A wallet-friendly dining establishment you should be taking note of is 73@Hillcrest—one of the many options along Greenwood Avenue.

73@Hillcrest is a coffee shop by day where diners can delight in their multi-cuisine menu and a bistro by night for a chill dinner and drinking session with your mates. Most of the items on their menu are kept below S$13 and there is no GST and service charge.

We popped by on a Sunday afternoon to check out their weekend brunch.

Visitors can choose to sit in the alfresco area or indoors, but do note that the bistro does not have air conditioning.

Avocado & Poached Egg (S$12.80) is the most popular brunch item on their menu and it is not hard to see why. The presentation alone is enough to win our hearts and it surely is a dream for all who are into food photography.

The poached egg was done to perfection with a ’Boomerang-worthy’, runny egg yolk that spilled out almost immediately. And we loved the generous portion of soft avocado and subtle hint of bitterness from the kale.

The Truffle Scramble Bacon Toast (S$8.80) came with soft, buttery scrambled eggs, crispy bacon sprinkled with truffle salt and toasted brioche.

Swing by on a weekend to enjoy other All-Day-Brunch items such as Pork in Duxelles with Brioche (S$11.80) and Caesar Salad but Prawns (S$13.80). There are also kid-friendly choices including Waffle Double Delight (S$7.80) and Scramble Toast (S$3.80).

Otherwise, opt for their regular lunch menu featuring their signature 73 Angus Burger (S$17.50) and Chilli Crab Linguine with Soft Shell (S$19.50).

If you are not planning to drive there, the bistro is about 15 minutes walk from Tan Kah Kee MRT Station.

73@Hillcrest
73 Hillcrest Road
Singapore 288945
Tel:+65 9694 5888
Mon to Thu: 12pm – 10.30pm
Fri: 12pm – 11pm
Sat: 8.30am – 11pm
Sun: 8.30am – 10.30pm
Nearest Station: Tan Kah Kee

I don’t know about you, but brunch is one of my favourite meals. I always look forward to having brunch during the weekends. The perfect excuse presented itself a few weeks ago when I met up with Felicia for the first time since she came back from Paris, and we had brunch at our favourite neighbourhood – Greenwood Avenue.

I was trying to decide on a place as I looked through my Guide to Restaurants in Greenwood Avenue, and for some reason, Bronte, a family owned neighbourhood restaurant which serves modern Australian Cuisine, called out to me.

No prize for guessing where we went for brunch.

Bronte at Greenwood Avenue has a casual and unpretentious setting, which means to say you can go there for a good meal without worrying about having a wardrobe malfunction. If you are looking for a place to go for brunch this weekend, take up your phone and make a reservation at Bronte.

The Australian Restaurant serves brunch on weekends and public holidays from 9.30am to 2.30pm. Although the brunch menu is fairly small, you can still find all the popular breakfast food like Ricotta Pancakes ($16) with fresh banana and maple syrup; Homemade Corn Fritters ($16) with avocado and rocket salad; Scrambled Eggs ($17) with pork sausages, potato hash, and toast; Poached Eggs ($17), spinach, & hollandaise sauce on toast; and Aussie Prime Beef Burger ($16).

We tried the Ricotta Pancakes, Eggs Benedict, and Scrambled Eggs.

I am currently on many missions, and one of them is to find the best Eggs Benedict in Singapore. Unfortunately, Bronte’s Egg Benedict will not be joining that list. While it looked really good, we felt that the poached eggs were only passable, and the hollandaise sauce was somewhat lacking in flavour.

The Ricotta Pancakes, on the other hand, was pretty good. The same goes for the Scrambled Eggs with sausages and hash. All in all, it was a pretty satisfying brunch.

Since I only had brunch at Bronte, I can’t say much about its ala carte menu. But from what I’ve heard, they serve a pretty decent steak ($40-48) during dinner, and as I took a quick scan at the menu, I was tempted by dishes like Butternut Pumpkim Risotto ($26), Australian blue-lipped mussels ($28), and Slow braised beef cheeks ($36). I am definitely going to come back again for dinner.

Bronte Restaurant
8 Greenwood Ave
Tel: +65 6219 9151

For more recommendations, read my list of Best Brunch Places in Singapore

Three years ago, I somehow chanced upon the stretch of restaurants at Greenwood Avenue.

In the dimly-lit restaurant, and in the company of a group of good friends; that dinner easily became one of the best meals in my life. Needless to say, the fish and chips I had at Greenwood Fish Market that night, was one of the best that I had in Singapore.

Greenwood Fish Market is definitely the place to go if you are a fish/seafood lover. With more than 20 variety of fishes to choose from, everyone will be able to find a fish that suits their palate. Terakihi? Hapuku? Yes they actually serve them in the restaurant.

We had the House Fish & Chips ($18.95) which came with a healthy dose of salad and chips. Time seemed to freeze as I leaned forward to examine the fish and chips. It looked vaguely similar to the one in my memory, and for a second or two, I was hesitating if I should eat the fish and chips.

I had the best fish and chips in Singapore at Greenwood Fish Market, and I wanted to keep that precious memory.

What if it isn’t as good as before? What if my impression of Greenwood Fish Market goes downhill from here? So many what ifs. Shit. At that moment in time, I found myself questioning if it was a right thing to revisit the restaurant. Maybe I should just  stick with the other dish and let my friend have the fish and chips. But deep down inside, a part of me wanted to try the fish. I wanted to experience that magical moment again.

The fish and chips was great, but it wasn’t as wow, or out-of-the-world like what I remembered it to be. It is still probably one of the better fish and chips in Singapore. Perhaps, some things in life will just never be the same anymore.

It’s only after looking at my old post, then I realized that we actually ordered the same items as the previous visit. Call it a coincidence, maybe. But I certainly didn’t remember that the Spaghetti Soft Shell Crab ($20.95) tasted so good before. It was completely different from the one that I’ve at Cedele restaurant recently.

The sauce was fainter, and very un-tomato-ish (if there’s even such a word). It was tangy, and it was slightly sweet — it tasted (almost) like a real crab sauce.

If you are a big fan of oysters, go to Greenwood Fish Market every Tuesday night – it’s a dollar for each oyster. We were there on a weekday night, and the restaurant was almost packed, so please remember to make your reservations.

Greenwood Fish Market
34 Greenwood Avenue Hillcrest Park Singapore
Tel: +65 6467 4950
Nearest Station: Botanic Gardens