Desserts @ 2am

Craving for some sweet desserts on a night after a late dinner? A place to chill out with your friends and pour your heart out to each other? Then, may I suggest a chic designer dessert bar for you. 2am:dessertbar.

I have personally met the chef owner herself a couple of weeks ago and it was in due time that I visit this place with my friend, G. Located at Holland Village where the vibrant nightlife is with the ritzy wine bars, having a dessert there will certainly be a nice place to chill out. The dessert bar is right at the end of the stretch passing by Provence and opposite Subway. What is prominent is that it is fully glassed on the second level that distinguish it from the rest of the shops.

Entering through the glass door, I was led up a spiral staircase with candle lights by the side. I was welcomed warmly by a service staff and asked for a preference of choice where me and my friend wanted to sit. Well, the bar is actually divided into three sections. The left is lined up with cushioned sofa followed by high chairs and tables and the bar counter. You can see a selection of neatly arranged bottles of champagnes and wines on display which you can call for.

Choosing the comfortable cushioned sofa seats was the best choice but the disadvantage is that you have to remove your shoes which can be quite a hassle, at least for me. For the fact that I was wearing a pair of sandals with straps.

It has a stylish beige interior with bright lights sufficient to illuminate the place which do make it easier for diners to locate the place and air-conditioned. One problem is the level of noise can be pretty high due to the high ceiling which reflects sound waves easily. Apart from that, it provided a cosy place for a lovely night out.

The highlight of the menu is nonetheless the desserts themselves. One interesting discovery is that they serve wine to go along with your desserts which apparently are supposed to help enhance the taste of your sweet confections. They also offer some sides such as burgers, salad and cheese which are very substantial for supper.

After screening through the desciption of the desserts carefully, G and I finally made up our mind. I personally like to have a tinge of alcohol in my desserts so I decided to go for the Espresso which was accompanied with warm mascarpone foam, kahlua jelly crumble and espresso ice cream ($15). G ordered the Chocolate warm tart, wild nettle, salted caramel and blood orange sorbet ($14). 

I had Orchid Oolong Tea ($6) while a Marsala Chai ($6) would be perfect for him with his chocolate tart.

The desserts arrived quite speedily while we were enjoying our tea. I felt privileged to be served by Janice Wong, the Chef owner, as she patiently explained the various components that made up the dessert. Impressive. Thumbs up for the service provided. Not forgetting that the waitress dorned in black white sosphicated attire always have a welcoming smile on their youthful faces.

The presentation of the desserts were very classic and modernized in a European style. Contemporary. Taking my first bite into the jelly with the crumble followed by the icecream gave an interesting combination of flavours. It was very smooth on the tongue but lacking in bite. The crumble didn't provide sufficient crunchiness to accompany the softness of the jelly and creaminess of the icecream. Nevertheless, I am satisfied with the overall dish.

G's warm chocolate tart was very well prepared. After trying it, he could easily detect that it was manjari chocolate from Valrhona. He himself is also a pastry chef and definately, those sharp tastebuds of his are well-developed. I took a bite and it was heavenly with the chocolate oozing and melting on your tongue. Warm interior with a crunchy exterior coupled with citrus orange sorbet. It provided a tart taste to neutralise the acidic chocolatey note. Excellent.

After our plates were cleared, he was contemplating having another round of desserts. I gave in to that temptation yieldfully. Guess how inviting those desserts were. So we shared a pineapple caramelized, chocolate pearls, coconut custard and crumble ($13). I would have preferred an additional citrus ice cream or sorbet which would go perfectly well. The pineapple were also not sufficiently caramelized thus lacking in the desired caramel taste that I was searching for.The coconut custard was flavourful and blended well with the pineapple although I am not a big fan of coconut.

The waitress was very hospitable and served us iced water after we finished our desserts and teas. Great service provided. We stayed on and had a great night chatting away. With such delectable sweet temptations accompanied with soothing teas in a cosy ambience, who could resist it? Unless it's past 2am.