Around Singapore - Hidden gems @ Katong

After visiting Maple & Market, I wanted to head over to Strictly Pastry since it was nearby.

Decided to walk around 112 Katong first since I still needed time to digest the two cakes I ate at Maple & Market. hahha.

When I alighted at the bus stop,  I was greeted by a lovely row of shophouses with an interesting mix of cafes, restaurants and shops!  This being my first time exploring Katong (since it's quite far), it felt like I was uncovering a hidden gem (:

After admiring the lovely row of shops, headed in to 112 Katong. 

The mall has a slightly more unique mix of tenants (as compared to those along Orchard Road or some other heartland malls) with a good range of cafes and restaurants to chill at as well. I had such a good time exploring and shopping that I gave Strictly Pastry a miss in the end. haha. (:

The mall happened to be organising a Retro funival at the atrium with old school funfair games (need to pay though) and old school merchandise (from Munch) on sale (:

 

All the old school games I used to play in primary school! 

Especially five stones, pick up sticks and SNAP  (: such fun memories

A couple of kids and their mum were also browsing at the stall and I overheard them asking "What is this? What is Donkey/Snap?" Guess these games have really been overtaken by the iPad and computer :(

 Retro sweets and biscuits! 

 Ended up buying a set of 3 tops ($1.50) and 

 a "can" of mini-cola sweets ($0.70) 

Remember that I used to buy the sweet from the shop below my house and was so sad when they were no longer sold :( so glad I found it again! 

Headed upstairs where the gift and novelty shops were located. (:

 

A shop called Playboxz was having a moving out sale and these keychains were 3 for $5

Love the Lego brick keychain (another of my childhood memories (: )

 And... the best find for me that day was this! 

 

 

Gund Itty Bitty Bits Froggie (: $7.90 $7.10

From Nature's Collection

This frog plushie holds precious memories for me (: 

I first came across it at Nature's Collection @ Star Vista on a memorable day. They were having a closing down sale but decided not to get it.When I finally found a day to go back to get it, the shop had already closed down :(

Was really, really happy to have found it again as it has special meaning to me (:

My last stop of the day was Du Yi bookshop.

They have a bigger branch at Chinatown Point and I remembered it having quite a unique collection of children's toys and books.

Was hoping to find some cheap resources for school and true enough, picked up these 4 puzzles for $2 each (:

Simple enough for my students to play with and in line with my fruit theme for the term!  (:

Also picked up a Supermarket board book ($3.90) which I was so glad to find after searching high and low for a suitable (and cheap) grocery shopping/supermarket book to teach with.

What a hidden gem in the east of Singapore that brought back lots of nostalgic and happy memories (: 

Looking forward to more trips to Katong to visit the shophouse cafes and also shop for more cute items at the mall (:

18.03.2015

♥17 Maple & Market [CLOSED]

Maple & Market (Singapore. Dakota)

*Note: Maple & Market will be closing down end of March 2015 

After the previous failed attempt to visit Maple & Market (due to a last-minute closure), decided to drop by before it closes down at the end of the month.

 

The cafe is very prettily decorated with a mixture of bright and pastel hues. Loved the white wood paneling with the pale wood counter-top (: so country-style. 

The fresh flowers and the pretty drawings of the pastries were also a nice touch. (:

 As mentioned by others, the seating area for the cafe is pretty small. There is a high table for 2, a side table for 3 and a larger table that can sit about 8. When I went there at about 2pm (on a March school holiday Wednesday), the 7 customers there had pretty much filled up the space  As such, I feel Maple & Market is not really a suitable cafe to chill at, as there is pretty low chance of getting your own table. 

Maple& Market specializes in cakes but they do serve waffles and drinks on the side. The prices were quite reasonable (S$6 nett and below/slice, NO GST and service charge)

 

 

 On to the cakes.... which were so beautiful and looked so deliciously tempting (: The huge array of cakes displayed so prettily made it hard to decide...

 

 

 

 

 Rose cake, raspberry frosting with caramelized pistachio S$6

Eventually settled for the Rose cake. (because i love pink. hahah)  

The cake was moist and the cream was nice and rich.However, the taste of the different flavours ( rasperry, rose and pistachio), were a little too light for the cake to have its own unique flavour.

.

Decor at the cashier. The girl staff ( co-owner?) was making a flower arrangement to place at the cashier during her free time. what a lovely way to spend the time (:  

 Decor on the table. Love the plants matched with the marble(?)  tabletop

 After finishing the Rose cake, decided to try another one since there won't be any chance in the near future to taste their cakes anymore. 

Had a chat with the girl at the counter to ask her whether they had any plans to reopen elsewhere. She was very friendly and didn't mind sharing about why they decided to close down (high overheads), and mentioned that they would be seeing how it goes first but have no plans to reopen the cafe for now. 

Asked which cake was the best seller and she recommended the gula melaka cake. 

However, the earl grey lemon loaf caught my eye. (:

  Earl Grey Lemon Loaf S$3.50

The loaf was delicious! The crust was crispy but the inside part moist (: 

The taste of the earl grey was also just nice, not too strong but not too light. Couldn't really taste the lemon part of it though. The icing sugar on the top added some sweetness and a crunchy texture when you bite into it (:

 Nice wooden shelf with magazines to browse through and some merchandise.

 Love the pink water dispenser (:

♥ Loved

Pretty cakes that tasted as good as they looked

Nice decor (the fresh flowers and nice drawings)

Friendly staff who gave off a homely vibe

 Maple & Market

34 Cassia Crescent #01-82

Closed on Tuesdays and closing down end of March 2015

Nearest MRT: Dakota (15 min walk)

It is located just a few blocks behind Old Airport Road Hawker Centre (which is probably a more familiar landmark)

18.03.2015

Bargain buys - Cuties on sale! @ Early Learning Centre (The Forum) ♥

Was searching online for children's books/merchandise sales to stock up on teaching resources and stumbled upon the Early Learning Centre (ELC)  @ The Forum's Moving Out Sale.

50% Storewide! (: and they really do mean EVERY ELC brand item! Some items are even further discounted.

Remembered passing by the store previously and seeing so many lovely items that were wayy out of budget. 

The prices after discount aren't exactly cheap but it is really worth it after the discount as they are good quality items.

 Picked up 2 plushies and a ball (:

 Blossom Farm Laurie Lamb Plushie S$16  S$8

Blossom Farm Gladys Goose plushie S$16  S$8

 Blossom Farm Chime Ball  S$23  S$11.50

"Take us home now! (: "

Early Learning Centre Moving Out Sale 

50% off storewide

From now till 24 March 2015

Early Learning Centre (The Forum branch only)

♥16 The Hideout

The Hideout (Singapore. Dakota)

With another term passing and a week's holiday to rest and recharge, decided to do some cafe-hopping and update this blog (:

Decided to travel a bit further to the East, where i had initially wanted to go to Maple & Market (as they are going to close down end of March) and also drop-by at The Hideout since it was nearby. Unfortunately, there was a last-minute closure of Maple & Market so I went straight to The Hideout instead. Being a Monday afternoon, the cafe was relatively quiet but still had a good stream of customers, including some families out for a March holiday treat (:

The exterior of The Hideout,quite a reasonable size with about 30 seats.

 

Loved the pastel, part country, part whimsical decor. especially the lanterns (:

 

 

 and not forgetting these really cute vintage ice cream signs (: 

 Bananatella with Blueberry Cheesecake ice cream $10.90 nett

Chose the Bananatella waffle creation (waffle with caramelised bananas and nutella), which comes with a scoop of ice cream/gelato of your choice. 

Although there was a wait of about 10-15 minutes for the waffle to be cooked (and probably for the bananas to be caramelised as well), it was well worth the wait. The texture of the waffle was really good, crispy on the outside and fluffy on the inside. Even after eating it for about 15 minutes, the crispiness still remained (: The bananas were perfectly caramelised as well, being not too soft/hard. Paired with the nutella , which seemed a bit little at first but was actually a good amount so that it didn't overpower the taste of the bananas and waffle, the combination of the flavours was really  heavenly (:

The blueberry cheesecake ice cream was really creamy and nice, the cheesecake taste was a bit on the light side but it was okay since the waffle itself was so rich. 

Would definitely come back for the waffles again (:

 Besides ice cream and cakes, The Hideout also serves mains such as pastas.

Also, there is NO GST and service charge, making the prices quite reasonable. (:

 

 

 The staff were really friendly and nice and even said "Thank you for waiting" when my waffle came after the long wait.

 ♥ Loved

Pastel decor paired with the wood furniture (my most-loved combi) 

Delicious waffle

Quaint atmosphere
 

The Hideout

Blk 32 Cassia Crescent #01-50

Closed on Tuesdays. 

Nearest MRT: Dakota (15 min walk)

It is located just a few blocks behind Old Airport Road Hawker Centre (which is probably a more familiar landmark)

16.03.2015