Lowercase

We have been heading to Lowercase pretty often ever since Prodigal Cafe has sorta taken over some part of the operations of the cafe — the folks at Prodigal Cafe formerly from Blk 81 MacPherson Lane had been brewing cuppas at Lowercase for quite a while now, and that the Prodigal Grilled Cheese (i.e. Grilled Cheese Sandwich previously at Prodigal Cafe) has also got a place in the Hearty Mains section on the menu at Lowercase. One thing we would have to admit though — we definitely have not been ordering much of the hot food ever since the folks of Prodigal Cafe have occupied the space at Lowercase; there is a Specials section of the menu that sees a handwritten menu being slot into the regular menu that features some of their “out-of-the-ordinary creations” such as the Macedonian Malidzano Dip, EVOO Vanilla Gelato, Hummus Dip and Strawberry Lemonade — all of which not being permanent fixtures on the menu at Lowercase.

One of the Specials that really caught our attention during one of our recent visits to Lowercase would be the Fried Potatoes with Coffee Mayo — these are essentially fried potatoes (of which seemed more baked than actually fried) that is served with a generous drizzle of their house-made coffee-infused mayonnaise and some shavings of parmesan over the top. There is nothing too complicated about the Fried Potatoes with Coffee Mayo here; while the wedges of potatoes came with a chunkier bite rather than what would expect out of commercially-made fried potato wedges which are easily obtained from supermarkets, the coffee mayo was indeed the highlight here — the coffee mayo carried that slightly bitter note that one would associate with espresso, but it was especially umami and was quite a unique take to a mayonnaise that is dressed atop the potatoes which we took no time to finish. Yet another item which we found to be especially apt to be served by an establishment that is part of the third-wave coffee movement — one that is able to showcase their know-how in coffee, yet also a creative approach to how coffee can be incorporated into a food item that provides some character to the brand name itself.

Prodigal Cafe and its predecessor, Prodigal Roasters, are both establishments that are probably noted for their experimental creations in hot food way back in their day — often at times, one would be able to find some pretty unique food items which are being served on a seasonal basis, and this spirit seems to have been carried over to their operations at Lowercase. Needless to say, we are enthused with how they have since dedicated a section of their menu to include such Specials that they might offer from a time-to-time basis; a way to keep patrons and regulars excited to make a return visit whilst also having a creative outlet to whip up something that may seem to be experimental and out-of-the-box to some. We would definitely be paying a little more attention to what Lowercase has to offer in the Specials section of their menu — looking forward to what these folks would be able to create in time to come!

Hadn’t visited Lowercase for a few weeks and found out that they are offering quite a number of new cakes that are being displayed in the display chiller at the counter. Apart from the Peach Terrazzo, there is also the Charlotte Cake and a Vietnamese Dark Chocolate Tart that we have yet to try during our previous visits here.

Being an individually-sized two-tier cake, the Peach Terrazzo deceptively looks like an entremet / mousse cake given its aesthetics but is in fact, a sponge cake within. The “terrazzo” in the name stems from the aesthetics of the cake — the exterior is decorated with flower petals, bits of peach, and herbs; all that together with pieces of meringue for that “broken tile” aesthetic. Frosted with pastry cream on the outside, slicing the cake into half reveals the sponge cake layers; what sits between the two layers would be a layer of pastry cream that comes with bits of peach within. Liked how the sponge was subtly sweet; the pastry cream further enhancing those flavours while the bits of peach provided a good bite, as well as a fruity tinge of sweetness that gives a bit of a flavour contrast to the cake. The broken meringue pieces on the exterior adds on to the textures of the cake; a soft crunch that disintegrates effortlessly — an interesting touch to what is otherwise a rather standard offering out there.

The folks of Prodigal Roasters are slowly making Lowercase a space that regulars of the now-defunct Prodigal Roasters / Prodigal Cafe somewhere that is familiar to the heart. Whilst they have kept the namesake of the cafe and retained most part of its decor, they have since brought back some of the favourites from the menu ever since their announcement of their “move” into Lowercase — think the Dirty (i.e. double ristretto on cold milk in a chilled glass), to the favourite Grilled Cheese Sandwich and the familiar Lavender Cheesecake and Chewy Brownie. Lowercase has since been a haunt for us ever since the folks of Prodigal Roasters / Prodigal Cafe have moved in here — would definitely make it a point to try the new Miso Cheesecake (which sounds like a spruced up version of the Miso Cheese Tart that we have loved) soon!

Yet another item that is available at Lowercase now that Prodigal Cafe has since started their operations there, the Lavender Cheesecake is one of the items I always quite look forward to having whenever I am craving for a cake whilst visiting Prodigal Roasters/Prodigal Cafe previously.

The piece that I had was shaped in a square, though they used to serve them up in the usual wedge form previously at both Prodigal Cafe and Prodigal Roasters whenever it was available — the cake still feels very familiar as how it was back then even to this day; that light but rich cheesecake layer and that graham cracker base at the bottom that is slightly thicker than what one would expect out of cheesecake from other establishments. The cheesecake is smooth and sufficiently dense when it came to the mousse layer, yet not overwhelmingly heavy on the taste buds — easy to eat, whilst coming with a whiff of floral aroma from the lavender petals that is infused within; the graham cracker base giving it just the right crunch whilst being tightly packed without being overly buttery or wet, yet holding up the weight above very well.

Wanted a cuppa that is slightly more out of my “zone” so decided to switch out my usual order of the Dirty to the Bailey’s Iced White — there is this distinct hint of booziness going on in here from the Bailey’s whilst the cuppa is immensely smooth and creamy; whilst I wouldn’t say it was quite as heavy in terms of caffeine as what I had expected it to be, there was no doubt that it got that perfect balance between the alcohol and coffee itself that makes it quite the mid-day treat on its own.

With the return of Prodigal Roasters/Prodigal Coffee into cafe operations at Lowercase, and the return of some of their most iconic items such as the Lavender Cheesecake and the Grilled Cheese Sandwich, there is no better opportunity than now to actually make a visit to savour the dishes that were missing-in-action for quite a while since the closure of their MacPherson Lane location due to the en-bloc exercise in they neighbourhood. Now that the Lavender Cheesecake had made its return; I am secretly hoping for the Miso Cheese Tart to make its reappearance too — an item that I had fallen in love with ever since they had first opened their doors at Yio Chu Kang back then!

Redeemed Burpple 1 for 1 deal. There are only 2 choices given. 1. truffle mushroom pasta. 2. Salmon Mentaiko pasta. The other 2 are only for brunch. The prices of the 2 pasta are $12.80 and $15.80 respectively but Lowercase charges $18.80 for 1 for 1 Burpple beyond deal. So please take note guys. Nowadays there are a lot of merchants in Burpple beyond who have additional terms and conditions that are not indicated in the app. Hope Burpple can look into this so that customers are not “blinded” and only to know when they are told by the staff.

Nestled in Laselle is one chill cafe where everyone seem so engrossed in books and laptops on a Saturday afternoon, plus their drinks are also great - $3.80 for honey green tea and $5.80 for a really thick hojicha latte. You can also find really cosy sofas and warm lighting here. Plus wifi!

With burpple beyond its definitely worth !
Ordered the salmon mentaiko pasta and I must say ! It’s not too heavy for a person who always can’t finish cream spaghetti , it’s one of the better ones ! ❤️ the 73 burger on the other hand it’s a little too oily for my liking :) if you’re are a fan of fried food , try it ! The portions given are extremely generous 🙌🏻 love the ambience too