Opened for just a few months, The Brew & Bake Co is a real treat for the eyes on a strip consisting of simple local joints by the roadside (psssst! Niqqi’s The Cheese Prata Shop is one of them). Decked out in bright primary colours, the cafe is all about vintage cheer, and it’s adorable.

My kids were in a bit of awe when they spotted all the colourful vintage toys on display. It’s more of a look-no-touch thing, since they’re all behind locked cabinets, but it still does keep kids fascinated for awhile 😉

The furniture is imported and also in their trademark blue/yellow/red colours. The low sofas are excellent for young kids!

The Brew & Bake Co are almost entirely about coffee and cakes. And they do them well. It was actually pretty hard trying to narrow down a few to try!

I was mostly delighted because they offer complimentary water, in an adorable tall water container! Awesome for young kids – the cuteness factor gets them drinking!

Check out their Elchemist Frappe station! It’s DIY frappe time, where you pump your chosen syrup(s) into test tubes, and they whip it all up for you. Adorable concept and great for older kids (and adults)!

How adorable are their coffee cups? We had a Chai latte and a regular Latte. The coffee was well brewed and smooth, and the chai wasn’t overly sweet.

Their Lychee cheesecake was just too pretty to resist! This was a MEGA hit with the kids – they pretty much polished it off between themselves. They lychee flavour came from the lychee-flavoured jelly sitting on top of creamy cheesecake. What I loved most, though, was the buttery biscuit base. It was slightly salty, full of buttery goodness, and simply divine. Only problem? I wanted a double-layer of the biscuitty goodness 😉

Their best seller, the Neopolitan, was a triple layer cake that was both unique and delicious. The strawberry fresh cream layer paired well with the creamy middle and brownie bottom layer.

And oh man is that brownie layer riiiiccch! It’s dense and almost chewy. If you like rich chocolate brownies, you’ll like this.

Last Bite: The Brew & Bake Co is all about vintage cheer and old school charm. They serve just coffee and cakes, but they do it well.

Highchairs: No
Easy access: Yes
Change tables: No
Kids’ menu: No

The Brew & Bake Co
28 Clementi Road
Singapore 129754
Phone: 9235 2276
Prices: $$
Hours: Mon – Sat: 11:30 am – 11:30 pm, Sun: 11:30 am – 3:30 pm

I rarely feature local food places (you know what I’m talking about – the down and dirty kind that’s not airconditioned, but serves cheap and good food!), because they’re often not baby friendly. I tend to go sans kids, or if I have kids, I end up regretting it!

But I’m writing about Niqqi’s The Cheese Prata Shop  because we had a lovely brunch there, and both kids were full and happy.

Situated on the road side, it’s seemingly kid UN-friendly, but in reality, we had a very kid friendly experience. The staff were helpful, and quickly brought out two high chairs for the kids. We were comfortably seated outdoors, and the place wasn’t very crowded (it was before noon on a weekday), so we had lots of space to ourselves and the kids could watch the cars on the road go past. It was actually quite relaxed.

My Teh tarik, which is “pulled tea”. It was not too sweet, but milky and flavourful. I loved it.

The Plain prata ($0.90 each) was superb. They weren’t oily, and super fluffy. Crisp on the outside, but soft and fluffy on the inside. The curry that it came with was pretty basic – no bits of veggies in it, but it was nice and sour and did the job.

My kids LOVED the plain prata and ate one each.

The Maggi goreng ($3) was a bargain at three bucks, and was SO SO SO GOOD!!!! I don’t know how they did it, but they managed to elevate simple instant noodles into an addictively tasty dish. It was the basic version, with no meat in it, but it was so good it blew me away. I’m craving for more of this already!

The Beehoon goreng ($3.50) was slightly more expensive, but cooked in exactly the same way as the dish above. Sadly, it was nowhere near was good. I still prefer the springy texture of Maggi noodles, and in comparison, the beehoon was a bit too wet for my liking. It also had a mild (but odd) sour taste which had us wondering if the beehoon had gone a bit “off”..

The Roti john with mutton was BIG! The fluffy crusty bread contained mince mutton and egg omelette cooked into the bread. It was served with a dish of tomato-based sauce, and was a tasty and filling meal.

The Cheese Prata Shop is a stone’s throw from West Coast Park, and makes a great stopover for a quick and dirty meal. The food is excellent, the service is good, and the kids can muck around without making you feel conscious. What more could you ask for?

 
Last Bite: Niqqi’s The Cheese Prata Shop may be a simple roadside cafe (it’s open 24/7!), but the helpful service and excellent pratas had us impressed. The Maggi Goreng is a must-order!
 
Highchairs: Yes
Easy access: Yes
Change tables: No
Kids’ menu: No

Niqqi’s The Cheese Prata Shop
#01-00
18 Clementi Road
Singapore 129747
Phone: 68721030
Prices: $
Hours: 24 hours
 
 

Talk about sunshine happy! Just stepping into the cafe will probably lift your spirits. W39 Bistro & Bakery is delightfully decked out in shades of sunshine yellow, bright turquoise and white, and makes for a very whimsical andcheerful cafe experience.

Located in a quiet estate in the west-side, the cafe’s calling card is their sunshine happy staff, and delectable food. The interior is an eclectic and interesting mix of odds-and-ends, and vintage candies and toys.

Being a part bakery, they have a bright turquoise cabinet (gorgeous!) that showcases their golden baked goods. Everything looks so good, I wanted to buy one of each. I settled for the Brioche and was delighted – the fat round disc of bread was soft and fluffy, and had a swirl of custard baked into the top to offer a slight sweetness. It’s delicious toasted slightly, topped with a smear of butter.

It was a hit with the kids too, simply torn and eaten fresh out of the bag!

The dining menu is limited but enticing. There is also a Kid’s Menu available, but our kids were satisfied just munching on the bread, so we left it at that.

My Latte ($4.50) was served in a petite cup, and I wished for it to be double the size, because it was rich and very well made. The Iced lemon tea ($3.50) came in a larger cup and is an excellent thirst quencher for hot afternoons.

We ordered the Seared tuna, avocado salsa, soy glaze wasabi mayo ($12.50) after spotting it on another table, and realising that every single other table had also ordered it. Being nosy, we had to have it too!

And… it was the runaway winner of the whole meal. Reasonably priced, the dish boasted 6 long and thick chunks of perfectly-seared tuna, a dollop of creamy fresh avocado and caviar, and a drizzle of tasty balsamic glaze. It was beautifully presented on a slate, and looked like it should’ve been served in a fine dining restaurant. GET THIS DISH…. you won’t regret it.

The Parma ham and mozzarella panini looked pretty enticing when it arrived, though I can’t comment on the taste as I didn’t have any. My girl friend, however, noted that the staff did not drain the mozzarella properly, so the water was oozing out of the sandwich as she was eating, and had also soaked into the bread, making it soggy. An effective draining technique would have made this dish much better.

My Sake mussels with fries ($20) was a delight, and a dish I’d order again for sure. The mussels were the small kind, but were cooked to juicy and tender perfection! The sake gravy was paired beautifully and gave the dish the right amount of salty taste, and the substantial bowl of fries was sufficient to fill me right up.

An impressive dish. A must-order!

Their cakes are tantalizingly displayed in a glass cabinet, and it was difficult to select one each. So much so that I bought two more to takeaway 😉

My Mister Chocolate ($6.80) was indulgent. A soft chocolate sponge cake, draped in rich chocolate ganache. You’ll love this if you’re a chocolate lover.

The small slice of Crispy Hazelnut cake looked like something out of a French patisserie. It left us wondering if the cafe bakes their own cakes, or purchases them from somewhere else?

The cake was light and I thoroughly enjoyed the gentle crispiness of the layers. I wanted more 🙂

The kids spent ages playing around in the cafe. Fortunately, it wasn’t too crowded on a weekday, and they had a grand ‘ol time pottering around playing with their toys, and playing peekaboo around the large table.

At least it gave us adults a bit of time to relax!

There is also a sweet cat on premises, that hangs around and is as gentle as can be! Even with two toddlers terrorizing it and trying to pat it, it tolerated all that attention like a boss. It means that kids are kept occupied outside the cafe too, and Carter was in much wonder at seeing a real cat up close 😉

Last Bite: W39 Bistro & Bakery is whimsical and cheery, offering a limited but well-executed menu. The food is beautifully presented and delicious! Kids will have a great time ferreting around the old school candies and toys, as well as playing with the gentle cat outside.

Highchairs: Yes
Easy access: Yes
Change tables: No
Kids’ menu: Yes

W39 Bistro & Bakery
39 Jalan Mas Puteh
Singapore 128637
Phone: 9646 5372
Prices: $$
Hours: Tue – Fri: 11:00 am – 10:00 pm, Sat – Sun: 9:00 am – 10:30 pm