and friendly so it's great. 

Ronin
17 Hong Kong Street Singapore 059660
Tue – Sun: 8am - 8pm