I am not the fastest when it comes to identifying the newest cafes in town. I can if I take extra effort to work on it, but I don’t really want to waste my calories on the same egg benedict and french toast every single visit. Rather, I picked the cafes I wish to visit after reading reviews and only select the ones with interesting menus. Sin Lee Foods is one of the cafes in my list. In a old neighbourhood on Bukit Ho Swee, the cafe is converted from an old coffeeshop. They have kept the name and original signboard, but modernised the menu that many people love.

The indoor seats were taken, but I totally don’t mind the alfresco area for better food photos. The heat was actually quite uncomfortable but it’s all worth it. Firstly, my cup of Cappuccino ($5.50) has a Instagram-worthy latte art of two swans. Then, we started with the Salted Egg Sweet Potato Fries ($12) made with salted duck’s egg sauce. Anything salted egg works for me. Hipster anot! LOL

Aburi Broccoli Salad ($12) features smoky torched broccoli florets drizzled with white balsamic, papadum, red sugar. I totally wanted to skip this while browsing the menu. What? Papadum? How can an Indian cracker pair with broccoli? But, the cafe did an excellent job with their menu (not saying about the quality of the menu) because it says “Trust us on this, you’ll want more!”. Indeed, I WANT MORE! I thought the papadum was melon seeds. The smoky broccoli totally ups the game, and who would expect that red sugar balances it well.

My favourite creation is the Beef & Grain ($25). Seared marbled striploin is served with wet orzo “rice”, runny free range hen’s eggs, ginger, furikake and scallions. Orzo “rice” is actually a type of pasta shaped like large rice grains. The striploin is tender and the orzo rice has bold flavours.

The Fried Chicken & Waffles ($21.90), touted as “the one and only” by Sin Lee, is topped with a seasoned, juicy leg piece, accompanied by a creamy homemade slaw. The caramelized syrup tries to unite the flavours together. Honestly, the waffle is not bad. The chicken is good. But this doesn’t work for me. Being a traditionalist. I still prefer my waffles sweet with ice cream.

For desserts, we ordered the Banana Beignets ($9.50) which are fried to order and served with condensed milk and freshly grated parmesan. But I thought the batter was too strong and thick. Surprisingly, Croissant and Bread Pudding ($14) works better. The buttery croissant and salted caramel sauce is a perfect match.

I like how Sin Lee Foods try to be different from other cafes. I like how they take the leap of faith and try be creative in combining different ingredients together which creates unique but palatable dishes. Despite its tucked-away address, the space is regularly humming with patrons.

Sin Lee Foods

Address: Blk 4 Jalan Bukit Ho Swee #01-164
Tel: 6377 3170
Opening hours: Tuesday — Friday 11am to 9pm; Saturday 9.30am to 9pm; Sunday 9.30am to 6pm. Closed on Mondays.