Sweets and Work Around Bukit Pasoh

23rd – 27th August 2010. Written by Xin Li.

If you are wondering what I have been busy with and still busy with, here are some photos (munchies) that I gathered during my assignments.

For those who have been to Bukit Pasoh last week, you probably wonder why there was an onslaught of youths (or young adults) doing funny things and standing in the middle or nowhere with a sketchbook or lots of people with DSLRS (but not tourists or food bloggers) around the area.

Yep, it’s the Year One Architecture students roaming around the area looking for a site/space that invokes a strong feeling in them.

I took the photo below because that moment of my coursemate wearing his team Singapore shirt walking up the seemingly mundane looking corridor against a backdrop of the fluttering Singapore flag and a construction site reminds me of Richard Estes' Michigan Avenue with View of the Art Institute, 1984 a painting.

Anyway, the area known as Bukit Pasoh is under the Bukit Pasoh Conservation Area, located near Outram MRT. It is most iconic for its late traditional shophouses, the elaborately decorated group of eight shophouses along Bukit Pasoh Street and for foodies, a cluster of upscale restaurants known as Absinthe, Oso and Baretto together with Ember in Kheong Saik Area next door. I heard Chef Andre Chiang of Jaan is opening his restaurant, Par Andre around this area too.

While we are in the area, the road itself is like an outdoor car gallery, you can easily spot Porsche, Ferrari, and Mercedes just to name a few, around the area especially at night.

It is a place of contrasts, Teo Hong Road is like the neon lit, glitzy district with a coffeeshop and nightclubs, the junction is the posh and luxurious hot spot for people dressed in tuxedos and dark evening gowns patronizing classy, dim lit restaurants and the New Majestic Hotel and towards Neil Road is the laid back and casual charming shophouses with Magma Bistro that evokes like a Van Gogh’s Café at Night atmosphere. Traditional Chinese Orchestra music compete for attention against the out of tune Karoke singing opposite the street.

It is amazing such small area is quite diverse. All these took place, with its old nostalgic structures spotting Art Deco and colonial architecture dating back to the 1930s-1960s against a giant piece of contemporaryarchitecture known as the Pinnacle.

Long time ago, the street is actually a host to a whole lot of kilns hence its name, Bukit Pasoh which means “flowerpot hill” in Malay. It refers to the main product originating from this tiny frontier village that marks the western frontier of old colonial Singapore : pottery and ceramics.

After a long day measuring, sketching, perspiring and searching, what I yearn for is a nice snack. Mesmerized by that charming atmosphere of Magma Bistro and the persistent aroma of food drifting around the bistro, I decided to have a dessert there late at night.

One of my coursemates had the Berry Compote for 8.00++ SGD. While I find it a little sour, he found it too sweet and prefers to have more vanilla sauce. I love this photo for that tiny bit of imperfection. it speaks of mischief when I look at it, as it the food has been freed from fine dining formalities.

For me, I had the Apple Strudel. I have no idea what a apple strudel ought to be like or whether Magma’s version is the authentic one but this one satisfies my dessert craving. The only pity is that the pastry is too thick. Apart from that, I adore the cinnamon flavoured apple filling and the light yet fragrant vanilla sauce that came with it. This dessert costs 10.00 SGD.

The service at Magma is very friendly which is perhaps what makes the bistro so attractive. The bistro also serves a buffet brunch every 2nd Sunday of the month and brunch sets on Sundays. The buffet brunch cost 29++ SGD. Wine lovers can also check out the large collection of German wines inside. The menu is quite pricey but the set lunches seemed to be a good deal at around 12.90++

The above photo was taken because I like how the glasses were placed upside down and they reflect a structure nearby against a no-smoking sign. The rest is up to your own interpretation. I titled it as "Obedient".

Sugar Granny is another place that offers decent treats for the tired souls. The Mango Sago with Pomelo needs no introduction. It is as good as the last time I had it with Harris and Loraine. Those were good times.

The Mango Sticky Rice is quite delicious too. At first bite, I thought the glutinous rice had too much coconut cream but it got better and more evenly spread out as I savor the dessert with a studio mate of mine. Both of us agreed that it was good. However, priced at 4.80 SGD, this Thai style dessert does not come cheap.

Mangoes are already quite pricey. They normally cost more than 2 SGD in supermarkets. NTUC Finest at Thomson Plaza for example, sells two Thai Mangoes at 8 SGD and a Taiwanese Mango in NTUC Bishan cost around 3 plus even the Pakistan Mango from Bishan Wet Market cost about 2-3 plus. Nonetheless, I just love sweet mangoes serve with coconut sticky rice. It is so simple yet so addictive.

Magma German Wine Bistro + Shop

Address: 2 Bukit Pasoh Road

Tel: +65 6221 0634

Opening Hours
Mon– Thu: 12noon–11pm
Fri: 12noon–12mn
Sat: 11.00am – 12mn
Sun: 11am–11pm (Brunch)

Sugar Granny

Address: 5 Teo Hong Road Ground Floor Singapore
Tel: +65 6224 9368

Opening Hours
Sun–Thu: 1pm – 11pm
Fri–Sat: 1pm – 1am