Nestled among the long-established eateries of Casuarina Road is Beth, a contemporary neighbourhood café. Founded by former MasterChef Singapore Season 4 contestant Amanda and her chef partner, Alex, it was an expansion of their home-based Italian sandwich business into a full-fledged café.
Against the neighbourhood’s traditional row of eateries, the café’s clean, wood-panelled façade stood out, with a rotating door which opened into the main dining room. Inside, a communal table was situated near the entrance and standalone dining tables towards the back. There was also some outdoor seating at the front which was pet-friendly.
Rooted in Italian-European comfort food, the menu’s offerings include handmade pasta, focaccia sandwiches, hotcakes and other Italian-inspired plates. There are also rotating weekend specials.
We ordered two of their most popular items. First being the Pistachio and Mortadella Sandwich ($18), featuring mortadella, stracciatella, pistachio spread, honey and apple chutney, fresh greens sandwiched between two slices of focaccia. The focaccia had a crusty exterior and an airy, fluffy interior. The addition of the honey and apple chutney was a great move, sneaking in a mildly sweet and tangy flavour to balance the nuttiness of the pistachio and the savouriness of the mortadella and stracciatella.
Another signature we tried was the Beth’s Hotcake ($17). Made as a substantial, thick hotcake that was fermented for 24 hours, it was soft and fluffy. Though the hotcake was usually served with whipped butter, strawberry-rhubarb jam and honey-soy maple syrup, the strawberry rhubarb jam was not available when I went and was replaced with a blackberry jam. Nonetheless, the combination of the pancake, jam, butter and maple syrup moved between sweet, tart and buttery flavours, giving the familiar brunch staple a distinctive interpretation. Both the focaccia and hotcakes lived up to my expectations.
Meanwhile, the drinks selection featured both coffee and a range of matcha and hojicha drinks. I had the House White ($6.5, +$1 for oat milk) using beans from Toby Estate, and the Golden Maple & Sea Salt Oat Matcha Latte ($9, +$1 for oat milk), using Okumidori from Kyoto. The maple matcha latte would be suitable for those who prefer sweetened matcha latte – I normally have my matcha unsweetened, so it was a tad too sweet for me despite requesting for less maple syrup.
For dessert, I had the Seasonal Cookie ($6.5) – toffee and dark chocolate flavoured. The cookie was thin and crispy, leaning towards the sweeter side.
Although the café is less conveniently located, away from the district’s busier concentration of cafés, it felt like a hidden neighbourhood gen within a residential area. For those looking for comfort brunch food with a twist in a homely and cosy setting, enhanced with warm service, Beth should be a welcome addition to your list of cafes to visit in Singapore.
134 Casuarina Rd, Singapore 579522
Mon 10.30am – 4pm, 5.30pm – 9pm
Wed to Fri 10.30am – 3pm, 5.30pm – 9pm
Sat to Sun 9am – 9pm
