This is part two, a continuation from the Pasta and Co post.
What do we do after eating a yummy meal?
Of course, we cap it off with some dessert. Life on a perpetual no-sugar no junk diet is extremely depressing and frankly unsustainable.
The Crescent Waffle and Sandwich Shop is a cute little cafe on the first floor of Fortune Centre. It has about 5 tables or so, which seats about 10! The design of the shop is a cute white and brown minimalist style.
The shop offers pandan waffles, sandwiches, pastries and cafe beverages.
(Pandan waffles are the kind of green waffles you see in Singapore neighbourhood bakeries. )
See the bag of coffee beans at the side of the counter? The shop uses beans from Cowspresso, which I happen to visit once while in the Lor Kilat estate. When our coffee was being prepared, I was excitedly telling the Mr. all about the espresso extracting process that I learned about the coffee workshop I told you guys about.
Ah, fresh coffee is always so aromatic - but to achieve such yummy goodness at home, an espresso machine is needed! And even such a 'small' one takes up quite a lot of counter space. So... off we go to the cafes to let the professionals handle it.
Here's a look at their pastries:
We didn't try these because we were here for the waffles. You can choose flavours such as chocolate, peanut butter, kaya, cheese, butter and blueberry ($2.60) . But the one selling like hot cakes is:
The Black Sesame Pandan Waffle ($2.80)
Everyone in the shop ordered this!
First bite:
The waffle is hot and served in a brown paper bag atop a plate. Seems rather strange but here are my guesses as to why:
- Maybe the less utensils used, the easier for the shop to manage?
- Ditto for takeaways.
- Or maybe this is to emulate the traditional pandan waffle packaging?
- Since the waffle is rather floppy and limp, it is easier for the diner to bite into.
The Crescent waffle is a floppy waffle with an inner consistency closer to mian jian kueh (traditional Chinese pancake) than a crispy Belgian waffle. There is just the slightest crisp on the outer layer too.
I loved the generous slathering of black sesame paste, which I think may also appeal more to the older crowd too. Smart. Pretty yummy~ (but our favourite is still the Garden pandan waffle (Aljunied) even though lately it has been plagued with INCONSISTENCY!!!)
Has the pandan waffle IG account (@pandan_pig) visited Crescent yet?!
We also ordered the Iced Crescent Coffee ($6.50). It is an Einspanner, which is a hot espresso topped with cool whipped cream. I was really excited for this! I've tried it only once in Korea.
Hmm. I think the cream and milk really covered the coffee flavour though. I think I'm starting to know what kind of iced coffees I enjoy, after visiting quite a few cafes. I like a really cold milk with a strong coffee that is sharp enough to cut through the milk. Does that make sense? XD Can't remember exactly where I have drank such a latte but I remember a few that aren't exactly what I'm looking for. Maybe the secret is really in the roast.
Other than this, I also observed a few small families ordering their croissants. They offer croissants like Ham and Cheese, Smoked Salmon and more. Saw this little boy totally living it up with his croissant, iPad, and also one of their drinks, possibly the Iced Golden (a lemonade with apple, peach and mint). That looked super refreshing!
A cute place to hang out with family especially if they are heading to Fortune Centre to have their vegetarian day. Friends - maybe just 2-3 people because these cafes are pretty smol.
Ending notes
One more thing I like about Fortune Centre is that many shops are run by passionate owners. Most of the malls in Singapore have large restaurant chains and these often lack the personal touch.
When the owners or staff say goodbye to you here, you can feel more warmth behind it! (Or maybe it's just me?) (An exception: the aunties selling Japanese food upstairs)
After our day at Fortune Centre I am even more sure that Support Small Businesses, or Support Local is a great cause. This is especially so because older malls that house small businesses like these have a rather limited lifespan in land scarce Singapore. Sooner or later Fortune Centre may suffer the same fate as Golden Mile etc and basically we will continue to watch the death of small business like these. Sad but we know this is coming...
So what are you waiting for? 😋
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Crescent Waffle and Sandwich Shop
Fortune Centre,
190 Middle Road
#01-17
Singapore 188979
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Love,
Skye
