The House of Robert Timms is not exactly a new name to me but I've never had the chance or inclination to give it a try especially after hearing that it serves some exotic fare such as kangaroo meat which I must admit that is too adventurous for my palate. Nonetheless, while thinking of finding somewhere new to try in the Suntec City Mall and after doing some research on its website, The House of Robert Timms seemed like a a pretty decent choice so I went ahead with it in the end.
Robert Timms is well-known as one of Australia's oldest and most established gourmet coffee brands and was only introduced to Singapore in 2010 at Wheelock Place. I'm not a fan of coffee though but the promise of wholesome cuisine from Australia did sound like an enticing prospect. Then again, I've not tried Australian cuisine before so I'm clueless as to what exactly defines Australian food other than the fact that the ingredients should come from there.
First up was the clam chowder served with toast which was truly delectable. The amount of clams in the soup was much more than the number of shells seen in the bowl and they were as fresh as they could get. The soup itself was rich but not to the extent of overwhelmingly creamy. The garlic toast was done very nicely with a nice fragrance and to top it off, the bread used had grains and nuts in the crust which further accentuated the flavour. This has got to be one of the best versions of clam chowder which I've tasted so far.
The main course was the herb roasted half-chicken with criss-cut fries and salad. Instead of the usual long fries served in most restaurants, I think the criss-cut fries were a rather unique choice but personally, I felt that it might have been better if the fries were reduced to bite-size portions. Generally, the chicken was nicely grilled and went well with the sauce. Nonetheless, I do not like breast meat which usually tastes tough and dry no matter how it is cooked unless it's used in macaroni soup or Cantonese congee. In the case of this dish, the only drawback was that the other parts of the chicken tasted well but the breast meat was a disappointment as usual or I would have given higher marks for this dish.
The chocolate mousse cheesecake came in a portion larger than what's served in most places but given the price tag of 9 bucks per slice, I think that should be the case anyway. Much as I think that the flavours of the chocolate mousse and cheesecake layers were fine on the whole, I found that them being equally dense meant that the cake was somewhat too rich to finish by the time I was halfway through. It might have been better if the mousse layer was lighter which would provide a difference and graduation in textures within the cake and make it easier to finish alone. Otherwise, it might be best to share this cake with someone else or in a group as this can be rather filling as a dessert or tea-time choice.
On the surface, this may look like the usual nyonya kueh with the coconut shreds but this is actually an Australian dessert called lamington. I didn't know this until I asked the waitress and she described it as a sponge cake with coconut shreds on the surface. Further research on the Internet suggests that the traditional Australian version has a coating of chocolate sauce with coconut shreds on the outside while a layer of cream or raspberry jam is spread between the two layers of sponge cake. There are variations in the flavours depending on the area as it is said that Australia has a lemon version too while New Zealand has a raspberry version. Apparently, the version served at Robert Timms does not have a chocolate coating.
Although there were three flavours to choose from, one was sold out i.e. orange. I then decided on the strawberry version over the lemon one in case the latter was too sour. When taking the first bite, I didn't really like the smell and flavour of the sponge cake which had an artificial flavouring somehow. After a few more bites, the taste would grow on you. In any case, having sponge cake with coconut shreds is a rather new experience for me so I would not rule out the likelihood of going back to try other flavours of the lamington.
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