911 Butter Pretzel Usually not much of a themed cafe sorta person and we initially werenât too keen to drop by Cafe Carrera since Baker & Cook, whom also runs the Cafe Carrera at the new Porsche Centre Singapore at Guoco Midtown (i.e. the same building that one can find Umai and Louisa Coffee) has always been a predictable (but also reliable) brand name in the local F&B scene. That being said, we found ourselves really intrigued after skimming through the menu of Cafe Carrera â being quite a Porsche fanatic in our childhood years no thanks to our exposure to Need For Speed: Porsche Unleashed, the availability of some novelty items here just made the cafe pretty appealing to us to say the least. Occupying just one corner of the Porsche Centre showroom where one can find Porsche vehicles and merchandise within the premises, the dine-in area of Cafe Carrera is mostly around the espresso counter if not outdoors within the shaded area just outside of the showroom. Based on most of the social media posts going around about Cafe Carrera, we initially thought that there were only light bites in the form of cakes and pastries available at Cafe Carrera; that being said, we were surprised to find that the menu is pretty extensive â comprised of sections named Timeless Classics (i.e. quiche and pastries), Pit Stop (i.e. sides such as fries and long sourdough pizza, sliders and mini pies), Full Recharge (i.e. salad bowls, sandwiches and Chia Seed bowl), Porsche Signatures (i.e. tarts and cakes), Dashboard Delicacies (similar to Porsche Signatures) and Tina Turbo and Tom Targa (i.e. kids menu). The list of beverages include espresso-based specialty coffee, drinking chocolate, teas, smoothies, juices, soda, Nocktails (non-alcoholic cocktails), cocktails, beer and other forms of alcohol.
For those eyeing on the 911 Butter that comes with the pastries, Cafe Carrera only offers the said butter with two of their items from the Timeless Classics section of the menu â this would namely be the 911 Butter Pretzel and the Butter Croissant. The Butter Croissant had already been sold out by the time we made our visit to Cafe Carrera on a weekday evening; and this is how we found ourselves going for the 911 Butter Pretzel instead. The 911 Butter Pretzel is described as a soft pretzel, though it probably would be classified as an item with quite a tough texture for Singaporean standards nonetheless. Considering the toughness of the pretzel, we would recommend to break the pretzel apart and have it segment by segment; the exterior of the pretzel comes with a very lightly salted note, while the insides are quite dense to say the least â definitely requiring a bit of chew to get into. The 911 Butter that came along with it did come with silhouette of the iconic Porsche 911, though the little details arenât that defined here â probably even distorted in certain areas. The butter seems to be unsalted, which went well with the pretzel and even hinting of a slight floral note â not sure if that was actually the scent lingering in our nose from the scent used in the showroom itself however. We had also given the 911 Cookie a go; this came with a sugar frosting that is recognisably the front of a Porsche 911 coupe. Possibly an item to entice the young ones, the 911 Cookie seemed to be a gingerbread cookie at heart; definitely carried a firm bite that broke cleanly without the ginger carrying an evident note of spiciness like some other gingerbread cookies that we have had â the areas around the frosting also adding just a bit of sweetness to balance things out.
Flat White is pulled using beans roasted by Allpress Espresso; this is also the norm with all other locations of Baker & Cook. That being said, the rendition served at Cafe Carrera comes in a Porsche-branded mug; definitely a good touch of detail for the Porsche fanatics like ourselves out there. As with the usual standards of espresso-based specialty coffee at Baker & Cook though, we arenât quite impressed with the Flat White â a little too frothy, and a little bit too hot, the Flat White just felt decent at best and definitely not ideal if they were to be a specialty coffee joint to say the least. Porsche Centre Singapore at Guoco Midtown is a spot that one can immerse into the Porsche brand â it is where one can get to know the brandâs deep heritage and experience what the brand has to offer through the simulators that they have in-store, as well as to have a piece of the brand through the lifestyle merchandise that they have; Cafe Carrera itself is a supplement to all of that. We liked how Cafe Carrera does bring somewhat of a character into the local F&B scene despite its purpose most likely to be part of of the Cars & Coffee culture â whilst most car showrooms that have cafes / eateries in them tend to only slap on the brandâs emblem onto their dishes and call their dishes names synonymous to the vehicle models that they retail, there is some attempt in Cafe Carrera to bring in Porscheâs strong brand name in bigger detail such as that of the 911 Butter and 911 Cookie. This is also not to mention that Baker & Cook has been quite a reliable name in the local F&B scene, and quality of its items are ensured just on that basis â that is despite the slightly pretentious descriptions just to tie the branding of Porsche with some of its cake and tart offerings. For petrolheads that are especially into the Porsche brand, perhaps Cafe Carrera might be the spot to chill at after checking out the new Porsche Centre Singapore showroom at Guoco Midtown â something that would compliment that experience well.