Wisteria Mall at Yishun had seen a slight switch up of tenants ever since our last visit to the mixed-use development — gone are some of tenants such as Wild Wood Cafe and the Kopitiam food court within the mall. While the food court remains vacated, Eighteen Chefs Express has since taken over the former premises of the now-defunct Wild Wood Cafe. Builders Cafe had also recently ceased operations within the mall (their outlet at Sims Place named Builders at Sims still remains in operation), and has since re-branded itself as Not Just Mee. The re-branding exercise does seem like a hasty job; whilst most of the furnishing and fittings has been retained, the menu board does seem to be handwritten, while all decor and fittings that previously referred to Builders Cafe have since been replaced by that of Not Just Mee. The food menu at Not Just Mee comprises of Sides, Pasta, Rice Bowl and Desserts — it is however worth nothing that the Pasta section of the menu does comprise of some options that are noodle dishes that may not necessarily belong to the said category such as the Japanese Soba with Seabass which features soba noodles, the Viet Beef Pho which features Kway Tiao, and the Korean Ramen that features ramen noodles. Beverages available at Not Just Mee includes specialty coffee (brewed using beans from local roastery Dutch Colony Coffee Co.), artisanal tea, and a whole list of other beverages that also comprises of flavoured “Sprite Yakut” drinks, milkshakes, sodas and even a small variety of beers. Apart from the deserts being listed in the Desserts section of the menu, Not Just Mee also does carry a small selection of cakes that they have sourced from KURA Patisserie which had recently moved from The Herencia at Kim Yan Road to South Bridge Road — something that Builders Cafe had been doing at the Wisteria Mall outlet previously as well.

Being one of the dishes listed on the Pasta menu, this is also one that comes with a fusion component; the Tomyum Pasta also comes with elements such as linguine, fresh clams, prawns and Tom Yum Cream as described on the menu. Digging in to the plate of pasta, there is no denying how this a well-executed plate of pasta with a fusion element — here, the Tom Yum Cream manages to achieve a really good consistency; there are places that serve up their Tom Yum pasta with a Tom Yum Cream that is either too creamy or too diluted. It is just at that right level without being too jelak, yet not being so dilute that it doesn’t lace together with the linguine — the Tom Yum Cream carrying that zing and tang with a mildly spicy kick that kept us yearning for more. The linguine is done al-dente here; not too soft nor was it brittle; the fresh clams and prawns being especially fresh and carries a natural hint of sweetness on its own — also thought that they did provide enough seafood for the price at $16.90++ as well. Overall, the Tomyum Pasta did manage to check all of the right boxes for us — a dish that we spent no effort at all in mopping up the entire plate clean.

Builders Cafe may be a recognisable name within the local cafe scene and it is certainly a shame to see them no longer being in operations at least in Wisteria Mall — great cafes in the North are certainly hard to come by, but Not Just Mee is an interesting concept that delivers on the same to the residents of Yishun; great noodle dishes that are well-designed and can be said as a wholesome offering that would suit well for both lunch and dinner. We were pretty satiated by both noodle dishes we have had here — the Tomyum Pasta, as well as the Viet Beef Pho; the latter with a light but flavourful broth with slippery Kway Tiao that is especially comforting, and a great complimenting dish to have with the Tomyum Pasta considering how one emphasises on heavier flavours while the other comes really light and clean. There are other dishes that also intrigued us that we have not ordered — think dishes such as the Corn Tempura and Mussels with Marsala Sauce; probably a next visit to Not Just Mee would be needed!