It’s pretty obvious how I have been using the new Thomson-East Coast Line to my advantage — one of the things I had been really looking forward to do when the line opens is to visit the OG Springleaf Prata Place for dinner considering how convenient it is now.

Being one who was first exposed to them from their Ultimate Series where they would release a new fusion Prata or Murtabak on a yearly basis, I was pretty drawn by their latest Praclette; the item that was released fairly recently as their creation for 2021 to the Ultimate Series (the same series also saw the introduction to icons such as the 2014 Plaster Blaster, and the 2015 Umami-50). The Praclette comprises of elements such as Raclette Cheese, Truffle Oil, Sautéed Onion, Shiitake Mushrooms, Olives, Sriracha and Turkey Ham. Amongst the various Ultimate Series dishes that they have to offer, the Praclette is likely one of the most “westernised” dish of the lot — seemingly drawing on previous trends that have since been dated with the use of truffle and Raclette Cheese as main elements to the dish. No doubt that the cheese provides a savoury, yet lightly pungent note with a soft, melted and gooey texture that was a vehicle for the other elements such as the earthy shiitake, the zingy onions and turkey ham to their signature crisp, yet chewy prata; that being said, it feels like it fell short of the usual thought process behind the Ultimate Series dishes that usually involves more local fusion of flavours, and a playful innovation on using their Prata as a canvas to showcase their unique take on the dish — instead, the Praclette felt seemingly more of an item that is a mashup of previously trendy food all in one package. Don’t get me wrong though — there wasn’t anything particularly nasty; the Prata still being of the usual standards, while the slightly pungent cheese does work well against the truffle aroma and the earthy elements, but I just wished that more had went into the R&D process.

Overall; the Praclette is something which I found to be good to try once — just to see if it’s something that actually fits your tastebuds given the combination of the elements used in the Praclette. That being said, I am likely to still stick with having the usual plain Prata, or the Prata with Mozzarella, Garlic and Onion that I found myself loving during my schooling days; proven classics that seem to carry a more lasting impression — though their efforts in creating new styles of Prata is certainly worth commending.