Privé café

2 Keppel Bay Vista, Singapore 098383

Tel: 6776-0777

Clockwise from top right: Bad Ass BBQ Burger, Eggs Royale, Spaghetti Aglio Olio, Eggs Benedict (with additional toppings: smoked Norwegian salmon), Hazelnut Praline Royale Cake, Rich Chocolate Cake)

Eggs Benedict ($16) - Traditional English muffins topped with smoked leg ham, bacon, poached eggs and Hollandaise sauce, served with rocket leaves.

Eggs Benedict. Everyone’s favourite. I think I have never heard any of my friends said they dislike this. The star of this dish is of course the poached eggs and creamy Hollandaise sauce. I think they were nicely done at the café. But the accompanying ham and bacon which were most probably grilled, were too greasy for my liking. The pork streaks seemed like jagged containers holding a sea of glossy liquid.

Eggs Royale ($16) – A variation of traditional Eggs Benedict. Ham and bacon substituted by smoked Norwegian salmon.

I love Eggs Benedict! But without the bacon. I love smoked salmon too!! This dish combines the best of both worlds for me. Simply love it!

The smoked salmon was awesome, not too salty, and the amount of salmon given was generous. The eggs were also nicely poached. I enjoy breaking the poached eggs and watching the yellow lava overflow.

The egg yolk together with the Hollandaise sauce and smoked salmon is the ultimate combination. Smoked salmon is sticky and the texture feels a little creamy/cheesy as you chew on. So these 3 ingredients put together will give you an EXTRA creamy and eggy feel. High in cholesterol but who cares? Perhaps eat healthier daily and binge once in a while? Now I vow my love for Eggs Royale instead.

Bad Ass BBQ Burger ($26) - Wagyu beef patty topped with BBQ sauce, button mushrooms, bonito flakes, gherkins and garlic mayonnaise. Served with fries and salad.

The burger was around the size of a fist. A male’s fist to be exact. Not big like a normal burger should, but hey we are talking about wagyu here, i.e. premium Japanese beef known for its marbling characteristics and quality (though I am not sure if that cow was of Japanese origin). So perhaps we can’t expect a large portion when we are only charged 20-plus bucks.

The Wagyu beef patty was thick and well done, literally. The bovine, with the dried bonito flakes reminded me of my favourite country, Japan.

And of course you will not get full from the burger alone. Fret not as the fries and salad will do the job.


Spaghetti Aglio Olio ($19) – Spaghetti cooked in Aglio Olio style with crispy bacon, sundried tomatoes, garlic, birdseye chilli, wilted baby spinach, pine nuts & flat-leaf parsley.

The spaghetti was not splendid. But I like the idea of adding sundried tomatoes and pine nuts, which makes one refocus from the saltiness of the bacon chips and spiciness of the chilli to the sour taste of the tomatoes and crunch added by the nuts.

Hazelnut Praline Royale Cake ($8) & Rich Chocolate Cake ($8)

Both the hazelnut and chocolate cakes were delicious. I think people with a sweet tooth would love them.

The hazelnut cake was lighter and was made up of mousse and biscuits layers amongst others.

The chocolate cake was made up of chocolate sponge and mousse layered on top of each other repetitively for 4 times. Those who like rich decadent cakes will prefer this.

My Verdict

Food/Drink (3/5)

Quite a number of choices available. Vegetarian and kids menu are available as well. Food was not exceptional, just of average standards.

For the breakfast menu, you can also insert additional toppings like smoked ham, bacon, pork sausage, feta cheese, salmon, roasted tomatoes at 4bucks each.

The drinks menu comprises of the usuals like juices, milkshakes, coffee and not forgetting tea. But Privé further added an interesting twist to the routines - they serve alcoholic coffees like Bailey’s coffee. Besides what a typical café will have, they also have a good selection of beers, wines, ciders and champagnes.

Hygiene is an important factor to me. I found a dead insect in my water and so did my friend. We tried to ignore and got them to change our drinks. Then houseflies came occasionally to visit us and our food. It annoyed me greatly having to constantly fan my food to prevent the unwelcome guests from sharing with me. But since we sat outdoors and there is practically no way to restrict bugs from coming to us, we just had to try our best to safeguard our homeland and appreciate living things. Very reasonable customers aren’t we? (= - =)”

Price Tag (2.5/5)

The food is definitely pricey. But if you like the niche idea of a ‘private island’ and a backdrop of the sea, luxury yachts and artistic buildings, it might be worth paying the premium. Also helps if you go on a breezy bright sun-shiny day.

Milieu (3.5/5)

The café is located on Singapore’s only private island – Keppel Island. From the café, you can enjoy a good view of the marina. Your photo backdrop will be the iconic residential establishments, Reflections at Keppel Bay and Caribbean at Keppel Bay, as well as luxury yachts mooring at their berths.

There is a choice of indoor and outdoor seating.

The indoor setting is casual. It feels like a café along a beach because of the choice of turquoise for the wall and wooden furnishings. It is also very spacious; wide aisle and you do not have to worry about hitting someone else’s chair while trying to get out.

The outside setting is however very different from the indoor area. Lined with trees and potted plants, there are high tables and chairs as well as lower ones made from black rattan or wicker. There are also couches for you to laze on.

I think the outdoor space might be a good venue to hold birthday parties or company events etc.

Personal Touch (2/5)

The service quality was not up to mark. Also, when it got more packed, we started to have a hard time trying to get attention from the staff for some of our requests including making additional orders or asking for the bill (and I thought this is usually the step which can garner the fastest response in most places). 

Other Information

Privé Café, Privé Grill and Privé Waterfront Bar are located adjacent to each other at Keppel Bay, all of which are part of the Privé Group which also owns Roadhouse at Dempsey and FoodBar DaDa at Robertson Quay.

Going back for more?

I guess so. Although the service was not great and food was pretty expensive, I like the outdoor setting and the all-day-breakfast menu. My first visit, would like to give it another try.

Type: Café

Cuisine: Western

Wallet Size: Average S$35 per pax

Operating hours:

Mon – Sun & PH 9am – 12midnight (last order 11.30pm)

All day breakfast: 930am – 5:00pm

Salads, Soups, Burgers, Mains: from 11.30am

House

8D Dempsey Road, Singapore 249672

Tel: 6475-7787

From top left: Pumpkin Hazelnut Fries, Black Pepper Prawn Linguine, Baked Brie with Bread, Red Snapper

Pumpkin Hazalnut Fries ($12) - Fries made from pumpkin, topped with crunchy hazelnut, paprika and chilli powder.

The fried pumpkin strips were crispy on the outside and juicy inside. They were not too oily. A pretty good twist to traditional potato fries. The topping was a very interesting combination of nuts and spices, which looked like spicy pork floss. Oh, I meant vegetarian floss. But the amount of topping was too much for my liking and covered up the sweet taste of the pumpkin after a few mouthfuls.

The portion was decent for sharing as a snack amongst a few friends. But warning: it might be a little spicy. Other types of fries, made of carrot, mustard and taro (yam) are also available.


Black Pepper Prawn Linguine ($32) – Char-grilled prawn served with linguine and prawn Bolognese tossed in black pepper sauce.

A chef’s recommendation. The linguine was cooked to al-dente and the sauce was very unique. The herbs used and salmon caviar also added a very interesting flavour to the dish. The prawns were however overcooked, thus a little tough.

Overall, I think it is a good try. If you are looking for something different from the traditional tomato/ cream/ pesto based sauces, you might want to consider this.




Red Snapper ($28) – Red snapper braised with southern New Zealand clams and Spanish chorizo to produce a broth. Served with green soba noodles and potato cubes, with bits of saffron and parsley.

The red snapper fish was lightly seared on one side and was pretty soft and fresh. The soba noodles were submerged in a pool of warm seafood broth that to me tasted a little too ‘seafood-ish’ or fishy after a few mouthfuls. The clams were succulent and they made the broth pretty sweet. They were probably the culprits for the fishy taste.

This dish is described as comfort food for wet rainy days in the menu. It is also a chef’s recommendation. So on a cold rainy day, I ordered this. To my disappointment, this dish did not quell my ‘rainy day blues’.


Baked Brie with Bread ($18) – Brie cheese topped with crushed pistachios baked and served with salad greens. It comes with a basket of three slices of artisan breads.

My personal favourite :)

Tagged as both vegetarian and chef’s recommendation. The brie cheeses were warm and go together very well with the pistachios. The nutty taste from the latter was not too overpowering and added a crunchy feel to the overall soft sticky texture of the cheese. There were two slices of brie, each about 1cm thick and 10cm long, which I think was a pretty decent amount. The bread was also tasty and aromatic.

Thumbs up for this! If you are a cheese lover like me, I think you might like it. This is categorised under appetisers, but I recommend this to be shared by at least three people or you might not have enough space for dessert after your mains.

My Verdict

Food/Drink (3.5/5)

Some hits and misses. Menu is different from the usual, interesting fusion of Western food with Eastern techniques, vice versa. A good variety of choices available. Quality ingredients, food presentation was good, taste was exotic but can be further improved. 

Good for people with dietary restrictions; vegetarian, gluten-free, diary-free and vegan choices available.

Price Tag (3/5)

Prices are on the steep side but the servings were quite big. A place meant for one who does not mind paying for good ambience and service.

Milieu (4.5/5)

Indoor and outdoor seating available. Outdoors, you will be sitting next to the greens in Dempsey hill. Close to nature but can get occasional house-visits from bugs.

Inside, the restaurant is dimly-lit, has a casual setting and feels very cosy/homely. You can get relaxed and make yourself comfortable easily. There is an extension that looks like a glasshouse which connects the indoor space with the outside. So you can get the air-con, minus the bugs and a good view of nature.

Generally good décor and space. It might be a good spot to hold events like garden parties/weddings!

Personal Touch (4.5/5)

The service crew was warm and friendly. The staffs cracked jokes with us and asked for feedback on our experience. They were pretty attentive too. Our water was refilled frequently and it was pretty easy to get their attention on any requests. Food came quick as well despite the crowd. We didn’t have to starve.

Other Information

If you are a fan of skinny pizza, you are in luck! You can get those cracker pizzas here too. House is under the Spa Esprit group which also owns Forty Hands and Skinny Pizza.

Going back for more?

Should be. I like the ambience, the generous servings and interesting fusion of Eastern and Western practices for the food. It was only my first visit so I would like to try other dishes before concluding further.


Type: Café, Restaurant, Bar

Cuisine: Western, Fusion

Wallet Size: Average 50 per pax

Operating hours:
Lunch & Tea: Mon – Fri, 12pm – 6pm

Dinner: Mon – Sun, 6pm – 1030pm

Brunch: Sat 11am – 4pm, Sun 9am – 4pm