Cafe Epicurious @ The Rail Mall

Located along the shorter stretch of shophouses along Upper Bukit Timah at the Rail Mall, Cafe Epicurious is at the greenery part of the vicinity facing the bukit timah railway bridge. When we (Melissa and ShiTing) were here for the tasting session, I instantly fell in love with the cosy, warm and relax ambient of the place. We even saw a malay couple having their wedding shot at the railway bridge.

Orange Juice 4.5/5

I love how the freshly squeezed Orange Juice ($6) were served in a mini jar.

Half of This and Half of That 4.2/5

I find it very thoughtful for Cafe Epicurious to offer the Half of This & Half of That ($16) on its menu for those that is indecisive. We went for the Green Egg & Ham and Egg Benedict combination.

The green egg is exactly basil pesto scrambled egg . It came with prosciutto and topped with parmigiano reggiano. The basil pesto and pramigiano reggiano lifted the flavours of the moist and creamy scrambled eggs.

The poached egg was cooked to perfection with the egg yolk oozing out. While the others felt that the hollandaise sauce was a tad sour, I actually liked that mild tang taste. However, I would preferred the sauce to be more rich and buttery.

Baked Eggs with Toast Soldiers 4/5

The other egg dish available on the menu is the Baked Eggs with Toast Soldiers ($14). I have always wanted to try this way of enjoying egg, dipping the toast into the creamy and cheesy baked egg. I couldn't help to associate it with our local half boiled egg. Do I prefer the East or West way? I would have to say I prefer my soy sauce and pepper over cream and cheese. The baked eggs was good and I only blamed it that I am born with an Asian palate.

French Toast 4.5/5

The French Toast ($8.50) came with 3 slices of raisin bread soaked thoroughly with egg and topped with chunks of strawberry and banana. The seared golden french toast was moist and fluffy. The french toast itself was already so awesome that I am happy to leave out the marmalade and maple syrup.

Pancakes 4.2/5

The Pancakes ($8) topped with chunks of strawberry and banana was equally good. The pancakes were light, moist and fluffy.

Cream of Wild Mushroom Soup with Cheesy Garlic Bread 4.5/5

I love the puree version of Mushroom Soup ($8) served at Cafe Epicurious. The comforting soup had a more robust texture and flavours from the different wild mushrooms used.

Epicurious Burger 4.8/5

The Epicurious Burger ($18) was voted as the top 10 burgers on IS Magazine caught my attention when I was browsing through the menu. I just had to jump to the opportunity to try out the freshly made burger. The patty was moist and juicy with a nice charred grilled aroma. Paired with the beautiful caramelised onions, bacon and cheese, this one big messy burger indeed was awesome. No wonder it made it to the top 10 burgers listing.

H's Vietnamese Chicken Bolognaise 4.8/5

I am quite adventurous coming to food and I like to browse through the menu for unique dish offered by the restaurant. Most of us probably would have tried laksa or chilli crab pasta but have you seen Vietnamese Chicken Bolognaise Pasta ($15) on the menu before? The flavours got my taste buds dancing in excitment when the new unique experience. The used of lemongrass, a probably a dash of lemon zest fusing with the tangy tomato sauce tasted were surprising a heavenly combination for the al dente pasta.

Breakfast Parfait 4.2/5

For the sweet tooth, you would love the Breakfast Parfait ($7). The home-made granola layered with a generous amout of honeyed yourt and fruits came with abundance of sweetness that simply brightens up one's day.


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Cafe Epicurious
The Rail Mall
392 Upper Bukit Timah Road
Singapore 678046
Tel: +65 68945926
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Epicurious/176758295066
Nearest MRT: Choa Chu Kang (NS Line), Bukit Batok (NS Line)

Opening Hours:
Mon-Fri: 1130am - 230pm, 5pm - 10pm
Sat-Sun: 9am - 4pm, 5pm - 10pm

Direction:
1) Alight at Choa Chu Kang MRT station. Walk to Choa Chu Kang Bus Interchange. Take bus no. 67. Alight 13 stops later. Walk about 170 metre to destination . Journey time about 22 minutes.

2) Alight at Bukit Batok MRT station. Walk to bus stop opposite Blk 628 (Stop ID 43411). Take bus no. 178. Alight 8 stops later. Cross the road and walk about 160 metre to destination. Journey time about 18 minutes.

Irvin's Live Seafood House @ Upper Thomson Road

Irvin's Live Seafood House was formerly known as Irvin's Seafood Cze Char and was located along the stretch of shophouses at the junction of Zion Road and River Valley Road. It has been relocated and reopened at No 4, Jalan Leban, Upper Thomson Road on 1st Decemeber 2011. By the way, LeBan HK Cafe next door is owned by the same boss.

The new place is more spacious and air-conditioned now!. With the bigger space, now they have a live aquariums at the back of the restaurant to accommodate the crabs and fishes.

The new location also has 2 VIP rooms for those who prefer to have a cosy area to themselves. Reservation are preferred for VIP Rooms (8pax or more).

Salted Egg Yam Chips 4.2/5

The thinly sliced yam coated with rich salted egg sauce was so addictive. The Salted Egg Yam Chips ($9.80) has a firmer texture compared to using potato. It gave that shiok crackling crisp sound with each bite into it. For the extra punch, chilli padi and curry leaves were added.

Balachan Crab 3.8/5

I asked for the Balachan Crab ($19.90 small, $29.90 medium, $48/kg for large) as I have not seen this cooking style on the menu before. The dried style balachan crab came with lots of fried shallots and some curry leaves. It has an unique spicy and salty combination which was good but not fantastic.

Salted Egg Crab 4.5/5

This is a must try, the Salted Egg Crab ($23.90 small, $33.90 medium, $48/kg for large). This is Irvin's specialty with Chef Yap's special recipe. I liked the fact that curry leaves are added to give the sauce the extra kick and fragrant. The crab was basically swimming in the generous amount of salted egg sauce. The salted egg sauce is so well received by the customers that they are selling it at $12 per box, freshly made upon order. Maybe I should get a box for my nacho.

Damn Good Pork 4.2/5

The Butter Pork Ribs ($12.80 small, $18.80 large) is the owner's favourite dish at the restaurant. He loves it so much that he named it as Damn Good Pork on the menu. The crispy pork coated with the savoury butter sauce. Again chilli padi and curry leaves were added to give the extra punch.

Butter Chicken 4/5

If you don't like pork, you can ask for the alternative Butter Chicken ($15.80 small, $20.80 large). The crispy exterior was lovely with the same butter sauce, chilli padi and curry leaves as the butter pork ribs.

Hot Plate Tofu with Special Minced Pork 4/5

The Hot Plate Tofu with Special Minced Pork ($12.80) came with egg tofu and a special sweet and spicy sauce with minced pork. Customer can ask for non spicy tofu but it will come with chicken.

Red Tilapia with Special Sauce 4.2/5

The Red Tilapia with Special Sauce ($32) is not listed in the menu, you have to ask the waiter/waitress for it. The fresh red tilapia was cooked in the chef's special chilli bean paste sauce. The sweet and spicy flavours gave life to the delicious fish.

Claypot Pumpkin Prawns 4/5

Our palates were kind of tired and confused with all the salted egg and butter sauce dishes. When the Claypot Pumpkin Prawns ($13.80 small, $22.80 large) was served, we needed to reconfirm with the kitchen that they have not used the salted egg sauce instead. It tasted very similar to the salted egg sauce except that the texture was smoother. Same technique of using chilli padi and curry leaves to lift the flavours. Even the colour looked exactly the same. The pumpkin sauce was very good but I really could not taste the distinct pumpkin flavour.

Salted French Beans 4/5

Finally some greens after all the rich and creamy dishes. I like how the Salted French Beans ($10.80 small, $15.80 large) still had the crunchiness texture. The chilli padi, dried shrimps and fried shallots completed the flavours making it a light and delectable dish.

Irvin's will be giving out 10% discount to our blog readers from now till 31 July 2012! Simply quote "Singapore's Most Handsome Restaurant" before making payment and you will be entitle to the discount.

You may wonder why the Most Handsome Restaurant? The owner comes from Indonesia and he is a foodie. Whenever he comes across delicious food, he will describle it as "ganteng" in Bahasan which literally means handsome.

Once again I would like to thank Stephenie for having us and Cheryl for asking me along.


Irvin's Live Seafood House
No.4 Jalan Leban
Upper Thomson Road
Singapore 577548
Tel: +65 68365020
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/irvinseafood
Website: http://www.irvins.com.sg
Nearest MRT: Marymount (CC line)

Opening Hours:
Daily: 11am - 11pm

Direction:
1) Alight at Marymount MRT station. Take Exit A. Walk to Upper Thomson Road towards SPC Petrol Kiosk direction. Take bus number 163, 167, 855 or 980 across the road (Stop ID B53021). Alight 7 stops later. Walk to destination across the road. Journey time about 15 minutes.