Besides Esquina, the Retrospective Bar is another of the hippie restaurant at Keong Saik Street that had a vintage American rock-and-roll vibe.
After dinner at Chinatown Hawker Centre, we strolled here for nice desserts......and some rather bland cappucino.
The Vanilla Creme Brûlée with Chai Biscotti ($11) was the earliest dish to be wiped off. While the basic standards of a crackly crust and smooth custard filling were met, the scents of vanilla was pleasant and strong. The Chai biscotti was not a common pairing but lost its crunch that day.
How could we miss the Bread & Butter Bread Pudding especially when it is served with butterscotch sauce and peanut butter ice cream? Unfortunately, both the ice cream and gooey sauce residing on top were too little to go with the bread pudding. Also, the soft custard mixture was lacking in the pudding so we ended up with dry & doughy cake.
The not-so-new chocolate fondant cake was the latest addition on their menu during our visit then in March. The pistachio nibs and salt grains scattered on the plate gave a pleasant savoury contrast to the chocolate cake.
But just like the dessert at Halia, it would be more ideal if the ice cream was served in a bowl to delay melting time and unnecessary wastage
Conclusion: The price of the desserts ($11 each) is quite reasonable and perhaps even a bargain, considering the fact that many similar restaurants price their desserts from at least $15. However, despite few customers, waiting hours were slightly too long, especially when we order only desserts. The savoury menu with comfort food such as Mac & Cheese or Retro burger looks not too bad either.
Retrospective Bar
21 Keong Saik Road (Nearest to Outram Park or Tanjong Pagar Station)
Mon - Thu: 12:00 pm - 12:00 am
Fri - Sun: 12:00 pm - 1:00 am
FB : https://www.facebook.com/retro.sg#!/retro.sg