Following hot on the heels of its new outlet at Bukit Panjang Plaza in end Oct, Tai Cheong Bakery is opening another outlet in the west of Singapore and it will be at Jem this time.

Photos credit: Tai Cheong Bakery Singapore

Fans of the popular Hong Kong egg tart brand will be thrilled to know that there are now two outlets in the west of Singapore.

Tai Cheong Bakery at Jem #B1-35 will officially be opening to the public on this Friday, 20 Nov 2020.

Tai Cheong Bakery
Jem #B1-35
50 Jurong Gateway Rd, Singapore 608549

Introducing Starker Bistro, an establishment with huge signature platters, delectable mains, and beer. This is one restaurant in the West we’re willing to travel far for!

Here’s everything we love about Starker Bistro!

We started off with their Starker Favourites (S$32.80++), a platter consisting of Starker wings, a basket of sweet potato fries and two grilled sausages. We especially liked the wings. The sweet potato fries were also crunchy and fragrant with a lingering sweetness.

The spicy pork sausage with herbs gave a fiery kick of spice, while the texture was chewy and Q. Equally consistent in texture was the veal sausage — we enjoyed the burst of beefy flavour when we tucked into it.

Next up, we had the Starker Traditional Pork Knuckle (S$43.80++). It was beautifully plated with fried onion rings, pork knuckle slices, creamy mash potato and their Starker beer sauce. The onion rings were sweet with a salty skin, reminding us of our usual fries.

When we bit into the slow-roasted pork knuckle, the skin crackled, oozing juice from the layer of fat underneath. The thick chunks of pork also paired well with the beer condiment.

We also got the Ocean Catch (S$24.80++). It was topped with a myriad of seafood, such as prawns, mussels and octopuses.

Great for beer connoisseurs, the drinks here are served fresh from the barrel. We tried the Lychee Beer (S$16.90++/1 pint). Brewed with Belgium Lychee, the medium-bodied beer was light and aromatic with fruity notes. It had a short finish and was the sweetest option among their signature brews.

We also had the Dunkel (S$16.90++/1 pint). Full of malt flavour, the beer was smooth and rich. It was not too heavy on the palate either.

Albeit on the pricier side, the portions here are generous and perfect for sharing with bae. You can even watch soccer matches with your squad in their outdoor dining space! So, come on down and give Starker Bistro a try!

Starker Bistro
50 Jurong Gateway Rd
#01-05 Jem
Singapore 608549
Tel: +65 6734 2740
Mon to Thurs: 11am – 12am
Fri: 11am – 1am
Sat: 10am – 1am
Sun: 10am – 12am
Nearest Station: Jurong East

Jurong East has grown over the past decade, and for those who stay in the West of Singapore, shopping is made convenient with malls such as JEM, JCube, Westgate, IMM, and Big Box.

Housing a slew of big brand names, Westies have few reasons to head all the way to town, be it for shopping or cafe-hopping.

Here is our list of cafes in Jurong East for you to stop over to chill at after shopping. They include bingsu places, intriguing Korean temple food, chocolate indulgence, and even a vegan ice-cream shop.

AWFULLY CHOCOLATE

Awfully Chocolate is one of Singapore’s most well-known chocolatiers, and they have been in the chocolate business for almost 20 years.

Some of their famous chocolate items are Super Stacked Chocolate Cake, Hei Ice Cream, Chocolate Banana Cake, Dark Chocolate Truffles, Cold Poached Truffles, Chocolate Tiramisu Cake, and their Chocolate Praline Cake. Find their outlet in JEM for an indulgent tea time stopover.

50 Jurong Gateway Rd, #01-15
Singapore 608549
Tel: +65 6734 1530
Daily: 10am – 10pm

Photo Credit: life.tjy

CAFE GALILEE

Cafe Galilee is where most of us would be familiar with as the cafe place in the library for a cup of afternoon tea while having a read, or pausing over a fish and chips for lunch before diving into some research in library.

Sometimes, it is where we sip on a simple iced coffee while waiting for the little ones. For a host of reasons, Cafe Galilee is the hangout and retreat for book lovers and for students after school.

21 Jurong East Central 1
Singapore 609732
Tel: +65 6425 0629
Daily: 10am – 9pm

Photo Credit: joyful.carol.loi

COFFEEMIN

Coffeemin is a co-working space and anti-cafe for creative professionals, freelancers and entrepreneurs in Singapore.

You can work, read a book, play games, get acquainted with good people, drink, and eat as much as you want. Do whatever you like as long as you respect the space and the other people in it. Everything is free except the time you spend.

2 Jurong East Central 1, #02-11
Singapore 609731
Daily: 11am – 9:30pm

FART TARTZ

If you’re looking for a cafe with Instagram-worthy desserts, fArt tArtz is probably it. The cafe first grabbed our attention with their rows of adorable-looking mudpies that look like potted plants as well as cakes in old-school glass jars. There’s definitely more to it though.

Aside from these Instagrammable delights, they also offer light bites, pastas, burgers, and many other desserts.

2 Jurong East Central 1, #02-53
JCube Mall
Singapore 609731
Tel: +65 6925 5296
Daily: 10am – 10pm

MY LITTLE ICE-CREAM SHOP

With minimalism as its core theme, My Little Ice-Cream Shop has a clean and spacious area to chill at with your friends or to hang out after work.

Their plain waffles come with wet and dry toppings so you choose anything from sauces and syrups, to marshmallows, chocolate chips, crushed biscuits, chocolate sprinkles, almond chips, and gummy bears.

150 Pandan Gardens
#01-07 Ayer Rajah Community Club
Singapore 609335
Tel: +65 6265 5845
Daily: 11:30am – 10:30pm

NUNSARAM KOREAN DESSERT CAFE

Most of the Bingsu in Nunsaram Korean Dessert Cafe are presented with a scoop of ice cream sitting glamorously atop the pile of ice.

We heard that they use fresh ingredients for every serving of Bingsu–such as the Sweet Potato Bingsu where the purple paste is acquired from the sweet potato root itself.

3 Gateway Drive
#04-37/K4 Westgate
Singapore 608532
Tel: +65 6338 8191
Daily: 10am – 10pm

Photo Credit: Oh My Cafe

OH MY CAFE

If you are vegan, one of the interesting things on the menu of Oh My Cafe in Westgate which is located near Isetan is their Korean Temple Food which consists of Korean lotus tea, nutritious rice, eight wild herbs, vegetables, side dishes with their own seasoning, and grilled eggplant stick.

Otherwise, they have heavier Korean dishes such as fried chicken, army stew, and various soups for you to fuel up on.

3 Gateway Drive #B1-K1/2/3/4
Westgate Mall
Singapore 608532
Tel: +65 8650 9292
Daily: 10am – 10pm

Photo Credit: One Ice Cafe

ONE ICE CAFE

One Ice Cafe is a convenient stopover for a cold bowl of shaved iced dessert after a hearty and savoury meal in the eateries around it in JCube. Their best offerings include Caramel Bingsu, Oreo Bingsu, Mango Bingsu, and Injeolmi Bingsu, all of which you cannot really go wrong with.

The shaved ice could be more flavourful, but you’d be glad to know that most of the desserts are under S$10.

2 Jurong East Central 1,
#02-67, JCube
Singapore 609731
Daily: 12:30pm – 9:30pm

POPPY POPS

Most of us who stay in the West would have already visited JEM but not all know that Poppy Pops sits on its sixth floor above Cookhouse by Koufu. It is only accessible through the food court or the breezy rooftop located at the top of the shopping mall.

Grab a Poppy Classic or Premium along with the cafe’s Maple Butter Waffle. They also sell savoury dishes but those are less spectacular. 

52 Jurong Gateway Road
#06-03 JEM
Singapore 608549
Tel: +65 6262 0339
Sun to Thu: 11am – 10pm
Fri & Sat: 11am – 11pm

Photo Credit: Smoocht

SMOOCHT

For vegan ice-cream in the West, Smoocht sells what they call r’ice-creams which are made from organic crystal brown rice, organic evaporated sugar cane juice, real fruit and/or pure nut butters. Each scoop only contains a third of the calories of regular ice-creams!

If you are craving mains, they also sell pizzas and pastas.

319 Jurong East Street 31, #01-58
Singapore 600319
Tel: +65 6266 5691
Sun to Thu: 12pm – 9pm
Fri & Sat: 12pm – 9:30pm

Nearest Station: Jurong East