Tiong Bahru

Caffe Pralet
17 Eng Hoon Street, 01-04, tel: 6223-5595

Open: 10.30am to 9.30pm daily

The cafe arm of culinary school Creative Culinaire next door, this cosy eatery serves a range of sweet treats such as its signature pralet cake ($4.20 a slice), a dark chocolate and hazelnut crunch cake, as well as hot meals including seafood baked rice ($6.20) and shepherd's pie ($6.20).

TBone
42 Eng Hoon Street, tel: 6220-2927

Open: 8.30am to 10.30pm daily

Sink your teeth into juicy steaks such as its Black Angus tenderloin ($38). It also serves hearty salads such as Greek salad ($14).

Wine Wise
57 Eng Hoon Street, 01-86, tel: 6227-2118

Open: 11am to 2pm and 6 to 10pm daily

Relax at this wine lounge where wines are poured straight from wooden barrels stacked within the store. Red and white wines start at $8 a glass.

Le Bon Marche
78 Guan Chuan Street, 01-41, tel: 6226-3269

Open: 10am to 7.30pm, Mondays, Tuesdays

and Thursdays to Saturdays. 1 to 6pm, Sundays, closed on Wednesdays

This gourmet food shop carries mostly exclusive speciality products such as Emmanuelle Baillard's non-alcoholic Chardonnay grape juice ($6.50 for a 250ml bottle) and Mulot & Petitjean's gingerbread with apricot ($21 for a 200g box), both from France.

Centre Ps
78 Guan Chuan Street, 01-43, tel: 6220-1285

Open: 10am to 8pm, Mondays to Saturdays, closed on Sundays

This patisserie specialises in macarons ($18 for a box of 18), as well as cakes such as the Grand Cru Royale ($7 a slice), a dark chocolate cake with a crunchy hazelnut base.

Persimmon
50 Tiong Bahru, Link Hotel, tel: 6227-2271

Open: 6am to 11pm daily

Tuck into Singaporean food with a European twist here. Popular items include its laksa fisherman's pie ($26) and Hainanese chicken salad ($14).

Keong Saik

Magma
2-4 Bukit Pasoh Road, tel: 6221-0634

Open: Noon to 11pm, Mondays to Thursdays, noon to midnight, Fridays, 11am to midnight, Saturdays, 11am to 11pm, Sundays
This German eatery serves traditional items such as pork knuckles ($22) and Bavarian sausages ($10).

Majestic Restaurant
31-37 Bukit Pasoh Road, tel: 6511-4718

Open: 11.45am to 3pm and 6.30 to 11pm daily Serving modern Cantonese cuisine, this restaurant is known for dishes such as its Peking duck with foie gras ($15 per person).

Tiffin Club
16 Jiak Chuan Road, tel: 6323-3189

Open: 8am to 6pm, Mondays and Tuesdays, 8am to 10pm, Wednesdays to Saturdays, closed on Sundays

This breakfast and snack joint serves items such as oriental chicken salad ($9) and Tiffin Club carrot cake ($4). Wine and drinks are available after sundown.

Ember
50 Keong Saik Road, tel: 6347-1928

Open: 11.30am to 2pm and 6.30 to 10pm, Mondays to Fridays and 6.30 to 10pm, Saturdays, closed on Sundays

This modern European restaurant is known for its Chilean seabass with yuzu butter sauce ($30) and chocolate fondant with homemade vanilla ice cream ($13).

Whatever Cafe
20 Keong Saik Road, tel: 6224-0300

Open: 9am to 10.30pm daily

Indulge in wholesome, healthy eats such as its roasted fruit salad ($11.90) and roasted vegetable and mustard sandwich ($8.90).

25 degree Celsius
25 Keong Saik Road, 01-01, tel: 6327-8389

Open: 11am to 10pm, Mondays to Thursdays, 11am to 11pm, Fridays and Saturdays, closed on Sundays
Try the miso new potato salad ($11.80) and the pan-roasted barramundi fillet ($18.80) at this cosy cafe.

Nicolas (see review)
35 Keong Saik Road, tel: 6224-2404

Open: Noon to 2pm, Mondays to Fridays and 6.30 to 10pm, Mondays to Saturdays

This fine-dining French restaurant serves gems such as pan-roasted foie gras ($34) and roasted Tasmanian rack of lamb ($42).

This article was first published in The Sunday Times on Feb 24 2008.

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