Located within the Rainbow Centre school compound, Seeds Cafe serves up food that would fill your tummy and warm your heart.
Seeds Cafe is a space which provides vocational training to students with development disabilities (such as Down Syndrome) from the Rainbow Centre, and acts as a stepping stone for them to achieve open employment in the future.
They train their students in a setting that’s separate from the dining space, and when the students master the required skills, they are assigned to the various duties in the cafe.
The cafe itself isn’t very big, with a seating capacity of about 20 people. The ambience at Seeds is pretty chill, with wooden tables ornamented with small potted plants.
The artwork lining the walls of the cafe are contributed by the students of the Rainbow Centre, and are also for sale. All proceeds go towards Rainbow Centre to help with the students’ vocational training.
The food items in the cafe are super affordable as well, which makes dining there even more attractive.
We tried the Beef Pie with Greens ($8), and the Tuna Sandwich ($5), as well as an Iced White ($5) and a cup of Hot Mint Tea ($4). For dessert, we went for the Pistachio and Rose Cake ($5).
The Beef Pie was stuffed with a filling that reminded us of pasta bolognese sauce, combined with potato, and red and green bell peppers.
Other than the pie, the dish was also served with a salad dressed with thousand-island dressing, and some salty, garlicky pesto.
The filling was tangy, with a pronounced tomato flavour which paired well with the nutty pesto. The combination of the chewy meat and the crisp bell peppers gave the pie some textural contrast which made the dish even more enjoyable.
The warm pie was very comforting, especially on the cold rainy day when we visited Seeds. However, we would have preferred the pie crust to be slightly flakier as the doughy crust made the dish a little too heavy.
The tuna sandwich came with one slice of toasted bread and the other slice plain; we’re not sure if it was intentional, but we found it interesting nonetheless.
Sandwiched between the two slices of bread were pieces of fresh lettuce, slices of tomato, mozzarella, and tuna spread.
The tuna spread tasted like it came from the Ayam Brand cans, and while we felt that it required more seasoning and we weren’t big fans of it, we agreed that it was passable for its price.
The coffee blends used in Seeds are from Tiong Hoe Specialty Coffee, so you can be rest assured that the quality of the coffee served is guaranteed.
We were recommended the Mocha, Hot Chocolate, and the White coffee from the drinks menu, and we opted for the Iced White. It was milky, but not too much such that the taste of the coffee was overpowered. The coffee was also aromatic and quite easy on the palate.
The coffee went down very well with the Pistachio and Rose Cake. Do note that the cakes served in the cafe are on rotation so different cakes may be on display when you visit.
The cake was layered with buttercream, and a pistachio jam of sorts. The jam layer had pieces of wafer in it, giving the cake more textural contrast.
We personally did not mind that the pistachio flavour was much stronger than the subtle rose flavour. The cake was also not too sweet, which was a plus.
It was heartening to find out that all proceeds from the cafe go towards sustaining the cafe’s operations of catering to their special needs, and towards vocational training for the Rainbow Centre School students.
This cafe serves food for a beautiful cause, and contributes to an inclusive society, so even if you aren’t super keen on the food, your contribution in the form of patronage could help to make a difference in someone’s life.
It was a really cool space to chill out at, so we’ll definitely be back!
Expected damage: $5 – $15 per pax
