the living café, bukit timah.

i hardly ever wish to go to bukit timah unless someone is driving, because it's such a hassle! so that's why the living café has been idling on my to-try list for the longest time. J was driving that day and we were heading to the west side, so i figured it was time to finally try it out. happily enough, it was a sunday, and so they had brunch offerings- our favourite!

J was worried that it was going to be crowded (we drove past atlas coffeehouse and saw the queue snaking out of the shopfront) but i assured her that it wouldn't be as crazy as that. after all, it is new age, vegan(-ish) food, and i always think that's less of a draw to normal human beings compared to regular brunch places.

sure enough, i was right. we managed to get a table pretty easily, though the place was bustling. it was hard getting the waitress's attention, though we only wanted to have a look at the menu. in the end we figured it was easier for us to just go up to the counter, order and pay, even though they do charge for service.

saw a lot of tables getting the breakfast burrito ($15) off the brunch special menu, so that sealed the deal for me. i like how they're a mostly vegan restaurant, but they still offer meat options. i need my (preferably meat based) protein at each meal, so i added on an extra wild barramundi ($6) as a side. J got the mediterranean omelette ($18) with an extra side of chicken ($5).

















i was pleased with my burrito- it was like eating a salad, but not really. it was packed full of spinach, scrambled eggs, mushroom ragout, cherry tomatoes and... raw eggplant bacon. i was intrigued by the raw eggplant bacon when i saw it on the menu- how can eggplant taste like bacon?! okay, to be honest, it did look kind of like bacon, but tasted nothing like it. didn't mean that it was bad, though! it was actually pretty yummy.


















my only complaint was there seemed to be too much wrap at the ends. i ended up discarding some of the wrap. i thought i might not be full, given that it was mostly just vegetables, but it was surprisingly filling- it lasted me all the way through another round at the gym, all the way till dinner time! the wild barramundi was well cooked, with a crispy skin and flaky flesh, sprinkled with just the right amount of salt to make the flavours pop. J's omelette was pretty tasty as well, though it came out flatter than both of us expected. the only letdown was probably the chicken, which was dry.

while waiting for our food, my attention was drawn to the zucchini lasagna ($18.50) being served to other tables. it looked really good. plus, it's totally my kind of thing, with zucchini instead of pasta sheets. i'd come back to try that if we're in the area.


the living café
779 bukit timah road
http://www.balancedlivingasia.com/the-living-cafe