Yummo Chow Sg is a new cafe nestled inside Hotel NuVe, amidst the hip cafes and restaurants on Purvis Street. It is quite hidden as the sign board is not too obvious at first glance.
But if you choose to step into this quiet and monochrome hotel lobby, you’ll find a little sanctuary where you can have a romantic date or a tea session with your friends.
Help yourself to old school free flow snacks such as gem biscuits and sour candy while you wait.
We decided to order the Beef Burger ($18) and the Soft Shell Crab Burger ($19) as our mains and saved the Tempura Ice Cream ($13) for dessert.
The Beef Burger ($18) was the best thing we had at Yummo Chow SG. The beef was very well seasoned and juicy, served more towards the rare side.
I enjoyed the flavours of the herbs that were infused into the patty and relished the slice of Emmental cheese that blanketed it. The brioche buns were baked to perfection — slightly crispy on the outside while staying dense yet fluffy on the inside.
The fries were also very delicious, covered a light spice mix. I loved how incredibly crispy the fries were, and retained its crispiness long after we were done with the burgers. On the whole, this is a pretty filling meal that is worth your money.
The Soft Shell Crab Burger ($19) was a little bit of a disappointment, sadly. I love crab so much, but this particular crab I had smelled pungent and fishy.
Some may like a strong taste, but it was a bit too overwhelming for me. Still, I felt that the impeccable brioche buns and fries saved the meal.
We also ordered a side dish of Shitake Tempura ($10) in anticipation of the tempura ice cream to come. This was a bit of bad decision, as having tempura mushrooms and tempura soft shell crab simultaneously made the taste of another tempura dish jelak for me — spoiling my experience of the Tempura Ice Cream that I wanted to try.
Don’t get me wrong though, we enjoyed the Shitake Tempura mushrooms very much. They felt like tiny pillows in my mouth.
The tempura was not like the usual overly crispy Japanese versions that I was accustomed to. It was light and pleasantly crispy, but soft and dense on the inside where it melded with the mushrooms.
I’d recommend ordering this as a side with the Beef Burger instead.
The Tempura Ice Cream is still something you should consider trying though. With a price tag of $13, I felt that the size of it (it was bigger than my fists put together) was value for money.
It is made with vanilla ice cream that has been stuffed inside a soft roll bun before being deep fried and drizzled with salted caramel sauce. Unfortunately, the ice cream was icy on the inside, and I’m not sure if this was a one-time issue or not. I’ve informed the staff though, and I believe they will improve on it.
The Tempura Ice Cream is worth a shot if you enjoy fried food and ice cream. Just don’t order too many other tempura dishes like I did, or risk feeling incredibly jelak at the end of your meal.
Other than that, be sure to try the Beef Burger for a main. If you don’t feel like having a burger, try one of the many affordable rice bowls that start at $10.
Expected damage: $10 – $30 per person
