MU Parlour

Came here on a weekday with a friend to get some desserts after lunch. I read about this place through a rather popular food blogger’s recommendation, however, both food and service did not live up to my expectations at all.
Service was horrid — there were no other customers apart from us when we walked upstairs to the café but we were not even greeted with a welcome upon arrival. He sat at a chair looking at us until we said «table for two», where he handed us menus and told us to order at the cashier. When I paid for my order, not even a thank you was said. He just grabbed my money and plonked my order on the table top.
Ordered a fromage blanc. It tasted a little stale but that’s not the worst part of it — THERE WAS A STRAND OF HAIR IN MY DESSERT.
I didn’t pay $ 8.80 for terrible service and the nauseating experience of trying to remove the strand of hair from my mouth whist chewing this stale slice of dessert. That $ 8.80 is more than what I get paid for at my part time job. I wasted more than an hour’s worth of pay for this horrifying experience.
It’s a appalling that such cafes are getting recognition on well known blogs whilst providing such service and food.

I was sorely disappointed with the desserts and service here, especially after reading great reviews about the café. Some friends and I decided to celebrate a friend’s birthday with desserts at MU Parlour seeing that prices were affordable and most of the cakes looked decent, until they served them to us on a plate. Unlike most cafes, our cakes were served on their sides (unfortunately I don’t have a photo). Presentation aside, the cakes were dry and stale. Of the five desserts we ordered (four slices of cake and a tart), only the chocolate tart was palatable.
We then went to the counter to alert the staff that their cakes were stale and to MU’s embarrassment, one of the staff, a middle aged Chinese man, brushed us off by saying «the cakes are supposed to be like that». On top of that, he argued with us that the cakes had just arrived that day and there was nothing wrong with their dessert. He even tried to convince us that if he gave us another slice of each cake, it wouldn’t be dry. After we declined, he got defensive and rude, glaring at us while asking «so what do you want? You want a refund?» After some time, he called his boss over the phone who instructed him to refund our money.
Not one word of apology came from this man throughout the episode. Needless to say, I do not recommend this café for desserts. Perhaps they fare better with savoury food.
Overall, one star because the owner very kindly agreed to a refund and also for their chocolate tart which my friend enjoyed.

Mu Parlor (pardon the American spelling) has ambience, good service, and the pièce de résistance great food at reasonable prices.
The first thing you notice when you step into the unassuming little shop is a refreshing blast of cool, yet not cold, air that breathes life back into you. The smell of their food either cooking in the kitchen or resting in their desserts display wafts into your nose and the entire scene feels perfect.
Music beats through the air with enough life to give rise to conversation but enough subtlety to allow it to thrive. The space in the restaurant is excellently put to use and its ragtag assortment of furniture makes it feel homely.
Once you set foot into Mu Parlor, the employee behind the counter immediately greets you and escorts you to your table, despite their conspicuous lack of staff. And when you leave, your departure is regaled with just as much enthusiasm as your arrival. A pleasant experience, regardless of the quality of a restaurant.
Throughout the course of my meal, they were helpful and quick to fulfill any needs I could come up with. In general, good staff are hard to find, and I must compliment the employees of Mu Parlor. The young lady who catered to my table even took the initiative of offering to tell us the most noteworthy entrées after affirming that it was our first visit to the eatery.
The food itself is respectably affordable, especially when compared to many of Mu Parlor’s competitors. Their meal sets, especially, challenge the notions that good food must be both presented in minuscule portions and expensive enough to noticeably lighten your wallet when you walk out the door. Even if you pay by card.
I had the good fortune to dine with another person and we managed to devour one of their their meal sets between the two of us. Their burgers are flavorful and moist, with a generous patty that leaves its taste lingering on the tongue — a rarity in Singapore. The charcoal buns were perhaps slightly tough but there was a crunch to them that introduced a delightful texture to the meal.
The garlic fries were equally crispy, as were the drumlets and wings. Despite this, however, both left me wanting. Texture alone does not make a meal and had the fries not been liberally coated in white garlic cubes, I would not have known they were garlic fries at all. Perhaps I am overused to the spectacular aroma that arises from the fries in Gilroy, California, but I found the fries lacking.
The wings presented a much greater problem in that when I bit into their succulent flesh, I could see blood flowing off the bone and onto my plate. Had it been beef I might not have protested, for I am an advocate of medium-​rare steaks, but raw chicken leaves me ill at ease.
Perhaps I was simply in a good mood or exceptionally hungry but the flaws I found in Mu Parlor did little to detract from my overall experience. Maybe it was the humble décor but something about that little almost-​café awarded me with a sense of leniency and acceptance. It is possible, even, that the helpful staff present during my meal so vastly changed my opinion.

I went here because I saw the black buns on the burgers on Instagram. I was impressed. I loved the ambiance. Very chic and contemporary design and a great view. I liked the burgers a lot and thought they were pretty decent. We also had a chocolate tart which was very good. Mu Parlour is truly a magnificent whole in the wall. I plan in returning next time I find myself at holland village

I’ve generally encountered an inverse correlation between the amount of thought that is evident in the look of a restaurant space and the dining experience, in Singapore. I am all for entrepreneurs creating cool spaces and transporting ideas from their travels overseas, but it seems the food or service tends to fall short despite those elements being the primary drivers of profit. Yes, I get that it is difficult to employ good service people who will stick around but there are restaurants (and even a club) that have consistently excellent service, so they must be training/​paying/​doing something right. Ditto for the consistency of food coming from the kitchen.
So putting all rationales aside, this is a short gist of my experience at MU. I’ve been there twice, once in the afternoon on the weekend and once at night on a Monday, both times for drinks. Both times I ordered a lemonade and it came freshly squeezed as promised, but I had to go up to the counter to order because I couldn’t get the waiter’s attention. Third visit was last Friday at around 9.30pm with a large group of about 15 young, working adults. We knew it would be difficult for some places to accommodate us so 1 – 2 of our friends went in to inquire about a table and whether dinner was still available. We got a yes on both counts and so the group settled in. Here’s where things got choppy:
— When we were ready to order, we had to wave several times to get the waiters’ (yes that’s more than one waiter) attention because all 3 were behind the counter — one making a coffee and two on their phones or chatting.
— Half the menu was unavailable. The «all day brunch» was I guess, literally, only available during the day and not at night. So we all had to order burgers or the Mu platter but oh, one of the cheese options wasn’t. Then when we tried to order some of the Japanese craft beers, I lucked again and had to pick my third choice.
— We ordered water for everyone and nothing came. When I inquired again, I was told the café ran out of glasses, which is weird because besides our table, only half the tables were taken and that meant maybe 8 – 10 customers were around. Soooo the café only carries 10 glasses? I pleaded nicely that we’d really like some water because not everyone drinks beer and surprisingly, water appeared 10 minutes later.
— I had the No.11 burger and the whole plate came cold. I get that large orders may be difficult for some restaurants to handle but… really? I don’t care if my hamburger is «gourmet» or the meat is «chilled» or the fries are the first harvest of an organic golden field in Iowa, there are some cardinal rules to burger-​making and the first one is serve it hot. I still ate the burger anyway because I didn’t have dinner and for what it was temperature aside, it wasn’t spectacular. Take a lesson from Omakase burger if you’re going to charge more than $ 10 for an American staple.
— Nail in the coffin, we were told to leave because it was closing time. To each his own and this wasn’t a big issue to me, but I didn’t think it was the best form from a service perspective.
Bottom line, if you like minimal service and paying basically for a quirky looking seat and some air conditioning, this place is for you. The drinks are as promised but that’s about it, so if you want something more than that, there’s tons of choices up and down the strip.
-

Dessert junkies! This is a must stop! I am impressed with their cakes and pastries. Wish I had the stomach space for more but this place has one of the better desserts. I had the pralines and chocolate brownie and I must say it was awesome.
As for the savories, I opted for the breakfast since it was Sunday afternoon but there was simply too much sauce on my brioche and egg that the flavours were lost in the sea of sauce. The garlic on the fries were minimal which didn’t bring out much garlic flavour when you munch on the fries. Maybe I’ll try the burger next time. That seems to be a little more popular here. Hence, the one star less given for my review.
As for the coffee, I had latte — which isn’t too shabby. The latte art given to me was a little more elaborate and I appreciated it. It’s not horrendously bad as past reviews had mentioned — either that or the latte art kinda swayed my vote a little :)
The ambience here is good for chillout with friends or alone with a good book (i opted for the latter). It’s not too crowded on a Sunday afternoon but the staff isn’t too attentive to the tables after serving the mains. You’d have to try getting their attention to get your desserts. Sit by the window with a magazine or book and watch the world pass you by as you sip on their teas and savour the delectable desserts.

Most people complain about their drinks and I have to agree their drinks are nothing to rave about (I tried their tea concoctions) and in fact over priced. I am giving them 4 almost 5 stars for their burgers (took away 1 star because there was a bit too much sauce on the burgers), one of the best burgers in town. Fresh ingredients, tasty cooked just right, the restaurant has nice ambiance, is quiet (it’s a relatively unknown place afterall), you bet I will be back. So guys if you didn’t like their drinks or cakes, give their savory food a try, you might be surprised!

Despite the beautiful ambiance and its potential to attract the yuppie-​café-​drink crowd, this place unfortunately fails in 3 crucial areas — 1) food, 2) comfort and 3) service
Food
1. Afternoon delight (alcohol) — $ 15
— I liked it. It was a concoction of ice-​lemon tea and vodka.
2. Passion fruit cheesecake — $ 7
— The cheesecake was too dry for my liking. Maybe it had sat in the fridge for too long (I came after dinner).
3. Macchiato — $ 5.5
— Not bad, although they could be a little more generous with their serving. It was barely ¼ of a tea cup of coffee.
Comfort
The chairs, while beautiful and whimsical are extremely uncomfortable. Do not attempt to lean back on them. We sat on the fancy white ones and were shifting around uncomfortably the whole time.
Service
It must have been a long day, when I went up to the counter to ask what they would recommend, the server barely even looked me in the eye before murmuring — lemon tart or chocolate caramel tart. The lemon tart looked dried out, I could see the custard cuddling away from the side of the crust so I decided to pass.

Set above a shophouse along the colorful avenue that is Lorong Mambong, Mu is a quirky café that makes my sweet tooth very very happy. They know how to do a tasty dessert, and that’s why I love them. Open till 11pm, they are a great after-​dinner option to prolong your date, or to relax with friends after a long day. With their cozy interior and eclectic collection of furniture, you can take your pick from the white wrought iron garden chairs on the second floor, to the sexier, sleeker, black leather sofas upstairs.
Although they also offer some savory fare, cocktails, and other beverages, the general consensus seems to lean towards regarding this place solely as a dessert parlour. This, to me, is not a big deal. The idea of sitting at their picture window while sipping a hot cup of English Breakfast and nibbling on their luscious salted caramel tart is enough to send me into a sugar-​induced tizzy!

I walked by this place last week and was curious so I walked in. I was pleasantly surprised at the feminine décor and the delicious cake offerings here. I vowed to return. A week later, I went with a friend. She too was pleasantly surprised by the place. I like the vibe of this place. Its very casual and a good place to have good conversations with a friend or two. My friend had cocktails and she loved her first one, Gatsby, I think its called. I ordered a burger and got the set so it comes with hot tea and dessert. My burger had way too much sauce so next time, I’ll ask for the sauce on the side because it was too heavy. The burger was done pretty well in my opinion (it was well done) and had a good meaty juicy patty. I think folks who’ve reviewed the burgers like theirs done medium rare and I can understand why this would be a problem here. I loved my lemon meringue tart that I got for dessert.
I’ll have to come back to try the other desserts and their coffee. I hear the coffee is good here.

The good: Location (for me) and desserts. The only reason this is getting 2 stars (and not 1) is because the desserts are that damn good (and the latte wasn’t bad either). Great selection, perfect size, really well done. This place seems like a brainchild of a girl who was going to open up a dainty café and her boyfriend last minute was like «hey, you should have some hamburgers too!». The café part works well…
The bad: …but the gourmet burger element does not. Question for Mu, what do you consider a gourmet burger? Answer me that and I’ll tell you why this place doesn’t have’em. My burger was overcooked (should never happen and come to think of it I wasn’t asked how I wanted it cooked), standard bun, too many onions, processed cheese and all and all it was bland. What’s the meat you’re using? What about the ingredients? Cheese, condiments, toppings… all those elements need to be well thought out and unique for you to even consider calling it a gourmet burger.
The ugly: Burgers need to go, focus on the café elements and you might have something special. Everything is white, which is ok, but the space still feels empty. Add something over the top and go for a fairytale vibe.

Everything is clearly mismatched here yet it somehow still manages to tie in together with the quirky theme and white-​washed brick like furnished walls.
The menu here is all about gourmet burgers and fries, cakes and pastries that they have on display and of course the very essential coffee and tea selection that is so important for a good afternoon.
The staff too are not intrusive so really, it is a great place to relax and watch the world go by through the ceiling to floor glass window.

Look up and you’ll see the large glass façade overlooking the main Holland Village stretch. Something about it enticed us to go up (look for the nondescript doorway) to a charming little space with a great view of the HV stretch.
They serve up freshly made burgers — i had the Burger #11 which was a tender beef patty with bacon, avocado and a secret MU sauce, which was quite yummy, though with burgers like these its just not possible to eat it neatly. The #97 chicken burger with beetroot and mozzarella cheese was also quite good. The burgers comes with garlicky fries on the side.
You can top up $ 8 for additional coffee/​tea and a lovely range of dessert pastries with your burger. The chocolate tart was quite rich and yummy and came with a sesame and passionfruit mousse that set off the chocolate quite nicely, and the lemon meringue had a great tart shell and was refreshing though i wish it was runnier.
It’s a nice place to dine at and people watch, plus it’s not too crowded (on a weekday at least)… go check it out!