Essential Brew – Kick Back, Relax and Chill

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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 cafe-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.

Essential Brew

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

Cajun Dory
SGD13.95+

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

Garlic Prawn Pasta
SGD14.95+

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

Jasmine Tiramisu
SGD4.95+

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

Hot Chocolate
SGD4.25+

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:

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”

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About the Author

Veron Ang is the founder and chief editor of Sparklette. She lives in Singapore and has dined and traveled across the world. She also runs Sparklette Studio, a web design and development firm. If you'd like to connect with her, head on over to the contact page or follow her personal updates on Twitter: @VeronSG.

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24 responses

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keropokman
December 13

it’s been a long time since i stepped in there.
we usually have tea there after dinner in the nearby places.
err, dates? no lah. you are sitting very near to the next table. every word you speak, your neighbour can hear you. LOL
Reply
Veron
December 13

Haha true, true. There was a couple when we were there. I noticed they barely spoke to each other the entire time we were there. Or maybe there was no need for words.
Reply
Dating Specialist
December 13

Hmm, Essential Brew.
Talk about serendipity haha! My sister just went there with a friend who happened to know the boss too.
Was thinking of making a trip there, and now with such an indept description, I think I know what to do to have maximum enjoyment there!
Thanks Veron :)
Reply
jkaiser
December 14

if i recall correctly, they use jasmine rice..as in rice flavoured with jasmine
Reply
sk
December 14

There’s a few nice tea places in Singapore…
V Tea Room at the Esplanade
http://www.thevtearoom.com/home.htm
Reply
Veron
December 14

Hey Kloudiia,
I’m glad you found my review useful. Enjoy your trip!
Reply
Veron
December 14

Hey jkaiser,
Thanks for the info! It’s a tea place indeed. Even the rice is flavored with jasmine!
Reply
Veron
December 14

Hey sk,
I have been to The V Tea Room a number of times before. Love the place. It’s almost too pretty!
Reply
sk
December 14

Oh then you should try Tea Party! Its got a modern feel, the white clean look, simple design yet a homely feel to it! Great place to go for high tea or after dinner.
The Tea Party
Sixth Avenue Centre #01-07
Contact: 6462 3563
Here’s the review on it!~
http://food.asia1.com.sg/revamp/gdfd/fea_20050430_001.shtml
Reply
Veron
December 14

You must be a tea lover! Thanks for the recommendation. I must admit I haven’t heard of The Tea Party before. Well I’m a coffee lover so that’s my excuse. I like the description of the place — white, clean, modern. Sounds very minimalistic to me!
Reply
sk
December 14

Hm… actually i’m a coffee lover but I tend to lean towards tea at night (more relaxing) , coffee to keep me up in the morning… though I dunch think caffinee has an effect on me.
Reply
Veron
December 14

Oh yeah, for seasoned coffee drinkers, caffeine doesn’t have much of an effect. Sometimes I even drink a cup right before I go to sleep at night! I don’t really have the same affinity with tea. The only tea that I like is teh-tarik. Haha!
Reply
sk
December 14

Well, I heard from a friend’s friend that there’s such a thing called the, get ready for this, ‘Triple shot latte… plus 2 extra shots’… a 5 shot latte!!!
And I thought the most people would order is an extra shot or a double, making it 2 shots right? But 5 shots??? @_@
Reply
Veron
December 14

Wow, that’s pretty strong. Do people get high on coffee? I think they will after drinking this.
Reply
sk
December 14

Gosh, I know a double shot is good enuff to sustain me for the whole day and keep my heart racing… So 5 shots, would definitely be a killer!
Reply
DK
December 15

5 shot latte??? Will die or not? haha
Reply
Veron
December 15

Err… there’s only one way to find out. I’m perfectly willing. Now, where’s this legendary drink?
Reply
sk
December 15

Oh you can easily go to starbucks and they will be more than willing to serve you this lethal combo!
Btw, it comes in their largest cup and a hefty price tag as well! Something in the range of S$10+…
Reply
Veron
December 15

Whoa! $10+ for a cup of coffee! And it doesn’t even have liquor in it! I think I’ll pass!
Reply
Theresa
December 17

Been to Essential Brew for a friend’s party and seems they have a great party package with balloons and gifts and such. Didn’t try the dory thing but we had the garlic prawn pasta and it was superb actually… Fresh fresh fresh prawns! The wait service seemed ok when I was there. Don’t like restaurants with waiters hanging around you all the time. Oh, veron, think they don’t charge GST, or absorb it perhaps – didn’t realise until I saw the bill.
Reply