Professor Brawn Cafe (Velocity)

I like this place for the food (some items, not all) and the easy, informal atmosphere that allows me to linger over coffee after my meal is concluded.

When it comes to food, the quality varies; it really depends on what you order. Give the ala carte dishes a chance, even if they don't come with soup and drink for $12.00. I think I get a more rewarding experience for just 3 or 4 more dollars extra, like the Pan-Seared Norwegian Salmon [$15.90 in November 2009] served with crunchy asparagus and an orange-coloured mashed made from buttered mashed potatoes AND sweet potato puree.

What else is good here?

1. Garden Salad - a mix of lettuces and bitter greens served with crispy croutons and mild-flavoured grilled brown mushrooms, with a very light dressing of oil and vinegar.

2. Pumpkin soup or mushroom soup, made from real ingredients so I found they had a natural wholesome taste, not the instant foamy kind that's made with lots of cornstarch. Too bad they only fill the cup halfway!

3. Squid-ink pasta - I liked the presentation as well as the flavour and texture, but I had it on a day when I was very hungry and wished the serving was bigger.


The okay stuff (not great, not bad) would be sausage with rosti - they have various kinds of sausage, including bratwurst - spaghetti bolognaise, and the chocolate truffle cake.


What is not good here: Fish and Chips dinner set, which I tried in the same month [November 2009]. It had been fried for too long; the batter was hard and gravelly enough to scratch my gums and the fish meat inside had an expectedly frozen fish texture. You get a choice of lemon or orange squash with the set meal, but I would skip it in future - too sweet, like cordial mixed with too little water.


Something weird about this place, at least to me - I like to end my meal with Classic Coffee but I tried the Cappuccino one night. The cappuccino had almost no foam on top and was served in a narrow latte glass instead of the usual rounded cup, which for some reason, annoyed me somewhat.


On a final note, if you don't like mall visitors passing by and glancing at you while you're eating, don't go to the Velocity outlet. Because of the narrow layout next to a public walkway, the waitstaff are always visible and very active in approaching the tables to clear away dishes and ask polite questions, so this is not a place for dining in privacy.

Just opened at Novena Square, Professor Brawn Cafe is a social enterprise run by parents that have sought to raise awareness on children with special needs. My need though, was dinner and hence my hunger drove me to the cafe for something quick and easy.

I ordered the Spaghetti Vongole Set Meal ($12.90), which comes with a soup and a drink (orange juice). Starting with the tomato soup, it was clear that there was no intense red coloring as it came out orange-looking. Nice and slightly tangy.

The main course was the spaghetti vongole that did not turn out to what I expected. The clams were there, but the spaghetti was mixed with butter and some cream. It was tasty and unique, and I always appreciate it when restaurants take risk - provided it comes out well of course.

For desserts I had a slice of the chocolate cake which was really rich.

Service was alright. I like the quaint private dining feel which is probably due to the smaller Novena crowds at night.

I came to know Professor Brawn cafe through eat omy. This cafe is founded by parents & friends who want to make a difference to the special needs of the community. The cafe is located at the alfresco area where mingles used to be. Their misson is to provide good & affordable foods by an inclusive workforce comprising people of different abilities, ages & socio-economic background. I feel that the cafe is very well-decorated, with chalk scribbles on the walks and pictures. It is very colourful and eye-catching. The menu is printed in a form of a diary. They have daily set lunch from $12.90++ (choose from 5 sets) and specials of the week. There is also an ice-cream parlour which you can get ice-cream. I decided to get the Set lunch – Weekly specials as it is quite affordable for $21.90++. The set comprises Pan-grill black cod miso, a soup of the day and a drink. The fish took about 20 mins to arrive . I was a little taken aback by the huge portion that is served. A huge fillet of cod fish marinated with sweet black miso and pan-grilled. I have requested to omit the clam chowder soup since I do not like it and replaced t with more asparagus. The fish is over-grilled,resulting the meat to be a little tough but the black miso marinate is quite good, a little salty and sweet (mirin). They served it with 8 fat spears of asparagus,nicely grilled. I am not a fan of potatoes but the mashed sweet potatoes that is served together with the fish is actually not bad. The sweet potato is mashed and I had it with some salt and pepper. I didn’t realised that I finished the whole portion! For the choice of berveage, I just had a cup of green tea. The ice-cream flavours looks interesting. But I’m simply too full after finishing that plate of mashed sweet potatoes, I shall leave it to the next visit. The service here is not very professional as the servers are just students, probably from pathlight school. Anyway, I didn’t care as long as the food is good