Essential Brew - Kick Back, Relax and Chill

following my rave review of lagnaa and its awesome food and service, many people recommended that i pay a visit to essential brew, a place that also employs the bare foot dining concept. essential brew is a café-restaurant that specialises in tea and is based in holland village. i’m not even a tea person but curiosity got the better of me and i decided to check it out.

upon entering the place, we were greeted by mood lighting, large cushions and the assurance that we would be dining in cosiness. we opted to move up to the second level and snared the best table of the house (in my opinion) that’s in a corner right by the full-length glass window. there wasn’t really much of a pretty view, with the circle line construction going on. but having a view is better than having none. being there on a rainy evening, essential brew seemed doubly cosy.

from my description the place must sound like a real romantic hang-out spot, with the dim lighting and candlelight and all. moreover the waiters and waitresses are always lingering in one corner and hardly paying any attention to the diners (each time we needed to order our food or get the bill, we had to go over to them). dating couples can be assured that they wouldn’t be disturbed. but the mood was so casual that it felt more suitable for friends to chill out than for dates. that’s just my personal opinion anyway. let’s talk about the food now. it’s what most of you are interested in right?

the menu was much more extensive than i had expected. there were a number of tea-inspired dishes such as the earl grey ribeye steak and grilled pacific dory with oolong (a kind of chinese tea leaves) sauce. i was in the mood for fish but they lost me at the oolong sauce. it was simply too weird for me so i went for the cajun dory instead.

Cajun Dory
Price: $13.95 + 10% Service Charge
Dish rating:

the dory was served with a ball of rice that had an interesting touch of sweetness. i wonder if they used ice-cream scoops to get it into that shape. sadly, the fish itself was a disappointment. the menu promised a dish with cajun spices but this was just a really boring dish with no spice to it at all. besides, the fish must have spent a much longer time than it should on the grill because it seemed way overcooked and stiff.

Garlic Prawn Pasta
Price: $14.95 + 10% Service Charge
Dish rating:

for our pasta, we went for the garlic prawn spaghetti which seemed a relatively safe choice. it’s a real shame that it turned out to be another disappointment. the spaghetti was way too salty and i was happy to leave it alone and go for the prawns instead. it was really puzzling that both the dory and the pasta were recommended dishes (represented by the little chef’s hat image on the menu) but they turned out disappointing.

Jasmine Tiramisu
Price: $4.95 + 10% Service Charge
Dish rating:

following the slew of disappointments, we decided to give the food one more chance. besides, the desserts sure seemed appetising. i chose the jasmine tiramisu, which was a light tiramisu mousse served with shortbread and presented in a martini glass. velvety smooth. gorgeously thick and rich. i really loved it!

Hot Chocolate
Price: $4.25 + 10% Service Charge
Drink rating:

as for the hot chocolate, we simply couldn’t resist after reading its description in the menu, “hot chocolate to warm your heart”. it sounded too cute to pass up! of course, it was just a typical chocolate drink, not as chocolatey as i would have liked. but it’s the perfect drink for rainy days, don’t you think?

thinking back, we really should have ordered a pot of tea. after all, it is called “essential brew”! well, probably the next visit then. i may go back for its relaxing ambience and desserts, despite the inattentive staff and relatively poor tasting food. for those who would like to check out this place, steer clear of the main courses. i know i would.

Essential Brew
Holland Village
269 Holland Avenue Singapore 278990 [map]
(65) 6467 6717
Service rating:
www.essentialbrew.com.sg

news updates

February 3, 2007: My list of Best (& Worst) Restaurants in Singapore for 2006
- Nominated for “Best Ambience”
- Nominated for “Best Tea Lounge”

Posted by Veron · Food category · 7,654 views