Wild Honey

Wild Honey – 333A Orchard Road, #03-02 Mandarin Gallery

Few things can conjure that warm fuzzy feeling that a comforting breakfast does. The minds behind Wild Honey were obviously struck by this epiphany and turned it into a business which has since garnered rave reviews, including this one. Owner Guy Wachs was accommodating enough to enter a brief email correspondence to explain his brainchild which is included in the appendix.

The restaurant stays true to its tagline “NO PLACE LIKE HOME” in the multinational selection of all-day-breakfasts and also its décor. A juxtaposition against the stark, minimalist-chic of its Mandarin Gallery location; stepping into Wild Honey is indeed like coming home. An eclectic mix of plush armchairs and bar stools seemingly transplanted from a suburban kitchen counter make the place seem more like a house squeezed cosily into a shop space rather than a restaurant. The warm tones of wood, brick and orange lamplight also accord a cosy, den-like feel. Even the chatty gaggle of mothers with strollers and a sophisticated teen crowd make it seem like a massive, reasonably affluent family gathering. Prices are slightly beyond comfortable with a luxurious brunch for 2 costing $91.80, good for when you've had a bad week and need some pampering.

The menu is an extensive selection of breakfast sets from the world over; comforting expatriates a long way from home or tantalizing the palate of locals. I opted for a Tunisian ($18) which comprised a lightly-dressed salad of tomato and cucumber cubes as well as chopped Italian parsley. Thick, soft, cake-like brioche slices were perfect to soak up hearty tomato stew as well as soft, runny eggs topped with chives and flavoured robustly with the smokily sweet spice of chorizo.

Guy himself recommended drink pairings and said my eggs would be excellent with a Queen Bee ($9). Tart fresh grapefruit juice was taken to the next level with the sweet scent of Elderflowers, cutting through the richness of my breakfast and cleansing my palate gorgeously. Perfectly sweet-sour without any unpleasantly strong bitter tang, it was so light and refreshing that even Blair Waldorf would probably approve.

My dining partner opted for the Scandinavian ($24), composed of rosti and grilled salmon. The golden-brown rosti was not oily in the least, soaking up a most amazing Hollandaise for a crisp and mealy treat. Needless to say, the salmon was the harmony to the existing symphony, according a depth of rich, nuanced flavour.

Another spectacular food-drink pairing was offered in the way of a massive Mandarin Wilder ($9). A slushy concoction of raspberry sorbet, banana and mandarins, it was absolutely light and guiltless with an oh-so-subtle sweetness. This danced around the fragile flavours of the Scandinavian rather than masking them.

In the curious limbo between peckishness and satiation, my dining partner and I threw restraint to the wind and ordered the European ($18), a most wise decision. If eggs dressed to kill, this is how they'd do it: already perfectly poached to delicately firm white and runny yolk, they would be sheathed in meatily-pungent prosciutto, shawled with cheese, accessorized with lovely herby notes of thyme and dolled up in earthy mushroom tones. In my opinion this was a perfect cross between Eggs Benedict and Croque Monsieur.

Appendix

When I sent Mr Wachs an email, requesting him to expound on the inspiration behind the restaurant, possible menu changes and his attitude towards food, this is what he had to say:

“We chose the name NO PLACE LIKE HOME because it’s a universal concept that everybody understands and identifies with; it creates a very strong emotion of intimacy, peacefulness and happiness.

Through my travels in the hotel industry over 20 years, I was always interested in the different breakfast traditions of the countries I was working in (for example Italians do not eat breakfast). I collected recipes from my travels, my parents and from my wife Stephanie. We choose those recipes we felt would hit the hearts of Singaporeans (90% of our clientele is Singaporean!).

Yes, the menu changes daily and we have more coming. We believe that living healthily includes exercise (for me it’s yoga and swimming) and eating healthy, top quality ingredients including fruits and vegetables. Everything we sell is home made including our breads, jams, yoghurt, granola and tarts.

We believe in working with the local community to improve the quality of lifestyle and are involved in the farmers market once monthly and are partners with At SunRice Culinary School and have students training in our kitchen. We also use recyclable materials - no plastic - because we feel we should be kind to our planet so we do see ourselves as an environmentally friendly brand.”