Reviews for The Hainan Story Coffee House (Tampines Mall)
Kimberly Chua
4
Arrived at 9 am on a Thursday. Only 1 out of 2 ordering kiosks was working, so I had to wait for the customer in front to finish, which took a while. Food arrived quite promptly, and we enjoyed our food. I love my avocado toasts.
Jeffrey Tan
4
Hainan Story, nestled in B1 of Tampines Mall, has become a beloved spot for my wife and me. We frequently enjoy our meals and gather with friends in this cozy cafe. The food, especially the breakfast sets, is absolutely scrumptious, and their lunch sets offer great value for money.
The service here is outstanding. The servers are incredibly helpful and attentive, always going the extra mile to assist us, especially since they know us as regular senior patrons. They kindly bring our meals to the table, which adds a personal touch to our visits. Don't miss out on their special offers for senior citizens and school children, as well as their cashback discount policy through their app, making dining here even more affordable.
While the experience is delightful, I would gently suggest that they consider an electric fly swatter for the cafe. It would be a thoughtful addition for the well-being of all patrons and would only enhance this great dining experience. Hopefully, the NEA could advise them on food hygiene. I, for one, would not like my favorite cafe suspended because of hygiene concerns.
Overall, Hainan Story is a fantastic place to enjoy delicious meals at reasonable prices with wonderful service.
Benjamin Tan
3
The service is quite bad. The food took a very long time to arrive. We ordered the Hainanese Scottish Pork steak. The taste wasn't bad, a 7.5/10. But the portion was very small, as you can see from the video. The stir-fried glass noodles were good, an 8/10. The Mama Wee braised pork belly set is delicious, like at all other outlets; I'd give it an 8.5/10. If they improve the service and cooking speed, they'll get more stars. There's a 15% discount if you pay by Grab.
Shaun Rong
5
Have you tried their butter cake? Oooo hao chi šš¼ 儽å! In their lunch deal, you get 2 slices of cake + drink + rice set. Great deal. The condiment sambal belacan has an old-school taste; it's thick, fresh, and fragrant, but not salty. The curry is not the usual commercial consistency or taste; itās heavy and pasty. I like it.
I will eat here again very soonā¦ nostalgia :) Itās like eating my grandmaās food on Sundays in the 80s. I am guessing people who grew up in the 70s and 80s would appreciate the food here.
Michelle Chen
1
1/5 ā Not Recommended
I tried this place expecting Hainanese delights, but it felt more like Hainan Dein (ęµ·åē«).
The mushroom soup? You could make a better one at home.
The toast was just okay.
The pasta? A hard no. Did you try your own food? Do you know how hard it is to swallow? Totally unpalatable.
The only vaguely enjoyable thing was the Pandan Swiss roll.
Even with a 15% discount, I wouldnāt return.
Overall, 1/10. Totally not worth it.
Oh yeah, the place and seating are comfortable, no people, no queue, no need to wait. Probably the reason why.
Ng Wei Kang
5
Ordered Assam curry noodles, stir-fried tang hoon, and kopi c. On the whole, the portions are slightly large.
The Assam curry gravy is thick, with a good balance of sweet, sour, and spice. The trotters are soft and easily torn.
The stir-fried tang hoon comes with cabbage, egg, and a chicken chop. The chicken chop is well-marinated, and the tang hoon has wok hei and a nice savory flavor. This dish is attractive, and the chicken chop is very flavorful.
The total cost was approximately 35. We enjoyed the food.
Qing Liu
3
Hainan Story offers a mix of hits and misses. I enjoyed the tomato spaghetti with fried chicken, which was well-prepared. However, the Scottish pork chop was bland and lacked a proper marinade, making the meat uninteresting. On the brighter side, the avocado bread was awesome and a must-try. Unfortunately, the service leaves much to be desired. I was initially given the wrong dish, which didnāt include the chicken chop. After it was replaced, the meal still lacked consistency in portion, with a huge amount of chicken chop. Customers are expected to find seats themselves and self-serve to collect their food after making kiosk payments. The place is quite small and cramped with many tables and chairs, leading to a chaotic atmosphere. It was a bit of a challenge to navigate and find a spot amidst the crowd. As a newly opened restaurant, I think they need some time to fix these issues and improve their service, including better meal prep procedures to ensure consistent portions and taste. However, I will come back again for the avocado bread. šøš¬
Xin Yi Stephani
4
Hainan Story's chwee kueh is really good! It would be perfect if the chai bor (preserved radish) were less salty. This outlet seems to have more food variety than the other outlet. The environment is quite clean, and the food was nice. However, the peach bagel was a little disappointing.
CJ
1
I would start by complimenting the other dishes we ordered. They looked like the pictures and had decent portions. Furthermore, the taste was acceptable, considering the reasonable price. The $5.80 sausage was also nice, but definitely for sharing.
However, their Hainanese Scottish Pork Chop was a huge disappointment. First, the restaurant had run out of ingredients (coleslaw and baked beans were missing, as shown in the pictures). I received the pork chop and was shocked to see the thinnest, smallest slab of meat I've ever seen in a āpork chopā dish. I asked the staff, and she told me they had run out of the baked beans and that the white radish they were serving now was part of a ānew menuā ā but it wasn't updated. What was annoying is that this information wasn't shared with us before we ordered! After asking the staff, the best she could offer was an apology. Furthermore, the mushroom soup was thick and lumpy, but tasted decent.
My opinion is that if you know something is out of stock, or there's a menu change, you should let customers know beforehand so they can decide whether they still want the dish. This would help limit angry customers. And when a customer complains, offer something in return, because we still paid for the meal. All in all, I would rather visit the Jewel branch.
Pauline Yong
3
I had a kopi C on a Sunday afternoon there. I ordered through the self-service machine and got a buzzer to collect the coffee. I canāt say much about the food yet since I haven't tried it, but the coffee was rich and tasted great. The atmosphere and ambiance were great and very clean. Highly recommended.
Update in Dec 2024: I had the Har bi hiam pasta with Scottish pork chop and the pig trotters Assam noodles. It was very disappointing. The pasta was so spicy I couldnāt enjoy it at all. The pork chop was overcooked, and too hard. The Assam noodles were okay, a bit too sour, but the pig trotters looked more like pork belly, which had so much fat. I couldnāt find any pig trotters in it. I was also considering getting the fried pork, but saw another table order it, and it was over-fried, with a color that was too dark. The kitchen needs to look into this, please.