The North is probably one spot that is least associated with establishments serving up specialty coffee; that being said, there is one spot that is overlooked on whenever one mentions this statement. Having commenced operations for quite a while now would be the Parched by Parchmen outlet that is located within STELLAR@TE2 — the section in the underpass of Woodlands MRT Station at the Thomson-East Coast Line area. Whilst this Parched by Parchmen outlet is nothing like their outlets at Aspial One in Ubi and their Jalan Besar Community Club in Lavender, their location at STELLAR@TE2 is just a kiosk — albeit one with an actual dine-in bar counter surrounding the kiosk. Considering so, the food options at this outlet can be described as limited — think Finger Foods and a range of Cakes which are prominently displayed at the counter. Still, their range of specialty coffee is worth commending considering the lack of such establishments in the North; there is a range of espresso-based specialty coffee and also hand-brewed coffee served up here, as well as drinking chocolate and a range of teas.

The Chocolate Egg had caught our attention whilst we were skimming through the cakes that they have stocked up in the display fridge on the day of our visit. Parched by Parchmen does not describe on the elements that come with their cakes via the description cards placed in front of the cakes in the counter — that being said, we did note that this is pretty much an entremet that came with a chocolate shell that comes with a chocolate mousse layer, fresh cream, macerated cherries (?) and a brownie layer — there is also a cookie-esque base that can be found at the base. Unfortunately, the Chocolate Egg which we had ended up being a “cracked” egg when it was served to us — the chocolate egg having been broken and exposing the chocolate mousse within. The entire composition within the cake does make the Chocolate Egg seem to replicate that of a Blackforest cake, though we did find the notes of chocolate being stronger here with the supposed boozy, zingy and sour-ish notes of the macerated cherries being a little non-existent. The Iced Espresso Tonic is something which we were glad that they do offer on the menu; after all, it is an item that isn’t commonly found at specialty coffee joints and its availability here in the North does leave us pretty stoked. We liked how the Iced Espresso Tonic comes with a good fizz; the entire concoction coming with a slightly sweet, floral and a caffeinated kick at the same time. Whilst it has taken us quite some time to make our return visit back to Parched by Parchmen’s STELLAR@TE2 location; definitely one spot that deserves a lot more mention for what they are providing for the folks at residing / working in Woodlands!