Ex-Hilton Hotel Chef Opens Humble Cafe At CC Offering $9.90 Set Lunch
The towkay used to work at Hilton Singapore's il Cielo and Swissotel the Stamford's Cafe Swiss.
Former sous chef Oh Qihao has worked in hotel restaurants including Hilton Singapore's il Cielo and Swissotel the Stamford's Cafe Swiss. However, setting up his own cafe came with a new set of challenges. The candid chef shares that he hasn’t seen much of a crowd due to the location — his eatery Daily Affairs is housed in the quiet Cairnhill Community Club. “I chose this area as there’s a childcare centre here, and it’s quite near Newton Food Centre,” he says. “But as it’s rather hidden and near the office area, it gets very empty after 6pm.”Follow us on Facebook for more foodie news and videos.
For former sous chef Oh Qihao, who has worked in hotel restaurants including Hilton Singapore's il Cielo and Swissotel the Stamford's Cafe Swiss for the past decade, opening his own café was a natural career progression. The 32-year-old says: “I’ve been feeling a little stagnant and felt that I wasn’t learning much anymore, so I wanted to open my own F&B business as I see it as a step forward. I’ve learnt so much more here as I have to do everything myself, including handling the admin stuff and logistics.
However, setting up his own eatery, which opened last May, came with a new set of challenges. The candid chef, who invested $250,000 into Daily Affairs Dining And Bar together with his former partners, shares that he hasn’t seen much of a crowd due to the location — his eatery is housed in the quiet Cairnhill Community Club. “I chose this area as there’s a childcare centre here, and it’s quite near Newton Food Centre,” he says. “But as it’s rather hidden and near the office area, it gets very empty after 6pm.”
To cope with this lack of footfall, Qihao has partnered with food delivery services such as Foodpanda and Deliveroo to get more orders.
Scroll through the photo gallery above for a look at the rather tasty fusion comfort food served at this cafe in a CC.
Daily Affairs is at 1 Anthony Rd, Cairnhill Community Club, S229944, Tel: 6262-4342. Open daily. Mon to Sat 11am to 10pm; Sun 8am to 3pm. Last orders 30 mins before closing. www.facebook.com/Daily-Affairs-1859222891012439/
PHOTOS: Chee Yan
The Look
The simply decorated café sits 45 people. It's not fancy, but it's got a cosy and homely vibe that suits families, which probably explains why the café is quite popular for children’s birthday parties. Qihao reveals that he hosts two to three kids' parties here every month. However, it was empty when we dropped by after 2pm on a weekday.
Cosy corner
There's an edible garden within the cafe.
The Menu
The café serves fusion comfort food with influences from Western, Japanese, Korean and local cuisines. There’s also a rotating two-course set lunch menu for a reasonable $9.90, which comes with coffee/tea and soup. “I didn’t want to serve purely Western food ’cos it’s very common,” the chef quips. “We also change our menu every three months so that our customers won’t get bored,” adds Qihao, who’s married with three kids.
Slow Cooked 8-Hour Beef, $16
The beef cheek here is marinated with hua diao rice wine, Cajun spices and fresh herbs, grilled and then sous vide before it’s plated on a bed of mashed potato and served with tempura enoki mushrooms and greens. The Aussie beef cheek is very soft and quite yummy with the crunchy fried mushrooms. We like the unusual use of Chinese rice wine instead of the usual angmoh red wine, and also the marriage of beef with tempura shrooms instead of fries. Comforting and filling.
Atlantic Pink Salmon, $17
The salmon, imported from Norway, is glazed with honey miso and baked before it’s topped with cereal crumbs and served. The salmon skin is separated from the flesh, deep-fried till crispy and served on the side with plain rice. We’ve never had salmon served with cereal (it tastes similar to cereal prawns at zi char stalls) and we like the unexpected combination. It adds crunch to the smooth, sweet fish.
Flame Grilled Rib-Eye Cubes with Sous Vide Egg, $15
You’re supposed to break the runny sous vide egg so its yolk oozes out, adding a rich, creamy ‘sauce’ to the beef cubes beneath, which are marinated with Korean soy garlic sauce and cooked to a nice medium pink. Quite tasty.
Bottom line
Comforting, competently prepared café food at pocket-friendly prices, though we’re not sure if it’s worth a special trip here unless you’re in the area.
Daily Affairs is at 1 Anthony Rd, Cairnhill Community Club, S229944, Tel: 6262-4342. Open daily. Mon to Sat 11am to 10pm; Sun 8am to 3pm. Last orders 30 mins before closing. www.facebook.com/Daily-Affairs-1859222891012439/
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