Earlybird Café – Sublime Fried Chicken & Pancakes!

Cafe-hopping continues to be immensely popular among youths in Singapore (yes, I’m looking at all you hipsters out there). Whether you’re planning for a gastronomic adventure, or if you’re just looking to add some aesthetic food shots to your Instagram feed, Singapore’s ever-growing café scene will have you spoilt for choice. If you’re looking for a new café to add to your to-visit list this weekend, allow me to introduce the new kid on the block — Earlybird Café!

Located just a stone’s throw away from Bugis MRT, Earlybird Café is a ‘bird-themed’ café that is still in its soft launch phase. I also found out that the café is opened by the same people behind the ever-popular Revelry Cafe in Upper Bukit Timah! I walked in on a quiet Wednesday afternoon and instantly fell in love with Earlybird’s simple, yet elegant, decor. Looking at its open dining area and artistic bird nest installations hanging from the high ceilings, I immediately felt relaxed.

Earlybird Café is still in the midst of tweaking and refining their menu. However, their menu already features a few substantial options. Their Chicken & Pancakes ($19) had me salivating with its description — fried chicken on house-made buttermilk pancakes served with chilli maple sauce. I stared in awe as the plate was set down before me. The dish was beautifully plated! Sat atop the thick pancakes were three thoughtfully placed deep-fried chicken thighs. In addition to the sweet maple syrup and chilli flakes drizzled around the plate, there was a light sprinkling of powdered sugar and paprika on the chicken. Of course, there was a gratuitous leaf of parsley to add a touch of green to the dish.

This dish was absolutely sublime. The chicken thighs were incredibly juicy and tender. The thin layer of golden-brown batter encasing the moist piece of chicken added a delightful crispy texture. The touch of hot paprika and powdered sugar just elevated the flavours of the dish to the next level. The chicken went amazingly with the fluffy, yet dense, pancakes, which absorbed the sweet and decadent maple syrup. This was quite a massive plate of food, and even I had to admit defeat as I was starting to feel jelak as I was working my way through it. Unless you’re feeling absolutely famished, I would highly recommend sharing this dish with a friend!

In much need of a late afternoon pick-me-up, I ordered the caffeine-filled Coco Espresso ($18). This dessert features a house-made hotcake that is served with coconut ice cream, coffee jelly, toasted coconut shavings and gula melaka (palm sugar). I was told that there would be a 20-minute waiting time for this dish as the hotcakes are made fresh upon order, sure enough, the hotcake came straight out of the kitchen, piping hot.

The plating of the Coco Espresso was definitely not the most elegant that I’ve seen. The scoop of coconut ice cream sat on the middle of the pancake, while the accompanying ingredients seemed to be strewn all over the plate without much care. However, it’s the flavour of the dish that matters most. The warm and dense hotcake went exquisitely with the refreshing coconut ice cream. The sweetness of the ice cream was perfectly balanced by the robust and aromatic coffee jelly. I did feel that the dish needed a tad more coconut ice cream for the amount of coffee jelly it had. The toasted coconut was definitely a nice touch, as it really added a much-needed chew and crunch. If you’re a fan of coffee, you’ll absolutely love the Coco Espresso!

Feeling parched from all that eating? Earlybird Café has an extensive menu of coffees, teas, cold pressed juices, smoothies, and even milkshakes! Their ‘Cold Brewed Sparkling Tea’ selection caught my eye. I decided to order the Lychee Rose Green Tea ($6.50), which came highly recommended. Note that this is, in fact, a bottled drink that is not made in-house. The drink wasn’t overly fizzy and tasted mostly of green tea (as the name implies). The flavours of lychee and rose were pretty subtle. Given its hefty price tag, it’s not a drink that I’ll recommend. I’ll love to try their other drinks next time!

MissTamChiak.com made anonymous visit and paid its own meal at the stall featured here.

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