by xacco
Didn’t you just read our previous article and get excited about this one? I’m sure you found your perfect place to study, so now it’s time to find out the most interesting, fascinating, cute, date-worthy and cozy cafés in Singapore. Cafés, to be frank, are neither places to hop in and out for your morning caffeine nor places where you just get beverages may be. Isn’t it true? Cafés have definitely evolved from being known for coffees to becoming a hangout spot for brunches, lunches and dinners (keep an eye out for these mentions- brunches on weekends are a life-savior). Some of us even have our favorite cafés, the ones you go to when you want to celebrate, the ones where you would go with your close people, the ones where you just want to refresh your mind, and lot more favorites right? For me, café is that place where all I want is good food, a nice drink and may be peace of mind 😛 It’s where I would explore my creative side and at the same time have a nice time with my friends.
If you’re thinking just reading through this article will empty your pockets, then hold on! I have got good news. I promise to include at least 4 cafés which are definitely budget friendly. But hey! Once in a while it’s okay to pamper yourself 😛 Since you have made it till here, just hold on a little longer and read further to find out my recommendations. Who knows, you might find your comfort spot of Singapore.
Buckle up and join me on the coffee hopping journey!
Prodigal Café
So, one thing to note about these cafés is that don’t judge it by their location. This one is located in Tai Seng in an HDB setting. Not a usual location, right? But talking about Prodigal Café, it’s one of the most reasonable and affordable cafés serving amazing brunches. The café itself is cozy, cute and has warm vibes.
With a greater number of seats and better space, Prodigal is the perfect example for a minimalistic setting. On a side note (just for some trivia ;P), prodigal means “lavish and extravagant”. The café owners try to convey their love and translate their lavishness through their passion for good food and coffee.
Instagram: Prodigal Café
Food For Thought You know you have those places that your parents used to visit and the ritual continues? Food For Thought is exactly like one of those. A museum café, been there for long, pocket-friendly, supports good causes for charity, it’s everything in one place. It gracefully finds a balance between nostalgia and innovation to keep the roots intact but with a twist.
Wondering of a must try? Tropical Fruit Yogurt Bowl: I would say it’s the healthiest way to kickstart your day. Tangy flavors rightly balanced out by the sweetness of honey.
Website: Food For Thought
Instagram: Food For Thought
The Tree Café Centrally located in the Dhoby Ghaut area, it’s a go for a super nice interior with the theme of nature (as the name suggests) and also, not to mention, the competitive pricing. Want something eye-catchy for your Insta story? Well yes, the café has a swing at the corner decorated with leaves. Other than their 5 Specialty items, everything is priced lower than $10, literally everything else. Located in The Cathay, it’s a hangout space for students and a coffee/meal place for office workers.
Facebook: The Tree Café
All Things Delicious
I think I should probably add this to my next hidden gems article. This place is smartly placed in Haji Lane, which in itself is a place to be uncovered. Coming to the food, I’m totally a fries person, I can just eat fries for lunch or dinner and be totally satisfied. So, when I looked at their menu and spotted Masala Fries, it felt like my eyes fixated on it. With no second thoughts, I ordered these yummy sounding fries which came with a sprinkle of spice powder on top and Mango Mayo dip (McDonald’s doesn’t even have normal mayo ?). Even the Chicken Tikka Rice Bowl on the menu seemed pretty tasty (maybe next time). But for now, these fries were all I needed to eat to feature the place in this article. May be a little biased opinion, but hey, you can always head down there for a nice atmosphere around you.
Website: All Things Delicious
Instagram: All Things Delicious
Oblong
Are you a waffle-lover looking to explore new places to eat waffles in? Well then, we’re in this journey together. I never was a crazy fan but now, just the thought of it makes me crave. I have tried waffles at different places across Singapore. Hands-down, plain/red-velvet waffle with chocolate/vanilla ice-cream is the best. Just those pure flavors with not a lot of overlapping keeps the taste perfect.
At Oblong, there are waffles in 3 variants: Matcha, Red Velvet and Charcoal. For S$10 you can get a waffle, ice-cream and coffee. You can even choose your sauce and they even offer to top it up with cream cheese (I haven’t personally seen a lot of cafes offering it). Happy Waffly Day!
Facebook: Oblonge
d’Good Café
Hey! The ‘d’ wasn’t a typo, it’s how they spell it 😛 I have been visiting the outlet in Holland Village unaware of the fact that that’s where it had been established first. Can’t tell you how cute the place is, a Lawn, The Attic, The Balcony, Good (Best) Food and Friendly people, this is the perfect recipe to a successfully running café. There’s also another branch in Takashimaya Shopping Centre and they have their brand-new outlet at Jewel Changi Airport.
So, what’s good? Coffee! No wait, Cocktails! Oh no, the Waffles! You see, everything I have tried turned out so good and they even have discounts for students. So true to their name is their food! Please try their plain waffle with ice-cream and experience your midday blues turn into heavenly brunches! Also, go to the Holland Village branch cause it’s sooo cozy!
Website: d’Good Café
Facebook: d’Good Café
Plain Vanilla Bakery
Best place for those mouth-watering cupcakes! You might be confused if you have reached the right place because they keep changing their storefront look from time to time. Quite interesting, ain’t it? Especially, located in a locality like Tiong Bahru, you wouldn’t expect a café with a wooden swing, tables, carpet grass and pretty bicycles (which can even be rented) in the entrance.
Best place for your cheat day with all those cupcakes, yummy breakfasts, brunches and pancakes. They have something called the ‘House Granola Bowl’ if you want something filling, tasty and yet healthy.
Website: Plain Vanilla
Instagram: Plain Vanilla
PS Café
Everything about here is worthy of taking note, from the elegant furnishings, brilliant views, exquisite presentation of the food to the smell & to the taste. It has a lot of outlets all across the central area. However, my most favorite one is the outlet at Raffles City. The branch at One Fullerton had a waterfront view and this one is like a Glasshouse in the Sky. They are surely redefining the world of cafes with exquisite locations and stunning views. It has an exterior filled with planters, glass panels and the glass ceiling let some natural sunlight to make your picture perfect! Oh, and here’s a heads up, the prices are going to be expensive but if it suits your taste buds, why not?!
Quick tips: Not every dish justifies the high price though, like the Thai Chicken and Basil Bowl at $23? A big NO NO! So, make sure to pick something like the ‘Truffle Shoestring Fries’ which PS. Café is known for. Also, the place is most likely to be full, so I would totally recommend you reserve a table. ☺
Website: PS Café
Instagram: PS Café
This was the list of top 8 cafes that I feel super good, energized and satisfied after visiting. Not a lot of fancy places because you get the real feel at a little low-key place than over the top place, right? When it comes to food, I’m an exceptionally picky person, and so for me to like a place and the food a lot of analyzing goes in. So, I whole-heartedly hope that this list suits you well and you get to taste some amazing dishes whilst your time in Singapore. Explore these places as much as you can and when they say it’s their signature dish, do give it a try because it’s usually justified. I hope you had a good read and will explore these cafes. Take a little time out for yourself amongst the hustle of life and have a little break. Munch on tasty brunches and pamper yourself. Oh wait, pampering reminds me of something- Shopping! So why not make the next article about it? I’ll tell you where to go for the best clothes, food, souvenirs, and anything else you need to know before you make the purchase!
Paris, the City of Light, is known for its romantic ambience, iconic landmarks, and rich cultural heritage. While it’s easy to get…
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Paris is surely famous for all the right reasons. Also this digital era of Instagram and Pinterest makes it much more well known for the picturesque locations that it possesses. Paris is filled with scenic beauties, natural heritage, blessed with art, and adorned with greatest human made masterpieces which are hard to miss.
Ever wondered where you get to see all these beautiful images online when travelers come to visit Paris and your favorite influencer makes you drool over your screens with their aesthetic selection of locations for getting hands down one of the best pictures in the City of Love!
1.Trocadéro at sunrise:
Enjoy stunning views of the Eiffel Tower from the Trocadéro, an expansive complex of museums, sculptures, gardens and fountains. Anchoring the space is the striking Palais de Chaillot, which houses museums dedicated to maritime history, architecture and anthropology.
In front of the Palais de Chaillot are the magnificent Trocadéro Gardens. Built for the 1937 World’s Fair in Paris, the gardens align perfectly with the base of the Eiffel Tower.
Today this beautiful space plays a role in popular seasonal events throughout the year, including a fireworks show each Bastille Day and an annual Christmas Market with an ice skating rink. Complete with beautiful fountains and an array of sculptures, the postcard-worthy views of the Eiffel Tower from Trocadéro Gardens are simply not to be missed.
2. Parc des Buttes Chaumont
The Buttes-Chaumont Park, in the north-east of Paris, is one of the biggest and original green spaces in Paris, measuring 25 hectares. Its construction on quarries explains its impressive steepness and change in levels and heights. Visitors can appreciate stunning views of the city from this hilly setting, especially in the Montmartre district. The layout gives it a particular charm: caves and waterfalls, a suspended bridge, and a high viewpoint. It is brightened up with exotic, indigenous trees and numerous birds (seagulls, moorhens, and mallard ducks) share the area and enjoy the artificial lake. Entertainment for children also takes place in the park and there are break areas where you can get something to eat.
3. Colonnes de Buren
The Colonnes de Buren are officially known as Deux Plateaux. In 1986, the Ministry of Culture commissioned the sculptor Daniel Buren with their creation to adorn the Cour d’Honneur of the Palais-Royal. Deux Plateaux (literally 2 levels) originates in the basement of the courtyard in order to symbolize the link between street-level and underground Paris, both so rich in history.This was a way somehow to link past, present and future.
The 260 striped Colonnes de Buren are made of white Carrara marble from Italy and black marble from the French Pyrénées.These columns are truncated and of different heights, but they all have 8.7 cm wide stripes.
Controversial artwork
The Colonnes de Buren are placed in lines and turn the 3000m² Cour d’Honneur into a huge chessboard! No need to say that they were highly controversial at first, and still are! Many detractors argue that their ugliness ruined the beauty of the Palais-Royal. Indeed, the building is a listed Historical Monument. The columns were therefore installed ‘in a hurry’ and their inauguration skipped!
Ten years later only, water leaks and seepage in the basement, contributed to their degradation and they were falling apart. In 2007 Daniel Buren bitterly complained of the state of ‘extreme disrepair’ in which his columns were.
4.Musée de l’Orangerie
Home to numerous impressionist and post-impressionist painters over the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century, the Orangerie museum can be found in the ‘jardin des Tuileries’, right next to the place de la Concorde. It displays the famous masterpieces of Paul Cézanne, Henri Matisse, Armedeo Modigliani, as well as Claude Monet, Pablo Picasso, Pierre-Auguste Renoir and many other artists of this period.
From Orangery to Museum
The name is not deceiving, the beautiful ‘musee de l’Orangerie’ is installed in an old orangery, built in 1852 to shelter the acidic citrus fruits from the ‘jardin des Tuileries’ in winter. Like all orangeries, the stone building was built in length, and was constructed in glass on the side of the Seine (to the south) and in bricks on the garden side (to the north) in order to conserve as much heat as possible. Its rather classic and simple decoration fits in perfectly with the area that surrounds it.
Converted throughout the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th into a warehouse, military accommodation, and then a site for diverse demonstrations (sports, musical, and even patriotic), the former orangery finally fell into the hands of the administration des Beaux-arts in 1921. This organisation had big plans for the orangery since they wanted to use it to hold a part of the ‘musee du Luxembourg’ which is now the National Museum of Modern Art.
5. Paris Pantheon
The Panthéon was the first major monument in Paris. It was built before the Arc de Triomphe and the Eiffel Tower, and was the first building that offered a panoramic view over France’s capital. It is located in the Latin Quarter, very close to the Jardin du Luxembourg.
The Panthéon was built between 1764 and 1790, firstly designed by Jacques Germain Soufflot and later by Jean Baptiste Rondelet. The Panthéon was created with the intention of combining the simplicity of the gothic architecture with the stateliness of the Greek architecture.
History
During the nineteenth century and depending on the political regime, the Panthéon was either used as a religious or as a patriotic building.
In the time of the Third Republic and coinciding with Victor Hugo’s funeral, the Panthéon’s necropolis was used to bury famous French citizens.
Visiting the Panthéon
The visit of this landmark can be divided into two. Firstly, the interior of the mausoleum, where visitors will be rendered speechless by its sheer size and decoration, and secondly the crypt, that contains the tombs of illustrious French citizens such as Voltaire, Rousseau, Victor Hugo, Marie Curie, Louis Braille, Jean Monnet and Alejandro Dumas.
6. Rue Cremieux
At one time this enchanting little cobbled street, hidden away in the 12th arrondissement, was a “secret place” few people knew about. These days, however, Rue Crémieux is an increasingly sought out haunt for fashion photographers, filmmakers, and people looking for something uniquely suited the color-saturated world of Instagram.
In many respects, this quaint throughway between Rue de Lyon and Rue de Bercy doesn’t really feel like Paris at all and is perhaps more reminiscent of Portobello Road in London’s Notting Hill, or Burano in Venice.
Amid the colorful façades, trompes l’œil paintings, and shuttered windows, are window boxes and terracotta pots filled with lush plants that add to the feeling you have somehow escaped Paris for a moment.
This is a residential street, albeit a very short one, but the homes are not large. In fact, on one side of the street, the building is little more than one room in depth.
7. Square Marcel Bleustein Blanchet
Once called Park Turlure after a former windmill on site, the square is terraced and provides some of the best (and perhaps most unique) views of the Sacré-Coeur. After all, fewer people wander around the back of the basilica, preferring to stop and photograph the ecclesiastical building face on.
But if you were to visit Montmartre, then remaining in the touristic spots would be your first mistake! The area has plenty of hidden gems to explore (not just the Sacré-Coeur and Place du Tertre) and its cobbled lanes are best explored on foot.
In the spring, Square Marcel-Bleustein-Blanchet is filled with blossoming wisteria, while in the summer months, the little park is the perfect place to enjoy a Parisian picnic, as well as a great place to stop and rest in the middle of a Montmartre walking tour.
Come the Autumnal season, the leaves turn golden hues and look magical against the backdrop of a sparkling Sacré-Coeur. So I guess, what I’m trying to say is that the Square is pretty photogenic all year ’round!
8. The Arc de Triomphe terrace
HISTORY OF THE MONUMENT
A unique viewpoint. From the top of the panoramic terrace, your eyes sweep over the whole of Paris.
The revisited Antiquity. Architect Jean-François Chalgrin was inspired by the Roman Arch of Titus in a single arch, but went beyond it by exceptional dimensions (about 50 m high, 45 m long and 22 m wide) and abandoning columns.
A key place of major national events. Wanted by Napoleon in 1806, the Arc de Triomphe was inaugurated in 1836 by French king, Louis-Philippe, who dedicated it to the armies of the Revolution and the Empire. The Unknown Soldier was buried at the base of the arch in 1921. The flame of remembrance is rekindled every day at 18:30.
9. Butte Bergeyre
Perched on a little hill, 100m up, to the West of Buttes Chaumont, this micro-arrondissement in the 19e has all the charm of Parisian life without the people. If you’re looking for a place with peace and quiet, then this is it. All in all, there are only around 1200 residents, making this the kind of place that retains its village vibe in the heart of a modern metropolis
Named after Robert Bergeyre, a 19th-century French rugby player who died in 1914, the mount offers amazing views over the city AND one of the last remaining vineyards in the city of lights. It’s the perfect place to get a little bit lost on a lazy afternoon and forget that you’re in one of the busiest capital cities in the world.
10.Pont Alexandre III
The Pont Alexandre III is a deck arch bridge that spans the Seine in Paris. It connects the Champs-Élysées quarter with those of the Invalides and Eiffel Tower. The bridge is widely regarded as the most ornate, extravagant bridge in the city. It has been classified as a French monument historique since 1975.
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