Funny how Punggol Park is one of my frequent haunts yet I never got down to Wild Oats ever since it took over Bliss Cafe sometime back. So on an unfortunate evening which rained, I had no excuse to make about jogging at the park instead of eating at the cafe. Wild Oats is under the same family together with Wild Rocket and Relish, with another branch at Mount Emily.
We started off with something safe on the menu – Golden Chicken Wings ($7.8). A good appetizer indeed – what with its crispy, prawn paste-like texture with a tinge of spiciness from accompanying chili sauce.
Moving on to the mains, Wild Oats offers both western and local delights such as sambal fish. Ribeye Beef ($17.2) was not that worthy of a mention. The tenderness of the beef was clearly lacking.
The Fish & Chips ($14.5), on the other hand, was much more decent with an outer layer crispy enough while the fish remained tender.
We were practically left with 2 desserts since the rest were unavailable. The Brownie ($6.3) was not that bad. The chocolate fudge brownie was real thick with a nice scoop of vanilla ice cream and heavy drizzles of thick chocolate sauce as well.
Wild Oats’ version of the local favorite Chendol ($6.3) has it in a tall drink glass instead of a bowl, transforming it into a dessert somewhat like a cool milkshake or ice cream. Its taste is comparable to the chendol we can find in hawker centers, or perhaps even better than local renditions.
Service is a little shaky at times – the crew is mostly attentive but fall short in other areas. Another gripe would be the fact that plain water is not served here. They do a wide variety of booze though, making it a late night hang out as a liquid kitchen. This also leads me to another point that the alfresco furniture has a heavy, lingering feel of beer from people drinking them the previous night. Other than that, the cafe does make a pretty sight from across a lake.
Hougang Avenue 8
Punggol Park