A Night Out at Tosto's

[ Edit: I Promised. :) ]

TOSTO'S

What is it:

Tosto's is… well I'm not sure what it is. I guess you'd call it a café, though I'm not used to having so much food at a café. Either way. It serves you your coffee, espresso, or any latte macchiato concoction you might consider having.

Either way, I've just reached home, from a interesting experience at Tosto's, apparently, Tosto's, along with Nuance Watson, Body Contours, and The Creative Department, had hosted a aptly named 'Blog Party'.

At the 'Party', they had invited a group of bloggers for dinner, to sample the food, and to take part in the sandwich making competition. The winning sandwich makes it to the menu. So. I didn't win, but if you do get there, I believe the two winning sandwiches were Prototype Fish and Diving Dancers… or something and other.

ANYWAY. On with Tosto's.

Why Its Great:

So Tosto's is a café, as consumers, we expect from them:

1. Coffee
2. Good Coffee
3. Lots of Latte

As Tosto's, they give us:

1. Coffee
2. Good Coffee
3. Lots of Latte
4. A slice of Italian Coffee-Related cultures
5. Healthy and Tasteful food

So naturally, that’s good isn't it. ha-ha

First Up: The Coffee


Anyway. At the event, I myself had sampled the Latte, which for non-coffee people is basically espresso with milk.

So I was abit apprehensive, I'm used to my Iced Venti 3 Pumps Vanilla 2 Pumps Hazelnut Latte at Starbucks, which is a tad bit sweeter than a standard latte; naturally, when I order a latte, I expect it to be bitter, boring, and unfinished at the end of the meal.

This was not the case. It’s a good cup of latte. I don't remember putting any sugar in, but the latte was not too bitter for my tastes, which says something. There's that rich taste of the espresso, with the milky frothy substance which I learnt to be known as La Crema [Crème?].

La Crema on Expresso

So that’s the coffee, then there's the food.

If you're there, you MUST try the Mandarin Duck thing. Not sure what its called exactly, but when you're there, and you see the menu, you'll know it. Mandarin Oranges and Duck never tasted so delightful. There's this sweet tang, with the oriental-ish duck breast, making it tangy and refreshing.

Mandarin Duck Thing

Follow that up with a perfectly constructed Ricotta Cheesecake, then a nice cup of latte, or freshly brewed coffee. Before we move on, More pictures of food:





Next, the Ambience.

I don't know a place in Singapore where I can get coffee in a more Italian way than at Tosto's. The espresso machine RIGHTFULLY has its BACK facing AWAY FROM THE CUSTOMER. That’s the way you do it. And at Tosto's, they know their coffee. I should know, they were telling us so much, it felt like a classroom. ['okay class. This is Arabica coffee. This is robusto coffee. Can anyone tell me the difference?'] But I learned lots a new stuff, so no complaints.



Why it Sucks:

Sorry Michael, but I got to do this.

So. Tosto's is great and all, but well, lemme start with the small things, the not so important.

The Menu. Sure, you got good content in the menu, but it’s a folder. It’s a folder with pieces of paper slipped in. I don't know, maybe its just me, but your décor is all classy and exquisite, but your menu is just shabby. So yeah.

The Ambience.

So yeah, its classy, and there's the Italian Culture, until you head to Italy and see what its really like there. Here, you only sit for your coffee, and I was offered cappuccino! At Night! But yeah. Not important.

We Didn't Win.

I guess what really sucks, was that we didn't win. Nah. What was abit of a problem was perhaps the location. Its at the arrival halls of Terminal 3 and 2, at Changi Airport. Not only is it hard to get to, its difficult to enjoy a perfectly crafted cup of coffee with all the hustle and bustle and noisy greetings all around you.

But I like the airport. ):

We didn't even have to pay for the stuff we ate, but I don't know, gut feeling tells me its going to be pricey. So for youths that live off their parents like me, I think this sounds like something you go to barely once a month? I can't say for sure, I had no look at the prices. But then again, I go to Starbucks weekly, so who am I to say?

Should You Get It:

Hmm. Well. Depends I think… no scratch that. I was going to say, if you liked coffee, but no. now I think I might understand why they have so much emphasis on food there. You should go there. I recommend, a Breakfast with your family, on a Saturday perhaps. Even if you don't appreciate good coffee, you'll find the food delighting and worth the trip. I think the first time I was there, I didn't even have any of the coffee. I had the duck orange mandarin wrapthing. And it was all good.

My Rating:


Its good, but the location really sucks, for me really. I don’t know. People of my demographic, headed from school or even home all the way to the airport. Sounds too much of a chore. But say, class gets cancelled, and you're let off school after 2 hours. Tosto's an option.

Where You Can Get It:

As mentioned, currently the only place you can get it is at the Airport, Terminal 2 and Terminal 3, in the Arrival Hall. That’s B2 for Terminal 3 and Level 1 for Terminal 2. I'm not sure if they plan on expanding, but at the moment, you're only going to find them there.

JAVA CHIP!

Okay... first post. here goes.

I bring to you all today a marvel of man's coffee making abilities. for today's show and tell. Lo and behold, the upmost majesty, the ultimatum. The purest bliss. Be awed by:

Starbucks' JAVA CHIP Frappucino

hm, re-reading that. the picture is somewhat anti-climatic. but hey, with half the world's best tastes, it can afford to look frumpy. okay. how am i gonna review this. This concoction here has been around long enough to have millions of reviews written about it. its too good for words. but well, sitting at the bus interchange at northpoint waiting for 851 gave me some time to think about it. lets try this:

WHAT IS IT:

So, we all love starbucks' Frappucinos now don't we. now take all that frothy goodness and that occasional bits of crunchy ice we all love, and that rich semi-sweet coffee blend, topped with that white-gold crown of whipped cream, and throw it away.. well, not quite. throw it into the blender, thats right. then throw in a bunch of chocolate chips, grind it all up into your frappucino, and voila! what? sounds too simple? well it kinda is, but hey, you didnt think it up now did you?

WHY ITS GREAT:

Each time you put your mouth to that straw, and you pull out that thick frumpy-looking concoction, you pull up bits of ground chocolate chips, and that already god-like frappucino up to your mouth. now, as you sit it there, relishing the sweet taste of the coffee, you feel those chocolate chips in there and you bite down on them. now that is adding texture to taste. you don't get that in the frappucinos. "that occasional bits of crunchy ice we all love" have no longer become occasional. ohh no. now they even taste good!

WHY IT SUCKS:

Well, I barely afford to drink it once a week. This baby costs a whopping S$7.50. That gets you decent eating at carl's jr. but then again, it is starbucks. S$7.50 is worth it, really. unless you're not making your own money yet, like me. so hey starbucks, maybe a student price hmm? wink wink nudge nudge.

SHOULD YOU GET IT?

yes! absolutely. while their prices are high, you should at least try it when you can. the java chip frappucino is truly a classic, something all coffee drinkers should try at least thrice.

MY RATING:
Highly Recommended! (gah, weird squares everywhere!)

this is something everyone who can should try. while it burns your wallet, every cent you pay goes straight for taste. Take their Grande size. Tall is too little and Venti is too much.

SO WHERE CAN YOU GET IT?

every starbucks in the world stocks this. serious. if you live in the yishun area, [singapore] there is a starbucks hidden in a corner on the second floor, near world of sports. they have a big sign on the side but i doubt anyone notices it. lets see. north point... one fullerton... many more. oh and if theres one in the AMK area, that'll be nice to know. use the comment system!

(more weird squares? help!)