CARVERS & CO + THE HOLQA CAFE

Finally a lazy Sunday for me to rest and what can make it better than having a meal with my longest girlfriends since primary school days. Went for brunch followed by a dessert session. Well, we are girls and girls always have an extra space for desserts.

CARVERS & CO
43 East Coast Road, Singapore 473500
Operating hours: Mon to Fri - 11am to 10pm, Sat & Sun - 8.30am to 10pm (close on Tues)

Mocha $5.50

Cappucino $5

Truffled Chippies $9

Truffle fries with garlic mayo sauce

(Love the garlic mayo sauce, goes very well with the truffle fries)

 Carvers Breakfast $18

Scrambled eggs on toast, gammon ham, bacon, sauteed mushrooms

(Totally love the gammon ham, taste a little like pork chop and adding a little saltiness to the overall taste)

 Truffled Eggs Toast $15

Bacon jam, cheddar, sous vide eggs, bacon chips, truffle oil

(Love how well the watery flowy eggyork is done)

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After our brunch, we walked along the stretch of East Coast Road and chance upon a small little cafe that sells pastries and drinks. What attracted us most among all the other cafes along the road is their paddlepop cake that was displayed on their glass window. And so, we decided to give it a try.

THE HOLQA CAFE

37 East Coast Road, Singapore 428755

Operating hours: Mon to Fri - 12pm to 9pm, Sat & Sun - 9am to 9pm (close on Wed)

The name of the cafe 'Holqa' actually mean 'link' in Maltese language

 Paddlepop Frenzy $5.90

A pair of PaddlePop crunches, served with mini marshmallows and chocolate sauce goodness

(Definitely a mood lifter when u see it but personally, I feel the base of the cake can be a little more hard & chilled)

 Cheesy Earl Grey $8.90

Classic Earl Grey cheesecake, served with chocolate & topped with crushed peanuts

(An interesting combination, strong earl grey fragrance at first mouth but gets a little 'gelat' gradually)

So much love for these 2 ladies I call my sisters for 19 years. That's about 2/3 of my life!! The ones who seen me through my growing up process since primary school & the ones who are there for me through my ups and downs. Definitely looking forward to many more years of friendship ahead of us. <3

THE 7TH CYLINDER

Hello my fellow foodies, yes I know I have been 'missing' for almost 3 months. So sorry for the MIA. Currently experiencing the quarter-life crisis; changing job, passing down, and getting used to the new job. So just a little update on my life, I recently just left my first ever fulltime job and am currently adapting to my new job now. In addition, I have also started on a new venture with my soulbuddy and we are in the progress of getting it started REAL soon. Super excited about all our ideas and plans!! So do stay tune as I will be releasing the news bit by bit. =)

So back to my fooooooooooood~ Brought my mum for dinner on Tuesday to a cafe I went previously only to find out they were closed for a private event. So as we were making our way back to the car, we chanced upon a random cafe nearby that looks pretty decent and decided to give it a try.

PS: Sorry for the pixelated photos, taken by my Samsung S4.

THE 7TH CYLINDER
1 Jalan Pisang, #01-01 Singapore 199069
Operating hours:
Mon, Wed to Thurs, Sun - 12pm to 9pm, Fri to Sat - 12pm to 10pm (Close on Tues)

Red Velvet $6

Delicious, sweet and buttery aroma. Perfect for all red velvet cake lovers

(I'm a crazy red velvet fan. I expected a rich, thick creamy drink like what you would taste from a hot chocolate drink, but to me, this might be too diluted for a drink. Overall presentation looks good, and I do like the red velvet aroma of it.)

Class 2A Breakfast $15.90

Oven baked Chicken/Pork Sausage with crispy Turkey/Pork bacon, creamy mushroom sauce and Scrambled/Sunny Side eggs

(Their in-house signature. Love love the sauteed mushroom and overall it a good balance of taste, not too salty and not too bland.)

Creamy Smoked Chicken $9.90

Sauteed smoked chicken in delicious cream sauce

(Another in-house signature. Smoked chicken taste good, however the cream sauce may get a little too 'gelat' if you are not a big fan of it.)

IceCream Sandwich by Icecreamcookieco $7.90

Assorted IceCream sandwiched between cookie biscuits

Available in: Choco Hazelnut, English Earl Grey, Milk & Cookies, Strawberry Shortcake

Optional Add-on: Toasted Marshmallow $2

(Went for the English Earl Grey as I am an EarlGrey fanatic. Quite an interesting way for icecream, and the taste is not bad.)

The cafe is open up by a few motorcyclist activists who believes the joy in motorcycling is not just the journey but also the destinations. The space under the roof is meant to be filled with passion, pursuit and a general lust for the two-wheeled machine. So beside great food and coffee, the visual pleasure of seeing some of the guests' machines. The 7th Cylinder's philosophy is built on the simple constructs of culture, community and inclusiveness. The rule is simple - 'We won't feed you or make you do anything we won't want for our friends'

Do keep your eyes open for the cafe when you visit as the entrance is not really visible. Keep a lookout for two big tin cylinder with their menu on it.

THE GARDEN SLUG

Feel that working on a Saturday is such a bummer? Well, I like to think that I get to eat good food with my soul-buddy after that. So yup, today is another working Saturday for us and off we go to another cafe-hunt.

Situated along a quiet road, would recommend people to drive if they want to visit the cafe some day. I was actually quite surprised that the cafe is not really crowded at 2pm on a weekend. Good thing for us, we got our seat immediately when we stepped in.

*Photo taken with my Samsung S4, sorry for the poor image quality*

THE GARDEN SLUG

55 Lorong L Telok Kurau #01-59/61 Singapore 425500

Operating hours: Mon & Tues - 6pm to 10pm, Wed & Thurs - 10am to 10pm, Fri to Sun - 9am to 10pm

Home Brewed Southeast Asian Teas: Lemongrass $4.80

(One of their in-house recommended drink)

Infusion Teas: Earl Grey $5.50

Tofu and Zucchini Fingers $11.90

(Quite an interesting finger food to start with, love their dipping sauce)

Runny Salmon Scramble-Up $15.90

Smoked salmon atop Creamy scrambled eggs

(Another of their 'Recommended' on the menu, portion looks small but it's actually super filling)

Smoked Salmon & Florentine Eggs Benedict $19.50

With creamed spinach & oodies of smoked salmon

(Egg Benedicts for me as usual~ This is on their 'Today Special' menu. I actually do love their combination of poached eggs, hollandaise sauce & spinach)

Pear William $12.50

Pear stewed in spiced red wine, topped with cream cheese, walnut & gelato

(Love the pear with cream cheese & walnut, but the gelato could be way better)

Natural Rainbow Cake $12.50

Oozing with light yoghurt cream cheese frosting. Six pastel layers gently dyed with puree of Blackberry, Blueberry, Matcha, Carrot, Yolk & Beets forming the rainbow colours

(From the 'Today Special' menu as well. A little pricey for a slice of cake but a healthier choice of all rainbow cakes because they use natural colour instead of food colouring)

There are many other interesting food on the menu that caught our attention, definitely a cafe I would want to visit again.