NUNSARAM KOREAN DESSERT CAFE
Damn, the Spanish Doughnuts Singapore closed before we got a change to try it, but something interesting opened in its place - Nunsaram Korean Dessert Cafe! The opening of this cafe follows the start of the latest Bingsu trend, and perhaps the phasing out of the froyo trend. Korea's popular Patbingsu consists of shaved ice topped with condensed milk and other sweet toppings (commonly red bean paste and/or fruits).
Well this was our first time trying out Bingsu, and based on the comments we've read online, we were excited to try something ice cold in this terribly hot weather. Popular comments about Bingsu in general was how "smooth" the ice was supposed to be or how "sweet" the dish was, so that was what we were expecting. We decided to be healthy and get the Strawberry Bingsu and the Mango Bingsu. Despite its huge space, it took a while for us to get a seat amidst the peak hour crowd, but we got one eventually.
Strawberry Bingsu
The Strawberry Bingsu ($15.90) was a mountain of shaved ice topped with a generous amount of really fresh strawberries, strawberry jam and whipped cream. The huge dollop of whipped cream at the peak was light without being too sickening; it was such a guilty pleasure. Most of the shaved ice was fluffy like snowflakes, but sadly its texture varied to the extremes - from powdery and dry to chunky huge pieces of ice. This was definitely not the melt-in-your-mouth dessert we were hoping for. Maybe their machine malfunctioned but is this really excusable?
C: I think they added a whole box strawberries in this.
S: Please, I think they added a whole crate of mangoes in mine.
The Mango Bingsu ($15.90) similarly was completely covered in fruits. We have to admit, they were a lot more generous than we expected as every scoop of bingsu had at least a piece of fruit in it. To top it all off, there was a scoop of mango ice cream, and condensed milk on the side! The mango was like honey, with a few exceptions, but no mango is perfect so away with that point. What we really liked was how the mango ice-cream wasn't sickly sweet, because the condensed milk already made it sweet enough. Sadly, the ice was clumpy at certain parts, especially towards the bottom of the bowl, disappointing us a little.
S: I couldn't finish it though, and I'm not sure if its just individual preference but the combination of the condensed milk, mango ice cream and ice shavings just wasn't my cup of tea.
Hm, well for a first try, I think we're kind of getting what bingsu is all about. And albeit an interesting dessert, it hasn't impressed us so far. So would you pay this much for a bingsu? I think we would rather stick to the good old froyo. Tell us what you think! (Or maybe recommend other bingsu places!)
Food: 6 / 10
Way too pricey for shaved ice, but for the amount of fruits and toppings given, maybe it's justified? We're not too sure. Good sharing dessert though!
Ambience: 7 / 10
Its an open cafe situated in the middle of an open space. Really airy and nice! And most importantly, not too noisy.
Service: 6.5 / 10
Service was rather slow, we waited for about half an hour or more for our order. This could be attributed to the fact that there was only one person at each station! One cutting the fruits, one preparing the bingsu and one taking orders. The staff did sincerely apologise to customers for the long wait though, so it wasn't too bad. But if you're in a rush and there's a queue, we suggest you move on.
Until next time!
C & S.
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Located at:
181 Orchard Road
#05-51/52, Orchard Central
Singapore 238896
How to get there:
Nearest MRT - Somerset
Opening hours:
Everyday - 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.
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