Having craved traditional chinese desserts for the longest time, my mum and I stepped into Sweet Spring on a sweltering sunday afternoon-- and without regrets. This little eatery is nestled in a cosy corner of the gigantic AMK hub, but don't be fooled by size; its desserts pack a punch!
The dimsum menu is pretty limited as Sweet Spring is more of a dessert cafe. We shared a couple of dimsum dishes which were pretty standard fare-- siewmai, char siew bao, some crystal dumplings (which tasted very much like soon kueh) and fried beancurd skin rolls. Nothing really commendable. Overall rating: 3/5
My favourite had to be the crystal dumplings filled with chives and shrimp. I just love the chewy textured dumpling skin, which was smooth yet with just the right amount of "bounce"! The chives were a little overkill. They could have been a tad more generous with the shrimp.
The beancurd skin rolls were pretty interesting as they contained corn-- an ingredient hardly found in such a dish. This introduced a western (think mexican) flavour to the otherwise run-of-the-mill fried beancurd roll. Thumbs up for creativity!
Desserts on the other hand, were almost heavenly. The cafe is known for it's traditional beandcurd pudding aka tau huey(in Singaporean terms :P), so we obviously had to try it. It was served in a traditional bamboo tub, highly adding to the rustic asian feel of the dish and restaurant. The beancurd pudding was silky and smooth but there was nothing spectacular about it. But hey, I'm no "tau huey connoisseur". My mum liked how they served the syrup separately so that you could customize the amount of sweetness according to one's liking. Rating: 4/5
The mango and strawberry snow ice however, was absolutely divine! It might have been because of the heat, or the fact that I haven't had good "ice kachang-like" desserts for a long time, but this was definitely a treat for my senses! From the sight of the fresh red and yellow colours of mango and strawberry that scaled the beautiful swirly hill of ice to the refreshing, melt-in your mouth heaven that engulfed you at first bite, this dessert was a treat from start to end! There wasn't an overpowering richness or sweetness to the dessert either, as the ice was so light and smooth, beckoning you for more. Shaved ice never tasted this good <3>
Overall, the experience at Sweet Spring was a delight! I'll definitely be back, in fact our next trip is to take the little sistaaa for an experience to remember.
Sweet Spring
#02-19 AMK Hub
53 Ang Mo Kio Ave 3
Singapore 569933
65-6753 9856
First off, came the crispy duck with popiah skin.The duck was fried to perfection, crispy on the outside yet, however the meat was more on the dry side. Making the duck popiah roll was fun, but consuming it was even better. Every bite was welcoming, the combination of the dark sauce ,the crunch of the freshly cut spring onions,cucumber and duck skin was sheer delight. All the different items complimented each other very well.Verdict: 3.75/5
Second came the red wine pork rib, one of their specialities. The pork was glistening under the light and looked delectable, although the photo issn't tha clear.The meat was tender yet firm with a bit of fat at the side, glazed with a layer of their red wine sauce, it was on the sweeter side. Beside it was a row of neatly cut apples, layered with mayonaise. It all seemed a bit too sweet for my liking though.Overall, it was not bad as it was quite tasty and the meat was tender.Verdict:3.75/5
Third, came the mee goreng, one of their specialities too. Their mee goreng is always really good, with quite a few strips of squid, fishcake and a few of prawns. The mee goreng was not too dry and not too wet, much to my liking. It was also not too spicy, but still had a bit of a kick and yes the more chinese version of the malay dish.Verdict:4/5