And so, after last night's feast, we headed down to Spruce for an X'mas brunch.
It was packed, but no surprises there, given the good ambience; surrounded by foliage and good ventilation, and hearty fare. There was pleasant chatter all around, and it was a breezy afternoon, which made the place very relaxing to be at.
When the waitress said the lemonade was freshly made, we decided to give it a go, and it was indeed refreshing. Good recommendation missus!
There were many of us, so there was a lot of variety on the menu, yay!
(In retrospect, it is better to stick to tried & tested choices when it comes to food :p)
1) Crabcakes benny:
Decent, but nothing outstanding. I found the crab meat a tad fishy, and slightly hard. On the whole acceptable, but I wouldn't order it again :/
2) Brioche French toast with mascarpone cream and fruit jam:
I liked it, as it was fluffy and soft. Could be more eggy though. The cream and jam were light, so it made a good combination with the bread. Warning: order and share, otherwise you will definitely get sick of it, given the ginormous serving and the fact that it is ALL bread. (Antoinette has really good french toast btw, will post about it when I go back!)
3) The Spruce Signature burger:
Lives up to its name, with a thick beef patty atop a sweet & pickle-level sour dressing, complete with thick cut crispy fries sprinkled with what seemed like chipotle and salt to me. A very satisfying
BLT (Must show off my new foodie vocab cos I just found out what this meant!) that will keep you going for more.
4) Salmon bagel with sour cream cheese:
A classic combination that cannot go wrong, with freshly toasted bagel slices (Who doesn't love these things?! Don't talk to me if you don't.) and thick smoked salmon slices. The onion slices were also juicy, sweet and very pungent, with a strong sting. Certainly woke up after sinking my teeth into one! And Spruce does their salmon well, where it is superb fresh and not fishy at all. And their extra serving of salmon for $6 makes your buck worth, cos we couldn't finish them thick pieces. ps/Seems like this dish is served in slices eh?
5) Grilled chicken with scrambled eggs:
Good scrambled eggs, firm yet slightly runny and not too creamy. Chicken was juicy and tasty as well. Perfect for someone who likes his food simple and straightforward.
6) Banana chocolate pancakes:
Not bad for pancakes, but nothing outstanding. This was the denser and heavier kind, something like MacDonald's hotcakes, where you can get full really fast from the flour. BUT the crumbs surrounding it were good, and helped to refresh the palette. This serving can easily feed 2-3, and I would recommend saving some space for desserts instead of this.
7) Spruce signature salad with goat's cheese and croutons:
Really.... not recommended. The textures of the salad were mostly similar, with too much avocado, sweets dates and cheese. It was a very heavy salad that didn't have much taste, so sad! Maybe I should sell them the Orange Sweet Duck salad recipe hor.
Despite some shioks and buayshioks, I still like Spruce for its ambience and efficient service. Will still be going back, only for its burger, bagel and breakfast sets : D
Spruce Operating hours:
Phoenix Park (Tanglin)
Mon - Fri: 10:30 - 22:30
Sat - Sun: 08:30 - 22:30
Tel no: 68365528
