Flavour Flings Review: Milo Popcorn Chicken, Raclette Wagyu Burger And More In Hougang

Flavour Flings is a halal cafe in Hougang

When it comes to cafes, I’m usually more interested in their beverages and desserts than their food options. Flavour Flings, however, is one neighbourhood cafe that’s caught my attention with their interesting range of dishes, including Milo popcorn chicken and smoked salmon. What’s more, this cafe is halal-certified! 

To satisfy my curiosity, I immediately jumped at the opportunity to review this Hougang cafe. 

Food at Flavour Flings

Flavour Flings is a popular spot for brunch, serving Western food with an Asian twist.

I was most curious about the Milo Popcorn Chicken ($11+) with sambal belacan sauce, considering how odd of a combination it was. 

Surprisingly, the sweetness of the Milo powder paired with the spicy and creamy sambal belacan sauce, and crispy popcorn chicken worked extremely well—it was addictive, even.

There’s also an option to have your Milo popcorn chicken with nacho cheese, but I felt that it would’ve made the dish a little too jelak for my liking. 

Premium Wagyu beef burgers are a dish I don’t really expect from a neighbourhood cafe, so I decided I’d have a go with the Blue Cheese Beef Burger ($19+). 

We also opted to get an extra serving of Swiss Raclette Cheese ($5+), which was blanketed the top of our burger patty. 

Sandwiched in between were a thick, Danish blue cheese sauce, cranberry sauce, and caramelised onions. While I felt that it was an innovative idea to include blue cheese in a burger, its creamy and sharp taste clashed with the heavy flavours of the Wagyu and Swiss raclette cheese. 

I did, however, appreciate the sweetness and tartness of the cranberry sauce paired with the meat.

The burger also came with a side of cajun fries, which were perfectly crispy and spiced with cajun powder. 

We moved on to their best-selling Dirty Norweigan ($19+), which featured a butter croissant generously stuffed with smoked salmon, salted egg yolk sauce, two poached eggs, and zi char-style cereal. It also came with a side of mesclun salad and two chicken sausages. 

Smoked salmon isn’t usually my thing, but I was pleasantly surprised by this dish—it had a great balance of sweet, umami, and mildly spicy and smoky flavours. 

The silky egg yolks also added richness and depth to the dish, complementing the buttery croissant with all of its other components. It did, however, become a tad bit jelak after a while, so we’d recommend getting this dish to share instead. 

The chicken sausages weren’t much to shout about, for they tasted similar to what you’d get at a supermarket. We did appreciate the mesclun salad, which brightened the dish with its fresh and zesty taste. 

The star of the show were the Awesome One Pancakes ($10+) with Vanilla Bean Ice Cream ($3.50+). 

The pancakes had what was, in my opinion, the perfect texture: fluffy, moist, and not overly dense. 

Its taste leaned towards the buttery side, which served as a great base for the sweet toppings: banana slices, vanilla ice cream, and caramel sauce. 

Almond slices were also sprinkled on top of the pancakes, adding nuttiness and textural variety to the dessert. 

To end our meal, we had the Hot Honey Citron ($4.90+), which came with bits of preserved yuzu at the bottom of our cup. Although I had hoped for more prominent citrusy notes, I didn’t really mind it as it was still a comforting and refreshing drink. 

Ambience at Flavour Flings

Flavour Flings is tucked away in a quiet neighbourhood in Hougang, great for those looking for a spot to chill or have weekend brunch with family and friends. The cafe has a decent amount of seats, but it started getting slightly busy as it approached 12 noon on a weekday. There’s also an option to make a reservation before your visit, so do head over to their Instagram page to find out more! 

Flavour Flings is also located 15-minutes away from Serangoon MRT Station or Kovan MRT Station. 

The verdict

While there were some hits and misses at Flavour Flings, I don’t mind making a trip down just for the Awesome One Pancakes. Perhaps I could give them a second shot if I happened to be around the area. 

For more halal-friendly cafes to check out, read our guide to the best halal cafes in Singapore. Alternatively, head down to The Pink House for falafel platters, Philly cheesesteaks, acai bowls and more!

Address: 121 Hougang Avenue 1, #01-1348, Singapore 530121
Opening hours: Mon, Thurs-Fri, Sun 11:30am to 4pm, 5:30pm to 10pm, Tue-Wed 5:30pm to 10pm, Sat 11:30am to 4pm
Tel: 6286 0051
Website
Flavour Flings is a halal-certified eatery.

Photos taken by Tan Jia Hui.
This was an independent review by Eatbook.sg