As is the norm for hotels, Ibis Singapore Novena Hotel comes with its own restaurant cum cafe with the curious name of OOpen. Guests of the hotel for the night could enjoy 2 complimentary breakfasts, so off we went to grab our breakfast in the cafe situated at a side off the lobby.
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| Fact is that I do not know what is the name of the cafe until I browsed the web. Fancy as it is, sometimes a design just doesn't get a point across to the user. |
The small restaurant yet comfortable cafe faces the corner of a junction, giving diners a main view of the usually quiet Irrawaddy Road as well as a side view of the hustle and bustle of the major road that is Ballestier Road. Wide window panes allow a sense of airiness within whatever limited space Oopen could afford.
Just as it is with the rooms, lateral space is at a premium but furniture is spaced at a comfortable distance to allow customers to navigate to their seats as well as affording a bubble of privacy. Once more, any sense of claustrophobia are cast away by high ceiling covered by wood panels, lending a atmosphere reminiscent of a cozy cabin.
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| Nothing captured my attention more than the numerous colorful bottles which decorated the shelves above the buffet line. |
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| The windows lend a sense of airiness within a cafe where space is at a premium. One could take a seat outside where the usually quiet Irrawaddy Road will not see much traffic, thus less chance of a exhaust-spewing car interrupting your mood. |
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| Interior design of the cafe transformed the small piece of real estate into a cabin in the tropics. |
The decoration of the cafe is not overdone, promoting the right amount to make the place cozy. Colorful bottles lining the shelves above the buffet line make a sight for sore eyes, complementing the wooden paneled ceiling as well as the furniture to create the feel of a cabin. If they really hung up trophies of hunted animals and it snowed outdoors, I could really mistake myself as enjoying a winter in a hunting cabin. Not that I really like to see animal heads lining the wall... colorful bottles beat those any day.
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| The buffet line is nothing to scream about but will feed your usual cravings, be it a western, an oriental or a local breakfast. That's all that really matter. |
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| Scrambled eggs, sausage and bacon, all of them my favorite! Nuff' said! |
Oopen's variety in breakfast may not score points with me but I am not complaining as the taste itself is enough to keep me going for more. Guests could opt to enjoy a Western style breakfast complemented by self-serviced toasts with assorted jams, assorted Danish pastries or a meat-filled plate of sausages and bacon in the company of scrambled eggs, or just go all out on rice served with curry chicken, the oriental and local way to start the day. Not that we really do that for breakfasts... One should not forget the platters of fruit for a healthy dietary habit.
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| My way of starting my day - scrambled eggs, sausages and ham! |
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| The assorted Danish pastries usually got grabbed up fast by the guests. They must be quite popular with the breakfast goers of Oopen. |
Apart from the food, I will not miss a cup of coffee at the start of my day. Fortunately, Oopen has not just one, but two coffee machines which could pump out the various types of coffee one usually ask for in a Starbucks or Coffee Bean counter. One does not simply go about his day without his share of black coffee, cappuccino or latte. I do not like my coffee bitter, and fortunately again for me, the offered latte has just enough milk in it to sweeten the beverage yet retaining the taste of coffee. Talk about the coffee lover who doesn't love the bitter of the coffee...
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| Oopen's coffee machines pump out steaming beverage of your choice to make your day a good day. |
Since I was staying in Ibis Singapore Novena Hotel for the few days when 2011 crossed into 2012, I got to enjoy the festive mood along with visitors from different part of the world in the slightly cramped space of Oopen. Different cultures and languages flooded the small cafe, leaving a lingering memory of my first celebration of New Year beyond the boundary of Malaysia.
Oopen may not be a grand restaurant/cafe, but it never did say it is. I was satisfied with the environs as well as the atmosphere of a cabin which it tried to recreate, even if that may just be a feeling on my part and not what the designers tried to recreate. Who cares anyway, as long as I enjoyed myself there.
Environment: An affordable hotel for a few days holiday in Singapore, in an area that houses aesthetically designed condominiums
Suitable for: Good for couples or families; comfortably suitable within a business travel's expected accommodation budget.
Opening Hours: Daily
Price: SGD168.00 in general, but dependent on seasons. This amount is not inclusive of Goods Sales Tax.
Contact: Phone (+65) 6808 9888; Fax (+65) 6808 9880
Address: 6 Irrawaddy Rd, Singapore 329543
Getting there: Depending on how you wanted to reach there, there are few routes to take.
- If you are taking a cab, make use of the above address.
- If you are traveling by public transport, make your way to Novena MRT station located along the North-South line. Look for exit A (look for direction to Tan Tock Seng Hospital if you forgot). Walk along Irrawaddy Road towards Tan Tock Seng Hospital and Ren Ci Hospital. Then pass by a few blocks of beautiful condominiums. The hotel is on your right at the end of the road before ending in a junction. Did I mentioned it will take you 10 minutes?
- If you do not like walking, make your way to Toa Payoh MRT station. Board for Bus 139 or 145 and get off 3 stops later. You should be able to see the hotel to the right of the bus before it stops at the bus stop. You will need to cross the road and walk back opposite the direction traveled by the bus.
It will giving me new info regarding furniture setting..keep it up.....
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