Singapore Food Blog - McCafe's Hot Choco Banana

Location: Singapore

I was introduced to the concept of a McDonald's operated cafe in Changi International Airport a year ago when I first stepped onto the island republic's famous airport. The naive me back then thought that it was a concept store operating only in the airport to cater for international customers, but I realized later that McCafe was everywhere in Singapore, with one in almost every branch of the fast food restaurant chain.

A cup of Hot Choco Banana is an alternative to caffeine for a rainy evening.

The promotion of a series of banana flavored drinks did not capture my eyes from the numerous times I passed by the banner standing at the entrance. When it did register in my mind I thirst to try it out, and availed myself with a cup of Hot Choco Banana in a recent weekend. The experience was not one to be missed.

Interestingly though, this series was not heavily promoted online and one would have to frequent McCafe to notice that this was offered. With my share of disappointments, there was hardly any expectation that this will turn out to be a sensational experience. And how wrong was I.

At just SGD4.50, this large cup of hot chocolate beats Starbucks, Coffee Bean or any other major coffee shop chains hands down. Die-hards of those coffee chains may not be easily swayed, but anyone who wanted to enjoy a hot cup on a rainy day and cool atmosphere should definitely get their hands on this. The sheer size of the cup allows one to sip slowly and just savor the lingering taste, with no regrets on spending an amount less than the smallest size to be offered in major coffee shop chains.

With such beautiful artwork done by the barista, it hurts to pierce through the foamy top and sip the fruity flavored goodness below.

A Hot Choco Banana would not be named so if there isn't a trace of the tropical fruit within. Even though McCafe may not be able to offer a slice of the golden fruit, the aroma of banana is pleasantly strong and  is sufficient to arouse each one of your senses. One will go, well, bananas over it.

Each sip of the chocolate will leave a lingering taste that is a mixture of banana and chocolate, and it was surprising how both mingle well with each other. The tropical fruit is mild to the taste buds, so I suspect that the syrup which McCafe punch into the cup to be quite dense and formulated to taste stronger than the fruit in order to overcome the relatively dominant taste of thick chocolate.

The cup of chocolate was served with a thick layer of foamy cream. To top it off, the barista artfully laid out streaks of chocolate syrup within a few strokes. It took me quite a while to make up my mind and destroy the streaks on top of the chocolate to make my first sip.

After I had bottoms up the cup of Hot Choco Banana, only did I saw the simple illustrated symbols which made me smile.

Truth is, this cup of Hot Choco Banana surprised me in a pleasant way that McCafe could have such delicious treat at a price lower than that of major coffee shop chains, and I don't even like the taste offered by most of the latter. This makes their cup of caffeine and chocolates the next best treats at a low cost after their all-time lowest cost favorites: sundae cones. I guess I will be visiting McCafe again for another one of their listed treats. I suspect that the visit will be sooner than I predict I could hold myself.

Suitable for:             a nice cup to enjoy your day

Cost:                              Truth is, it is tastier than Starbucks, Coffee Bean or some other hot shot coffee shop chain at a lower price and larger cup.