We had a workshop to attend at Guillemard Rd the previous Saturday so we popped into Brawn & Brains at the old Singapore Badminton Hall for a bite. It’s a tiny little place in some random corner but was quite crowded when we got there just after opening time.

There are a few things about Brawn & Brains that I’m not particularly fond of: there are no highchairs for kids, orders have to be placed at the counter, the menu is very limited, hot items are only available an hour after it opens, we had to share a table, it’s SO small, etc.

Yet I can’t help but be charmed by this little cafe. It’s unpretentious and cozy, the people are sincere, and the few things they have on the menu are nicely done. We had superb coffee and light, fluffy croissants that morning.

Brawn & Brains

braaaains…

cosy little place

what’s available?

excellent coffee

croissants

cake

enjoying the croissants

D chomping on his fist

Brawn & Brains
100 Guillemard Road #01-07
Singapore 399718.
6348 8892

Tue – Fri 9.00am – 7.30pm; Sat – Sun 9.30am – 7.30pm

I’ve been attending trapeze classes at Simply Yoga in Katong V so Adrian and the kids came along with me the other day when it was a public holiday. We ate at Group Therapy before my class and I think it was the first time we had brunch with all three kids!

David was nursing and dozing but not making any fuss so I could eat the entire meal in peace, which is very rare. Anya and Adam fed themselves and ate heartily because the food was good. A very peaceful meal! I could even take photos of the food (excuse the crap quality; they were taken with my phone in low light) and the kids.

waiting for food

very decent coffee

Adrian’s breakfast platter

pancakes for me

making a funny face

busy eating

David and me

Adrian had to go to the club last weekend so we decided to explore our dining options in the North. We decided on Arbite at Serangoon Gardens but almost changed our mind about going because parking was a nightmare! Just as we were thinking of leaving the area and heading elsewhere, we managed to get a lot.

Arbite wasn’t very packed when we got there but there were quite a few tables with ‘Reserved’ signs and the place started filling up while we were eating. There were 3 or 4 servers working but I think most of them must be new because they looked somewhat clueless and kept having to check with the supervisor whenever they weren’t sure about something. For example, the table next to us asked for black pepper and the server went to ask the supervisor where it was even though it was in plain sight with the other condiments.

Arbite

Adrian & Baby D

The food was good though. Adrian ordered his usual breakfast platter and it came with scrambled eggs, bacon, baked beans, grilled tomato, smoked chili & chicken sausage, mushrooms, brioche and pommes noisettes. He was very pleased with it and ranked it in the top 5 of all the breakfast platters he’s had. The coffee was only so-so.

I had the Duck & Eggs, which was poached eggs, duck rillette, Hollandaise sauce, jalapenos, cheese, muffin and greens. It was nice, but I was hoping for a stronger jalapeno flavour to come through. I could only taste jalapeno in one particular bite that I took.

I decided to have My Wife’s Chocolate Cake for dessert but it was such a disappointment. It looked good but was too dry. Maybe things would have gone better with the Gula Melaka Tiramisu or the Chocolate Yuzu Fondant!

Arbite Breakfast

Duck & Eggs

My Wife’s Chocolate Cake

Arbite
66A Serangoon Garden Way, Singapore 555962. 
Tel: 62870430
Tue – Fri, 11.30 am – 3.00 pm, 6.00pm – 10.30pm
Sat – Sun 11.00 am – 10.30 pm 
Closed on Mondays 

After Anya was done with Doctor for a Day, we popped over to Novena Medical Centre across the road and had brunch at La Ristrettos. I’ve heard a lot of buzz about the place, mainly because it’s in such a unexpected location. The service could have been better and the drinks took a relatively long time to come, but it’s a nice, quiet place to hang out.

The coffee and food was very decent too. I was pleasantly surprised by the chocolate ice-cream in my iced mocha. I ordered Tostino E Arrosto in a blur and didn’t realise it came with roast chicken breast (which I don’t like at all!) but the chicken was very tender and flavourful so it was okay.

very Christmassy

teeny place

glass jars

loves her new stethoscope

iced mocha and latte

sour dough with spinach, roast chicken breast and poached egg