Food Review: Where to find HOTCAKES in Singapore

You've seen them on Instagram - that very pretty round plate of pancakes adorned with a palette of colours. That is the 'in' food for a while back, and they are the ricotta hotcakes! No, they are not like the McDonalds hotcakes, but much thicker, fluffier and stuffed with ricotta cheese (for most). Because I'm such a sucker for pancakes (and the fruit toppings), I've made it a point to try them at almost everywhere I know of in Singapore! Haha, so here are the places that you can get your hands on them pretty hotcakes!


Paddy Hills


Paddy Hills opened in the first quarter of the year to much fanfare as there were a lot of positive reviews about it - from the food, the interior design, to the service. I do remember that they had an initial problem of long waiting times, but I believe it should be ironed out by now.

They have two different menus (day and night), but here's the day one for your reference. As you can see there're a lot of Asian-Western fusion food, and they offer interesting items rather than the common Eggs Benedict, e.g. Squid Ink Tagliatelle and Kimchi Fried Rice.



Berries Ricotta Hotcakes ($23)

Tadaaa, the star of the show! I was very excited to try this because it was my first time eating such a dish. I really liked the texture of the hotcakes, which was very fluffy! It tasted more cake-like to me, veering slightly towards a pound cake. But because of that, it also got quite gelat after a while.



It's not called 'Ricotta Berries Hotcake' for nothing. The insides are stuffed with ricotta cheese, which was a delight as my fork and knife sliced through the thick pancake. The white thingy at the top of the hotcakes is also the ricotta cheese. And I love anything berries, so I was happy with the reasonable portion of berries given. :) The pine nuts added a contrasting crunch to the dish.

My only gripe with this dish is that it's very expensive. When I went it was $19, but I heard they've recently increased it to $23, with the ingredients and portion being the same. Probably wouldn't try it here again, since there are alternatives of equal quality.


38 South Buona Vista Road
Singapore 118164
Mon - Fri 1030 - 1700, 1800 - 2130
Sat - Sun 0900 - 1700, 1800 - 2130
64790800
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Habitat Coffee


Habitat Coffee remains as one of my favourite cafes, because of its delicious food and affordable prices(all nett). A few months ago they had new additions to their already rather extensive menu (for a cafe), and here it is.







Stuffed Berries Hotcake ($15)



Instead of using ricotta cheese, this version does it with cream cheese instead. The first few mouths tasted good, quite like Paddy Hills. But after a while it got quite cloying, and I felt gelat faster than the other one. It was a little bit dry and dense, which I think contributed to the fullness very fast haha. Presentation wise I think more berries would be better? Looks a little bit sparse haha. But I guess at $15 nett I can't complain.


223 Upper Thomson Road
Singapore 574355
Tues - Fri 1100 - 2230
Sat - Sun 1030 - 2230
Closed on Mondays
64562567
Website
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Curious Palette


Curious Palette adopts a similar style and food offerings as their sister cafe, Strangers Reunion. The cafe grounds are much bigger and more spacious, plus I like the natural lighting from the glass ceiling in the photo below. They've recently stirred a buzz over their #SaveAStranger initiative, which is to raise funds for their young chef's cancer treatment cost. It's very heartening to see that there has been an overwhelming support so far!



They also serve their signature waffles from Strangers Reunion and Waffle Slayer, so now you can have them at 3 locations!



Berry Ricotta Hotcake ($14.90++)

This is one of the prettiest dish I've ever seen! Really love the array of colours. They say that your food should be as colourful as possible - look, ma, this one definitely does!


The hotcake is light and fluffy, with the outer edges still quite crisp despite my minutes of phototaking haha! Instead of a scoop of cheese on top like other places, here, a scoop of vanilla bean ice cream is served. There was also a generous serving of berries, pumpkin seeds and sunflower seeds. I don't take maple syrup but even so, it wasn't too dry. As usual, I never fail to finish a hotcake on my own because it's usually too good to leave it half-eaten LOL. My only gripe is that I couldn't really taste much ricotta in the hotcakes.


64 Prinsep Street
Singapore 188667
Mon, Wed, Thurs, Sun 0900 - 2200
Fri - Sat 0900 - 0000
62381068
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The Populus Coffee & Food Co.



This is a relatively new cafe, having been opened early last month. But they've gotten off to a good start, as can be seen from the full house pictured above when I visited on a weekday during lunch time! The cafe has a geometric theme-cum-industrial chic design. It gives a very clean yet welcoming feel that makes one feel good upon stepping in. One can tell that they focus a lot on quality, because the service crew's uniform are the long-sleeved, white-collared kind, and it does make them look smart and professional (service is good too). Even their napkins are the thick and super high quality ones! :O


Buckwheat Pancakes ($18)


Well this isn't a hotcake per se, but I thought I'd include here because it looks like one of them haha. This pancake is very, very visually appealing! I was so excited when it arrived at the table hahaha. As per the description, this is really a soft, fluffy pancakes made of buckwheat flour, topped with berry compote, passionfruit curd, crunchy cornflakes and a slab of butter. Thyme-infused maple syrup is served at the side. Sounds like a lot going on? Let me break it down for you.


You can see above that the pancake still has pockets of air in them, hence its lightness and fluffiness! It was a little unsual on my first mouth, because I've not tried anything made of buckwheat flour before. But I felt healthy HAHA. On its own the pancake will taste plain, but with the assortment of toppings, the whole dish came together very well. I love the berry compote and passionfruit curd! Both weren't too sour, just a slight tang to balance the sweet berries. For a pancake lover I could finish this, but I suggest to you guys to share it haha! The price tag is also high for a dish like this, but it's worth a try! (:


146 Neil Road
Singapore 088875
Mon, Wed 0900 - 1900
Thurs - Fri 0900 - 2230
Sat 0930 - 2230
Sun 0930 - 1900
66358420
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So there you have it - four places (and counting?) to get your hotcakes in Singapore. Some people say that it looks nicer than it tastes, but I think most of them are good. If you're still a bit hesitant, perhaps order it to share amongst your friends! (:

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