INDOCAFÉ - the white house - 35 Scotts Rd

Located along Scotts Road amongst the British Colonial Buildings nearer to Newton is Indocafe the White House, a restaurant specialising in Peranakan food in a fine dining setting. Started the meal with the finger appetiser of Belijau, a yummy bitter crispy snack that went down so well with the provided sambal belachan. It was heavenly. The first dish to arrive was another appetiser, Indocafe Signature Kueh Pie Tee. A do-it-yourself dish, the really good ingredients allowed one to have a great dish no matter how one assembles one's Kueh Pie Tee. The final opener was the Hee Pew Tng, a wonderful comfort food soup during the rainy weather. The first main to arrive was the Sayur Lodeh, with its rich coconut gravy that makes the dish so yummy. The second main was the Ayam Buah Keluak, a favourite Peranakan dish. The meat was really tender and was paired really well by the rempah as well as the black nuts which gave it a wonderful bitter aftertaste. The meal ended with a classic dessert, Bubur Cha Cha. Unfortunately, the rich coconut soup base was a little thin, hence not being able to bring out the joy of this dish. Overall, this was a great meal with wonderful customer service and definitely worth a return visit with a big group of people so that more dishes can be enjoyed through sharing. Also, deserving of their Michelin Bib Gourmand Singapore Award. General Verdict: An excellent Peranakan meal in fine dining style that was unfortunately let down by a dessert that tasted watered down Opening Hours: Daily 12pm-2:30pm and 6pm-9:30pm Queue Situation: Next to none but reservations are requested Price: SG$50++ upwards per person Payment Mode: Cash and all Major Credit Cards (Physical and Paywave) Items Ordered: 1) Item: Belinjau - Deep fried emping emping melinjao Description: A nice appetiser served with sides of Archar, Sweet Sauce and Sambal Verdict: Very Good, Served as appetiser after the meal has been ordered Price: Free 2) Item: Indocafe Signature Kueh Pie Tee - Crispy 'Top Hat' pastry cups filled with shredded turnip, served with prawns, crabmeat and homemade chili dip Description: Do-it-yourself style with yummy ingredients that one can put together Verdict: Very Good, Must Order Price: SG$18++ 3) Item: Hee Peow Tng - Fish maw soup with homemade prawn balls, pig tripe and cabbage in chicken broth Description: Yummy soup that works well as comfort food during the rainy season Verdict: Good, Can Order Price: SG$12++ 4) Item: Sayur Lodeh - Stewed mixed vegetables in coconut gravy Description: The gravy was rich and the vegetables cooked to the correct level of doneness Verdict: Good, Can Order Price: SG$12++ 5) Item: Ayam Buah Keluak - All time Peranakan favourite braised chicken with black nuts and exotic spices Description: The chicken meat was so tender and went really well with the rempah, plus the black nuts were so fun to dig and eat the chicken with to get that bitter yummy after taste Verdict: Very Good, Must Order Price: SG$24++ 6) Item: Bubur Cha Cha - Traditional Nonya dessert soup of yam, sweet potatoes and banana in rich coconut milk Description: Yummy dessert that was a little too thin Verdict: Acceptable, Order only if you want to try Price: SG$10++

It's always satisfying to eat from IndoCafe. The delivery is on time and food arrives still hot. This is our go-to whenever we crave for Peranakan bento. Set comes with a soft drink.

Have been wanting to try the food here. Very frw places serve buah keluak fried rice so was excited to eat here since my previous favourite Folklore closed down. The fried rice is decent but not as good as the one at Folklore. Tried the ngo hiang for the first time and it was really good. Sayur lodeh was decent. Wagyu beef redang was super soft but felt slightly bland. Bubur Cha Cha was so-so. Service was great. Overall a decent experience.

Exquisite Peranakan food and the prices are not exorbitant. The ayam buah keluak was tender, although people not used to the taste would not enjoy the black nuts. The restaurant is not very big and exudes a warm ancient charm that is cosy enough for family gatherings.

Ambience: 5⭐ Beautifully decorated. Peaceful place. Quite a cultural experience, not just culinary. Service: 4⭐ Service staff are friendly and polite. Attentive, will come when called. Food: 5⭐ Generally, portions are quite small (except for the curry fish head), though this seems to be the case for most peranakan restaurants in SG. For 2 pax, expect to order at least 4 dishes. Bakwan Kepiting: 7/10 The mild flavour of the soup balances out the strong flavours of the other dishes. I'm a bit more sensitive so can tell there's still a very faint odour from the pork that's not being removed during the preparation process. But my bf couldn't taste it, so for him it's all good. Inchi Kabin: 10/10 One of the best fried chicken I've had, not too oily to boot. Taste very different from (and imho much better than) the western-style fried chicken. Highly recommend. Sambal Ladyfingers: 10/10 Excellent cook on the ladyfingers, not slimy at all. Generous ratio of sambal. Interestingly, sambal is not very spicy, but I feel that this is one of the better sambals I've had. Buah Keluak Fries Rice: 5/10 Can't taste the buah keluak at all, though might be because it was overpowered by the other dishes we ordered. There was a fair bit of other ingredients/meat in the fried rice though. Kari Kepala Ikan: 10/10 Ordered the half portion. This is actually enough to be shared by 3 pax. Mildy spicy, creamy curry with coconut milk being the most outstanding flavour. Both the fish and the roasted veggies in the dish are excellent.

Have always wanted to try the for here and I'm glad I finally did. I think I prefer the for here than VO. The fried fish is something unique and it's an absolute delight. Love the prawn and soup too. Almost everything is great. Will definitely be back again.

Quite a nice place to bring people for a nice lunch, expect to budget around SGD $40 to 50 per pax for a group of 5 if you want more options. The architecture and Peranakan elements are interesting. The service is quite friendly. Ayam buah keluak, babi pontek The pulat hitam dessert is quite nice. The laksa has pineapple, which might be a bit unusual for some people.

It is my 2nd visit since Nov 2020, back then I like the food and service, so this time I recommended to my friends. It was a total DISAPPOINTMENT! POOR service-only 2 tables were occupied. Definitely enough staff available. We repeatedly asked for water refill, it is either took too long or forgotten. It is only 2.15pm, suddenly 3 staff came to rush to clear our tables, body language shows chasing us away. FOOD overpriced - like economical rice quality. It is also not warm. Only like the kueh pie tee cups. Remain crispy throughout. We don't even bother to order any desserts.