Cartoon Network Cafe by The Soup Spoon @ Punggol Waterway Point - Character Theme Pop-Up Café Featuring Powerpuff Girls, We Bare Bears, Ben 10 And Adventure Time Land

Following a collaboration between The Soup Spoon Union and Cartoon Network Asia-Pacific, a cartoon-themed cafe, Cartoon Network Cafe by The Soup Spoon Union opened its doors just last month at the Waterway Point Mall in Punggol. A setup thoughtfully decorated with statues, cutouts and toys of loved characters such as the Powerpuff Girls, We Bare Bears, Ben 10 and Adventure Time Land, it renders every spot in this fun-filled 93-seater café an IG-worthy haven that will have all the kids (and even adults) screaming internally in delight. Its appeal is further amplified with a wide variety of dish offerings inspired by the animated shows and its characters that will instantly transport you back to the good ol' days. We stepped in and dove right into their extensive menu featuring a slew of pretty themed dishes ranging from appetisers, mains, desserts, drinks and milkshakes. Big on visuals but how do they fare in taste?

Finn & Jake’s Chicken with Red Velvet Waffles 3.5/5

The Finn & Jake’s Chicken with Red Velvet Waffles ($15.90) features crispy pops of chicken karaage with red velvet waffles. A different take on the classic chicken waffles dish, the red velvet waffles is a sweeter rendition with a cakey brownie-like texture and a strong hint of cocoa flavour. The waffles may be a tad too dry but it is made better with a liberal drizzle of the accompanying honey served alongside, as well as the crispy and juicy chicken karrage pieces that were well-executed. A sweet and savoury marriage of flavours which surprisingly worked out for me.

Pan-Pan Calzone 3.5/5

The Pan-Pan Calzone ($10.90) is essentially a folded in version of pizza in a huge pie-like shape. Biting into the crisp crusted exterior reveals savoury insides, with tomato sauce, cheese and meats. Decently executed, this dish is a hit among the kids.

We Bare Bears Angus Ribeye Steak 3/5

The We Bare Bears Angus Ribeye Steak ($23.80) comes with a beef ribeye steak and a side of fries and salad. Done medium rare, the steak is grilled to a slightly tougher texture and a tad dry lacking the succulence and seasonings for that burst of flavours.

Grizzly Beef Burger 3/5

The Grizzly Beef Burger ($18.80) features generous ingredients including the beef patty, onion rings, sunny side up egg, mushrooms and cheese centred between soft brioche toasted buns that has We Bare Bear’s big brother Grizz’s face with two small sausages that made up its ears. The beef patty boasts a softer texture though the overall quality was below satisfactory due to the tasteless meat which lacked seasonings. The only flavours that came through were perhaps the cheese and thin pieces of onion rings sandwiched in between.

Blossom Strawberry Soda 3.8/5

For the drinks, we had the Blossom Strawberry Soda ($10.90) which comes in a flask of strawberry flavoured soda and a fluffy cloud of cotton candy perched on top of a beaker of strawberry and lemon slices. Pouring the strawberry drink in melts the cotton candy in the process, which adds a sufficient sweetness to the strawberry soda, giving it a non-cloying and refreshing taste to the drink with a slight tangy tinge of lemon.

Bubbles Cheesecake 3.8/5

From the desserts menu, we had the Bubbles Cheesecake ($14.90) which features a gorgeously plated dish of creamy cheesecake slice, sweet berries, whipped cream, biscuit crumbles and cotton candy on the side. The cheesecake boasts a soft texture with a rich cheese flavour to it, while the crumbles added a crunch to the soft cheesecake, as well as a mild saltiness to the sweetness of the cheesecake for a more balanced flavour of the dessert.

The Cartoon Network Café has done well with the decorations of the place and design of its themed dishes, yet there are still much room for improvement in terms of the food quality. Although it does curate a fun-filled and memorable dining experience for the kids, the prices may be a bit too steep as like the other character cafes in Singapore, which might make visits a one-time experience for most. However, as the characters featured will be rotated every 3 to 6 months, we wait in anticipation as it brings back opportunities to excite taste buds and have crowds of people showing up for another unique dining experience at CN Café again.

Words and photos by Crystal. A girl who likes to eat, photograph, and write about food, and dreams about travelling around the world one day. Note: This is an invited tasting.


Cartoon Network Café by The Soup Spoon
Waterway Point Mall
83 Punggol Central
#B1-12
Singapore 828761
Tel: +65 63859254
Facebook
Nearest MRT: Punggol (NE Line)

Opening Hours:
Daily: 11am - 10pm

Direction: 
1) Alight at Punggol MRT station. Take Exit A. Walk to destination. Journey time about 3 minutes. [Map]

Don Don Donki @ Orchard Central – Don Quijote Launches First Flagship Store In Singapore

Japanese discount store Don Quijote partnered with its holding company for overseas operations, Pan Pacific International Holdings Pte Ltd to launch its first ever Southeast Asian store outside of Japan, Don Don Donki store in Orchard Central which is opened to the public from 1st December 2017. Aimed to position itself as the "Japanese Brand Specialist" by offering products that are either made or designed in Japan, it also curates a unique retail experience with focuses on convenience, quality and price affordability through the store's refreshing concept and design.

Occupying a double-storey retail space that spans 1,397 sq m at basement B1 and B2 of the mall, it operates 24 hours, seven days a week, and features a wide array of authentic Japanese merchandise that define the Donki experience, yet carefully selected to suit local preferences. The broad diversity of products, estimated at a jaw-dropping 30,000 items ranges from daily household items, cosmetics, stationery, kitchen goods, novelty items to fresh foods and beverages amongst many others. One would be able to find almost anything at Don Don Donki. It's akin to the Japanese version of Singapore's Mustafa.

A Hokkaido themed retail experience is adopted, having a third of its specialty offerings curated from Hokkaido, including fresh meat, fish and produce such as the Tokachi Beef. The bottom basement level boasts a mega huge super mart filled with a wide variety of fresh meat produce, such as packages of fresh seafood and premium cuts of beef, Tokachi Hokkaido Wagyu (Kobe) beef at $20 per 100g which is imported directly from Japan. We tasted a sample of it during the media preview. With a texture so tender and succulent that just melts in the mouth with each bite, it is definitely more than enough to warrant return purchases for their fresh meats.

Don Don Donki also features a ready to eat section with bento boxes, onigiri and gelato made from Hokkaido milk, where customers can purchase and immediately tuck into these takeaways.

Fruits and vegetables are restocked daily to ensure its freshness. The myriad of colourful fresh produce on display showcases a very rare variety of Japanese such as the Mutsu and Kurenaino Yame. They come in mega sizes and are priced at $2.90 each. The sweetness, sourness and hardness levels of each apple variety are displayed on the signboards for customers to differentiate and make their most preferred choice.

A plethora of Japanese nibbles occupying rows and rows of shelves would definitely render shoppers spoilt for choices with the huge varieties of snack items available. It is akin to heaven for all kids and adults alike.

The drinks section features a variety of Japanese alcoholic drinks, as well as non alcoholic ones such as the juices and soy milk beverages. If you’re brave enough, do try their Natto Sodas and Salty Squid drinks, which are labelled as the most disgusting drinks in Japan.

The second storey of Don Don Donki features essentials, household items, cosmetics, luggage, stationery, as well as toy plushies, quirky accessories, costumes and party goods. The section which would most possibly trigger potential impulse buys, you might spend more time exploring the multitude of interesting items that they have there than you intended to.

With the festive season just around the corner, the shelves are piled high with Christmas goods, decorations and festive wear. This is the perfect place to do some of your Christmas shopping, and just in time too!

In partnership with Hokkaido Marche, a dine-in space will be rolled out in Jan 2018 to further enhance the true Hokkaido dining experience. The exact opening hours for Hokkaido Marche will be confirmed nearer to the opening date. Good new is that Don Don Donki is set to open a second outlet in Tanjong Pagar mid-June 2018. There are also plans for further expansion into Asia, with a store launching in Thailand next December.

Words and photos by Crystal. A girl who likes to eat, photograph, and write about food, and dreams about travelling around the world one day. Note: This is an invited tasting.


Don Don Donki
Orchard Central
181 Orchard Road
Singapore 238896
#B1-15 to #B1-29,
#B2-01 to #B2-10,
#B2-30 to #B2-43
Tel: +65 69283043
Facebook
Website
Nearest MRT: Somerset (NS Line)

Opening Hours: 
Daily: 24 Hours

Direction:
Alight at Somerset MRT station. Take Exit C or D. Walk to destination. Journey time about 3 minutes. [Map]