Slowmo Sunday: Wheeler's Yard

Every Sunday, I will travel to places far & wide, hunting down cafes/eateries that are either already huge in popularity, or those that are off the beaten track (yes, they do exist even if it's busy Singapore we are talking about) I will be rating them based on the food & price range, the decor & whether its a place worthy to notice or to be noticed.

First up in my Slowmo Sunday series, I headed down to Wheeler's Yard. Located within the heartland area of Whampoa & Balestier, it indeed fulfilled the criteria of ulu in terms of finding the place. 

According to their website, Wheeler's Yard is a place where "bicycles, coffee, food and all things vintage meet", and they definitely have spare no effort to spruce up the place with lots of vintage references. 

The Wheeler's Yard legendary blue door. Yes, the one that you have seen it repeatedly in your Instagram feed.

What makes Wheeler's Yard stand out amongst the tight competition for cafes is its open-space concept, coupled with a industrial-themed decor. The magic combination of vintage decor & fittings, together with the placement of bicycles both in and outside of the cafe has hit a chord with both bicycle enthusiasts and impressionable youths alike.

PS: The photos below are just some i took. The place is indeed filled with plenty of things to shoot. 

When it comes to their food, Wheeler's Yard's offering wasnt decent, but not exactly something to rave and shout about. I had ordered their Grilled Chicken, which on the menu was 1 of their recommendations, whereas my colleague (my travelling partner/guide, given he stays near the area) went for something lighter, Honey Butter Waffles

Given the many bad reviews around HGW and forums, I wasnt expecting much to be honest. However, the grilled chicken turned out to be decent, with the mushroom and mashed potatoes providing a delectable balance to the chicken.

My colleague felt that the Honey Butter Waffle was lacking in terms of both crunch and the buttery factor that constitutes to a good waffle. For me, the honey syrup wasnt too sweet, and it complimented the buttery texture of the waffle.

I was still in the mood for more, hence I went to order something considered a must for cafes: Truffle Fries. Wheeler's Yard's Truffles Fries wasnt exactly the best that I have tried around, but it wasnt too bad either. I personally prefer the fries to be of a thinner cut, however the generous serving of shaved Parmesan cheese was right up my street. Additionally, I would have hope for a dip to go along with the fries. I didnt manage to finish it (that normally is rare for my standards) as I found the taste to be getting more repetitive and boring after eating more of it.

All in all, Wheeler's Yard is definitely a cafe for you to check out, in terms of its decor (its vintage feel provides aplenty of #ootd backdrop possibilites) and of course, their bikes (especially if you are in the market for chic-looking bicycles). The service is prompt and the staff are bubbly and cheerful (their reviews over at HGTW the past 3 mths has been markedly improved). However, their food to be is a slightly overpriced as compared to other cafes selling similar grub, and that their quality of food sadly leaves something to be desired upon.

MrPaoKalLiao's ratings: 3/5

Do leave your comments below on whether you liked Wheeler's Yard more than I do, or simply to share your thoughts with me :)

Wheeler's Yard

28 Lorong Ampas

How to get there

1. Take the train to NS19 Toa Payoh, then walk. It's actually quite clear cut and easy to navigate.It will take you ard 15-20mins, and I have included the directions here (i would recommend following the grey path)
2. If you aren't interested in walking that far (although it truly isn't), take 145 from Toa Payoh Interchange and alight at the 4th stop (don't include the bus interchange itself). From there on, walking will take you around 6 mins, i have included the directons here as well

Opening Hours

Tue - Thu: 1030 - 2200

Fri - Sat: 1030 - 2300

Sun: 1030 - 2200

*Do note that the kitchen closes between 1700 - 1800 daily for turnover

Closed on Mon

Contact No: +65 62549128

Wander Wednesday: Lego Certified Store @ Suntec City

On every Wednesday, I will wander to a particular place, that might be slightly off the beaten track or generating headlines & trending in the various social media platforms, and reviewing whether it indeed is buzzworthy enough for you to specially take time off to head down to the place itself to have a look.

For this week, I head down to Singapore's first LEGO Certified Store, located on the top floor of Suntec City Tower 3.

Some background info for you

• Opened on 29th November 2014
• Managed & operated by Bricks World
• 79 sqm, designed and made by The LEGO Group (yes, the LEGO Group from Denmark)

With the opening, the LEGO Certified Store aims to further enhance the LEGO experience for both young and old alike, while at the same time reaching out to new customers (especially for people like me who sadly never had LEGO blocks as part of my growing childhood, but is into building blocks)

Frankly speaking, I was anticipating a larger store. However, what it lacks in size, it adequately makes up for it with certain unique features.

In here, it offers Singapore's first PICK-A-BRICK wall, which comprises of a custom-built fixture that are filled with canisters, allowing one to pick selective bricks that he/she might have missed out on, or simply to find blocks to build something out of one's imagination.

The blocks come in varying colours and sizes, allowing shoppers to hand-pick and select distinctive pieces. 

"The Living Room" is an interactive play area that allows shoppers to have a hands-on experience with the products, and is located in the centre of the store.

There are also plenty of fully-assembled LEGO models for both LEGO fanatics and shoppers alike to ogle at.

Additionally, from January 2015 onwards, exclusive LEGO model sets will be released at the same time as the US and Europe, that will ONLY be available at the LEGO Certified Store. 

The LEGO Certified Store definitely has further stoked my interest in collecting LEGO sets. I would definitely recommend it to families who would their kids to cultivate a good hobby (instead of spending countless hours in front of a xBox console) and generally for people to have a look at the carefully assembled sets, and who knows, you might want to get one yourself.

The LEGO Certified Store

Suntec City Mall, Tower 3, #03-364/5

(same floor as Alive Museum)

Opening Hours: 10.30 am to 9.30 pm daily

Movie Mondays: Penguins of Madagascar

Every Monday, I will be reviewing the latest movies, or movies that might have slipped under the radar (i.e movies that arent your typical Hollywood big budget blockbusters)

For this week, I'm reviewing Penguins of Madagascar

With animation movies doing better of late (Despicable Me, Frozen), DreamWorks decided to cash in by coming up with a spin-off from the Madagascar film series. This penguins with their nifty set of 'skills'. coupled in with humor, makes this a good film for the whole family.

Synopsis: Discover the secrets of the most entertaining and mysterious birds in the global espionage game: Skipper, Kowalski, Rico and Private now must join forces with the chic spy organization, the North Wind, led by Agent Classified (we could tell you his name, but then… you know), voiced by Benedict Cumberbatch, to stop the villainous Dr. Octavius Brine, voiced by John Malkovich, from taking over the world.

I had slightly high expectations for this movie, all thanks to the trailer playing a huge part in me psycho-ing my friends to watch this instead of another animated film. Watch on, especially at the 0:55 -1:07 that got me entirely.

However, sadly it didnt reach the heights that had gotten me to love "compelling" characters like the Minions. The plot is easy to predict, nothing surprising or "educational" like some other animated films of late, which seeks to educate kids. This is purely entertainment, and nothing else.

Comedic moments was also sadly of a few delectable ones. Throughout the movie, I was waiting for a truly standout moment which will make me fall in love with the penguins, but other than Private (voiced by Christopher Knights, oddly British as compared to the other 3 penguins), the other penguins didnt exactly stand out as memorable.

The rare comedic moments involve plenty of puns and references made to notable Hollywood personalities. See who are the celebs you manage to spot, and write in a comment on the ones you spot.

All in all, this is a movie for the family. But it has more misses than hits, with the plot being reasonably easy to understand, and was lacking in both the comedic scenes and standout characters. A movie to watch, laugh (a little), and then move on.

Calvin's Movie Monday ratings: 2.5/5

An Introduction to Mr. Paokaliao

Well hello there :) Like many Singaporeans, I like to eat, and eat, and eat... Well, you get what I mean. Additionally, like many Singaporeans, I like to capture moments through my camera, a nifty EOS 550D. I'm still an amateur taking every possible moment that I'm free to learn more about the various photo-taking techniques.

Henceforth, this blog combines my love for food and photography together, providing insights to food enclaves and eateries located at places you wouldnt thought possible. You might ask: "There are so many well-established blogs out there covering such topics. What sets you apart?" Well, the very reason this blog is named Mr.Paokaliao is because there is a wide variety of lifestyle-based topics covered. From sports (who to pick in your Fantasy League), fitness (training regimes to get you in shape) and music/movie reviews (for the movie buff/music critic in all of us), this blog provides a little of everything, but at the same time not compromising quality.

I'm not a brilliant writer (i cant differentiate between a verb, noun and adjective), but what I can be sure of is that I would try my best to ensure that my 2 cents worth of opinion will allow you to make a more informed decision :)

Stay tuned for more updates coming your way :D

Mr. Paokaliao signing off...