Ardent's Cafe @ Neil Road

 

Ardent's Cafe is one of those nestled in a shophouse in between Tanjong Pagar and Outram. Its outward and inward appearance does have a mismatch somehow - the garden concept complete with a swing on the outside meets a cosy interior complete with a christmas fireplace and sofas with casablanca music playing overhead. There is a bar I assume for the concoction of cocktails which are available at 10am, whilst coffee is brewed next door.



Spot the fireplace!



Illustrations all done internally.



The brunch story.



Do bear in mind they do not serve water on the house, comes at a 50 cent surcharge per glass.



The extra espresso.



Espresso was served when it was not ordered, latte art was missing though the latte ($4.80) was pretty good.



Create your own latte art.



French Omelette ($13.80)
Asparagus, tomatoes and mushrooms.

The waiter claimed the tortillas were french omelette yet another clarified it was not the case. After a booboo, the french omelette finally arrived. Bland as can be but ketchup did save the day.



Tortillas De Patatas ($12.80)
Potatoes, onions and eggs.

Originally claimed that scrambled eggs could replace the omelette, turned out it could not be done. A slightly burnt potato arrived looking homecooked and tasted that way.



Ardent's Freestyle ($22)

Sausages/Eggs/Smoked salmon /Snail sausages /Honey Baked Ham

Casually plated, this was simply put together quite nondescriptly, Mcdonalds' big breakfast would have been a heartier option. The only commendable part of this was the cheesy snail sausage which had cheese oozing out. Smoked salmon was fishy and too salty, ham had bones in them and the supposed "sunny side" eggs ended up scrambled.



Blueberry and Peanut Butter Pancakes ($12.80)

My original order of Eggs Montreal (eggs benedict with smoked salmon) was clearly forgotten and served to another table without a word of apology. I had them replaced with the pancakes which totally saved the day. These pancakes have a min jiang kueh bouncy texture to it, though a tad too bouncy. Lacking in fluff factor but I am certainly not complaining.



The molten peanut butter mixture was delish on its own though I truly do not get how complementary are blueberries with peanut butter.



Maple syrup completed the entire pancake experience.



Banana Caramel Waffles ($12.80) with Vanilla and Chocolate icecream ($3 each)

These waffles were crunchy more than doughy, disappointing one. The banana caramel pairing was odd - mushy bananas. The same kiwi preserve was served together with both the waffles and pancakes, pretty delightful fruit preserve.



Cleverly propped up by the maple syrup dish.



Black?



Or white?

Icecreams were once again forgotten and when they arrived, they were clearly yanked out of the tub and slapped onto the dish. Nothing that a random sprinkling of what would have been chocolate and coffee soil in Andre's menu could have saved this. Odd corners and super pedestrian tasting Wall's icecream. Such is a rip off.

Service is hugely lacking from the start, having orders forgotten and missed out is unacceptable on so many accounts. Distribution of work is obviously skewed - 1 chef to 4 servers. What is the point of having so many people serving when the kitchen cannot cope? Bear in mind, it was barely half filled! Dishes appeared at odd timings which I find totally unprofessional. Cutlery with watermarks were served up and reminders have to be made for separate plates time and again.

The crux of the matter is, all dishes attempted this visit were items that could have been easily replicated out of a home kitchen, not one bit spectacular or even satisfying.

I was more than happy to end this brunch - never again.There are too many better alternatives in the same vicinity.

Ardent's Cafe
80 Neil Road