New Dutch Colony UE Square outlet - good coffee comes to River Valley

The new Dutch Colony Coffee UE Square outlet is their third cafe in Singapore. They started with the outlet at Pasarbella in Turf City, followed by the second and bigger one in Frankel Avenue. Branch #3, Dutch Colony UE Square, brings them into the River Valley / Clark Quay area and closer to downtown Singapore.

We had been to the Dutch Colony Coffee cafe in Frankel Avenue and had a good experience (read our review here). The new Dutch Colony UE Square outlet looks quite different. Instead of the dark industrial look of Frankel, the branch at UE Square is bright and modern in outlook. We very much prefer this type of decor.

Dutch Colony Coffee UE Square only opened in January 2017 and so everything looks new and sparkling. Coffee being the main focus in this cafe, it is no surprise to see the coffee machines taking centre stage. Other than beverages, the food items were limited to cakes and cookies in the display. Perhaps the range of food will expand after the initial stages. There is a retail section selling coffee beans and coffee-making equipment.

Here is a picture of the Dutch Colony UE Square menu featuring mainly filter and espresso coffee, tea, juices and a few other beverage options.

The Hummingbird cake looked enticing in the display and so we could not resist trying a slice ($7.90) with our macchiato ($4) and long black ($4.50). We are not sure what is a humming-bird cake and why it is named after the bird that hovers and can fly backwards. A quick internet search tells us that it is a cake that is made with oil instead of butter. Interesting. It is made with a lot of fruits and nuts. We did not detect any difference between oil and butter when we were eating it. But there was quite a bit of different fruits in the mix. It was a like a sort of carrot cake injected with many fruity flavours. A wonderfully moist and fruity cake.

As for the coffee, we can see why this cafe draws its fair share of fine coffee fans. Even in its new location near Mohamed Sultan Road, there was a constant turnover of customers. The coffee was dark and rich, but without being bitter. The coffee taste lingers on the palate long after it goes down the throat. Wine drinkers may describe it as a drink that has great length. $4.50 is not a small sum to pay for a cup of coffee but it is a more than fair price for this quality of coffee relative to those in some hip cafes. A coffee break at Dutch Colony UE Square is certainly on our radar should we be in the UE Square area.