KPO Cafe Bar

One of my favorite hangout places! 

The place is relatively cosy. Inside the bar, it's loud & noisy. If you choose to sit outdoors, it's quite cooling (at night). 

The drinks and food are fantastic but they are also really expensive. However, I always return to this bar because of the good standard of the drinks.

Service is so-so. I was surprised that the first question they asked, was not what I'll like to order, but whether I am paying by cash or credit card. I was a little put off by that but no matter - it's a great place to chillout.

It's hard to find a table at night especially after everyone has knocked off work. Therefore.. go early.

I wanted to recommend this place as the music was good & the drinks were the usual!

The DJ playing that night was great =) Wednesday night =  Great music, mid week relaxation.

Food wise, disappointing. What to do? I was hungry and I needed to stuff some food into my tummy before the booze. I had the nasi lemak which was highly overpriced. My friends got the calamari rings, and some of the rings were a tad bit too cold.

I will come back again for the ambience but never again for the food!

Quite a nice place to chill out but there is one thing that I hate the most. The staircase is definitely a big trouble. Ther are gaps in between and ladies out there! do not go up to second level if you are wearing short skirts.

Food is not bad. I like their hokkien mee. Service is quite alright too.

I finally got a chance to visit KPO, but it was a tame visit. Most patrons will visit KPO for drinks and dinner on Mon-Sat. I’m there however, for brunch on Sunday because I’ve heard that they serve all-day breakfasts.

The place was well designed. There was ambient lighting in some zones, and natural lighting streaming in from the big glass panels and windows brightened up the rest. Upon walking in, there's a stretch of comfortable-looking black sofas with low tables, and a long bar counter.

The menu prices were a pleasant surprise - in that prices were nett and pretty reasonable considering the ambience.

We all ordered from the set menu since a set will include a drink, soup or salad, and dessert of the day. My 3 companions ordered the Kronenbourg Beer Battered Fish & Chips ($18) and I chose the Sir Roti John ($13) just to see how different it would be from its cheaper counterparts.

The soup of the day turned out to be clear chicken soup with a few slivers of breast meat. Kind of like those that comes with chicken rice. We were not impressed and should have ordered the salad instead.

I tried some of the fish and fries, and I must say that they were both really good. I shall credit the Kronenbourg Beer for the crispy crust. The fish was fresh as well. As for the fries, what’s not to like about thick fries? I should have ordered this! The serving size was pretty big, even for male appetites.

As for my expensive roti john, it was special in that wagyu beef was used instead of ordinary minced meat. It did taste pretty good and I enjoyed the chilli dip. However, the homemade chips did not add any value, and I would have preferred salad or other sides instead.

Dessert of the day was peaches with vanilla ice-cream. Not bad for a set lunch finale.

Overall, we had a good time. Contrary to what I’ve read from other reviewers on hungrygowhere, I found the service to be pretty good. Perhaps there weren’t enough patrons to brave the rain for a visit, but the service staff were efficient in their duties. Nothing to complain about except for the $10 valet parking.

If you are keen to read my complete review with all the photos, do check out my blog post on this.

I've been to this place four times, always on Sunday afternoons when I wanted an all-day breakfast. And each time the service has been poor, but the past few times it's been atrocious.I like the ambiance and décor with the big windows, high ceilings and comfortable sofas but the food and service really need to improve.

Last Sunday my friend and I went in there around 3 pm and upon entering, the guy at the door just looked up and stared at us without saying a word. I asked for a table and he silently walked us to the seats and walked away. There didn't seem to be any other waitstaff around and the place was pretty empty, with only a couple of other tables occupied. He left us with one menu even though there were two of us and I had to ask for another, which he then went in search of.

Two waitresses eventually emerged from the back and one took our order sullenly. When my coffee arrived I asked for sweetener instead of sugar and she promtly said "we don have", which I realised has been their standard reply for anything you ask that they don't feel like looking for.

I'd ordered their big breakfast and when the meal arrived, I asked for some jam to go with the toast. She again replied "we don have", which I knew was not true as they have served it before in previous visits, you just have to be persistent. Sure enough, when I asked another waitress again for jam, it magically appeared. Getting their attention was hard even though the place was almost completely empty, they were always either at the back or talking at the bar and avoiding looking around.

The food itself was so-so. The bacon was very greasy and soggy, and it smelled like it'd been cooked in very-reused oil, which seems to be a perpetual problem at this place. The eggs which I'd ordered over-easy were instead well-done and the hash browns was bland and again, soggy. The toast was cold and seemed to have hardly been toasted at all. At least the sausages and coffee were decent.

My friend ordered the Caesar Salad, which was similarly mediocre. The sauce tasted as watery as it looked and the portion was small. 

Midway through the meal, the waitress came over and asked me for my credit card, which she said was needed "in case you order something else..." I didn't see the logic in that but I just gave her my card and she handed me a little dog tag of some sort, but didn't say a word about what it was for.

When we were ready to leave, I had to get up from my seat to go search for a waitress who then sullenly handed me the bill and credit card slip. The mysterious dog tag was never asked for and we left it on the table.

Heard it was built for a few millions. When I was stepped in, it was furnished as a modern bar accompanied with such cosiness. Perhaps, it was raining that day.

 

My friend’s father who was the in-charge and she ordered the good food for our high-tea session.

 

My friends and I ordered:

-       Sausages (Thick, crispy skin and flavourful)

-       Vegetarian Spring Roll (Done it in a chinese way with thick black sauce)

-       Pancakes (Thicker than the Hotcakes. It was nice for me.)

-       Thick Toast (Done it toasted served with butter and orange marmalade. Feeling so Tai Tai.)

-       Satay (Norm.)

-       Chicken Karaage (never try)

-    Drinks such as the one we ordered (Camomile Tea, Lychee/Blueberry/Strawberry Smoothies) were not good.

What disappointed me was the tea which was not served in a pot but rather a cup. Also, the service was bad.

Did I mention that 50% of before 4pm for certain drinks (e.g. Tea, Coffee, Smoothies, Juices)?

 

  

meL

‘Food itself is very personal; do not be affected by what I have written. Try it instead and tell me.’

One of my favourite hangout spots. The place itself looks like a greenhouse, except that it is housing people and not plants. I particularly like the concept of transforming a 2 storey post office into a restaurant bar. Also, it faces the main road which makes it convenient to hail a cab after a session of drinks. There is valet service within their tiny carpark as well if you happen to drive. More than often packed with office ladies and businessmen during weekdays. Thus, considerably difficult to get a table so I would advise reservation if you were to pop by esp on Friday nights.

Beers being very affordable on weekends - S$40 per bucket of 6 Asahi. However, I usually go there for the food - never miss out on the 3 egg omelette and sausage platter. Ceasar salad is a must try as well but I personally feel that it might be better if there is an option to add on smoked salmon.When you place your card behind the bar, it comes with a number tag so it makes it easier for them to trace. Music is awesome but a tad too loud when indoors.

I would say KPO is a good place to chill, gossip and drink till your heart's content.

 

My friend and i decided to have lunch at KPO this afternoon. Always seen this establishment whenever I'm in town, but never had a chance to dine there. 

When we first entered the place, a waiter greeted us but didn't show us to our seats, instead asked us where we would like to sit (which i thought was rather good, giving us a choice to sit inside, outside, upstairs etc.) The waiters were very friendly and efficient. We were seated, given our menus and our orders were taken promptly! However, my friend told me that when the place is busy, the service tends to be very poor. (Only about 2 other groups there when I was there, about 1pm) 

I ate the steak sandwich which I wouldn't rave about. The steak was well done and a bit too hard for my liking. However i LOVED the chips!! It's tapioca i think? Love it ttm!!! :) 

I really love the ambience there! The music is pretty chill out & just cozy! My friend & I sat there and chit chatted for about an hour and the waiters were friendly through out. They always asked if they could clear our plates, wanted anything else, made small talk etc. But maybe they could have kept the water refills coming. ha ha

Overall, I would say it was a good experience. Just have to go when it's not very crowded :)  

I have always been curious about KPO. It sits quietly under the shades of the trees, across the road from the newly renovated Orchard Central, being isolated by all the big malls.

We decided to have a early dinner at around 5pm at KPO and we were surprised to see that the place is rather empty when we reached.

As the cafe/bar consist of bar tables (where you can sit at the bar counter to have your drinks or food), sofa seats and small wooden table at the sides, the waitress asked us where we would like to sit. When we said we would prefer the sofa seats she told us they are all booked and asked us to sit at the bar without even telling us about the wooden tables.

I mean, how comfortable can it get to sit on those tiny high chairs and eat at the bar counter? So we requested to sit at the wooden tables which we noticed later wards.

After we were seated, they served us ice water. Ice water with particles in it. Ok it is a normal thing to see in kopitiams or some really dirty hawker centers but I have never expected to be served dirty water at KPO.

***

Nevertheless, we ordered a Yorkshire Pizza, Prawn pasta and Deep-fried Chicken Wings to share.

YORKSHIRE PIZZA

SGD 25

(Inclusive of GST and Service Charges)

Thinly crusted pizza topped with thin tender pork slices and mozzarella cheese.

It is surprisingly satisfying and delicious. Well, this is the first time I have ever had pork slices with cheese for a pizza topping so it came as a pleasant surprise!

***

PRAWN PASTA

SGD 19

(Inclusive of GST and Service Charges)

This is the taste of love.

Fresh, juicy prawns with extremely fragrant and creamy pasta sauce.

However, I do feel that the prawns are too little! I rather they give me more prawns at a smaller size ):

Well, in fact, I prefer this to the Crab Linguine at La Cantina in Venezia.

***

DEEP FRIED CHICKEN WINGS

SGD 13

(Inclusive of GST and Service Charges)

I should really shoot myself for ordering this.

After tasting the chicken wings, the first thing that came to my mind is that I paid 13 bucks for a normal plate of chicken wings.

I could have gotten 13 pieces of that from the "techno kopitiam" (TP students should know which coffee shop I am referring to.) downstairs my house.

***

Ambience is surprisingly quiet and peaceful for a place at the Orchard area.

Service... Check out their dirty ice water.

(I shan't be an ass about it anymore since they did change it for me. Hahaha!)

Value wise, it is more to the normal to slightly high for such dishes. Pasta with two prawns at SGD 19 or a few chicken wings at SGD 13? Well, if you love it, it is would not be expensive isn't it so?

Overall, I must say I enjoyed the pizza and pasta!!!

***

Please visit my blog at APPRÉCIER for more pictures and reviews on other places! =))

Nice place, we've been a few times, the food is good and reasonably priced.

On a trip to the real post office next store there was a long queue so we went to KPO for coffee and tea for the wait. Until I saw the costs, which I can afford, but choose not to. There's just too many other equaly good or better places where we can get the same ambivance and quality, like any number of places on Robertson Walk or CQ.

If this place wants to cater to posers in nerd cars that's fine by us, but with pricing like that it's going to miss out on having a more intelligent and loyal crowd.