of mojitos and other madness: lady marmalade!

the marmalade pantry is probably one of the first places to have managed to piece together the critical components and achieve an almost perfect cafe equation. the formula is simple, but getting the decor and vibe to equate, food and drink to equilibrate is really quite an art. having been in the cafe business since 1999, the marmalade group has definitely gotten good at what they do. starting off being known to serve up some kick ass cupcakes (they definitely had a huge role to play in educating singaporeans what good cupcakes are!), they've definitely increased their repertoire and set up shop in some really nice nooks on the island.

the third floor of singapore's iconic ion is where the latest pantry has nestled nicely into. with an indoor shop housing the kitchen and some tables, the nice part about this branch is that the seating sprawls out onto the atrium. you get full view of the happenings around, the shops, the people....very much like a sidewalk cafe in new york, just minus the al fresco bit! i poured over the menu, willing myself to have an appie or main instead of two desserts for dinner (yes, marmalade serves some mean sweet ones!).....everything sounded really good from the cappellini aglio olio to the three hundred day grain fed beef cheek guiness pie, and after managing to convince my sis to share my main, i decided on the steak sandwich. i was afraid that i might be huge but it turned out to be a really nice portion...good for one hungry individual or two peeps wanting to save room for dessert! think wasabi mayo, caramelized onions, rocket and a generous steak fillet done medium rare. this was extremely well done. it was tender and mighty juicy, with the onions adding some sweetness, the wasabi mayo just the right amount of creaminess and kick and rocket the needed bite. served with a side of colorful paper thin fried sweet potato and yam chips, marmalade pantry's spin on the classic steak sandwich definitely scores!

while marmalade pantry is known for their cupcakes, this girl would strongly suggest that you do a take away of the cupcakes and indulge in the heavenly caramelized pear and salted caramel bread pudding. this is by far the best bread pudding i've ever had, simply because marmalade has yet gain managed to reinvent the old school british pudding into a new age decadent dessert. imagine finger sized slices of brioche sandwiching chunky bits of caramelized pear wrapped in crisp filo pastry, topped with yummy vanilla bean ice cream and drizzle of salted caramel. pillowy soft bread encased in crispy pastry, warm yet cold, sweet yet salty.....all i can say is that this bread pudding is very very very good. served i think only at the ion pantry, the trip down and battle of the town crowd, i guarantee is definitely worth it!

finally, no trip to the pantry is of course complete without a taste of their signature cupcakes. with now eleven flavors under their belt, there is definitely something for everyone. the nutella (nutella on nutella!) and elvis (chocolate banana with pb frosting) get my vote as well as my niece e's vote, as she quite singlehandedly polished up the entire nutella cupcake! and i hear their granny apple one is pretty awesome too. the cherry crumble tart was a little bit of a let down as it was not quite a tart nor a crumble..but it did have earthy flavors and wasn't too sweet nor dry. there was a sea salt caramel cheesecake and cinnamon spiced apple cake that caught my eye but i guess that will have to wait till my next visit to see lady marmalade...and this time, i don't care what anyone says, i'm having dessert for dinner!