Just last month, news of the inaugural Cafe Culture spread across the island. The four-day festival, which starts today, is the first of its kind, and brings in 10 well-known coffee, brunch, and dessert concepts from around the world. Thankfully, the location is a huge hall at Marina Bay Sands, with ample space in between each vendor. And it’s air-conditioned, which makes queueing a whole lot easier.
The first name you come across at the entrance is Denmark’s Coffee Collective, a micro roastery with four outlets in Copenhagen. Besides pouring out its classic caffeinated brews here, the brand is also serving its Cascara Soda (sparkling tisane made with the dried husks of the coffee cherry, $12) and coffee soft serve made with espresso and a sprinkle of ground beans ($6).
Next door, Melbourne’s famous Lune Croissanterie is where you’ll find snaking lines of croissant-hungry diners. Apparently, the queue can go up to a two-hour wait, so be sure to arrive with a friend to avoid being stuck in one line. Each box of two plain pastries goes for $22, and only 250 boxes are available daily, which means the earlier you go, the less chance you’ll face disappointment.
Also repping the Australian city, St. Ali draws you to its booth with upbeat tunes and hip decor. Latte art champion Shinsaku Shin Fukuyama and head barista Kirk Pearson will be manning the stall here, serving espressos ($4-$6), long blacks ($7), cappuccinos ($8), and lattes ($8). For a more intense java hit, try the Barista Breakfast (coffee served three ways: cappuccino, espresso, and filter, $20). You can grab a couple of limited edition tees and totes for memory’s sake, too.
Giving Singapore a taste of the iconic Melbourne cafe brunch, the more-than-a-decade-old Auction Rooms offers items like a Breakfast Board ($21) packed with grilled chorizo, potato rosti, granola, rye soldiers, and soft-boiled egg; corned beef hash ($20) of slow-cooked beef, shredded potato, cabbage, leek, poached eggs, and pita bread; and brioche French toast ($16) topped with frosted pecans, raw cacao, caramelized bananas, whipped bourbon cream, and Canadian maple syrup.
More coffee beverages come courtesy of Switch Coffee Tokyo, with its hot and iced espresso-based drinks, as well as Bangkok’s Roots, a boutique micro roastery that collaborates with farmers and processors in Chiang Mai and Chiang Rai. Look out for its Hoppy Citrus Cold Brew ($13), a hop-infused coffee base with concentrated cold brew coffee and house-made lemonade, and the Orange Tonic Cold Brew (sparkling coffee with a dab of orange, $13).
If you’re in the mood for a different kind of caffeine jolt, try Pushers, the Shanghai-based brand that takes a craft beer approach to tea. Served on tap and in bottles, the sparkling teas here are brewed with fruits, flowers, and tea leaves from Fujian and Yunnan. Flavors ($9) include Momo (oolong and peach), Pepe (chrysanthemum with pear and elderflower), and Mei Mei (roselle with strawberry and rhubarb).
More brunch bites can be ordered at Sisterfields, that famously chic Bali cafe. Its whittled down menu here serves signatures like smashed avocado on rye with sumac labna, cashew zaatar, pickled onion, and oregano ($19), pulled pork charcoal roll with fennel and cabbage slaw ($21), and banoffee pancakes with salted coconut sugar butterscotch and chocolate banana crumble ($16).
Then, at Roast, the Bangkok eatery offers its trademark truffle alfredo tagliatelle ($21), grilled chicken and spinach quesadilla ($16), and blueberry ricotta pancakes ($19).
Finally, Sydney’s popular Koi Dessert Bar, run by the Poernomo brothers, sees the youngest, Reynold, coming to Singapore to plate up eight different types of sweets. Apart from cheesecake, espresso, and lavender mousse dishes ($12), chocolate and salted caramel tarts ($12), and jars of pistachio and French Earl Grey desserts, the MasterChef Australia finalist also brings with him an exclusive Gardens by the Bay creation ($15). The tree-lookalike treat is a chocolate one filled with jackfruit, mango, coconut pandan ganache, and passion fruit curd, with only 50 available each day.
If you haven’t realized by now, Cafe Culture’s prices are pretty steep, and you can certainly expect long lines to form once the weekend hits. But still, if you’ve gotta have your fill of famous croissants and coffees, well, there’s still time to get your tickets, which come with $42 worth of food vouchers to spend this weekend.
FIND IT:
Cafe Culture is on from Aug 29-Sept 1, 10:30am-6:30pm at L1, Hall C, Sands Expo and Convention Centre.
Online $55, at the door $65.
MRT: Bayfront
