Cafe Review: King And The Pawn Slays The Game in Bugis-Bras Basah, Singapore
PUBLISHED September 10th, 2020 06:00 am
You’re probably familiar with the concept of a board game cafe, but King and the Pawn takes it to another level with over 300 types of games, a range of comfort classics for nosh, and a unique drinks menu. Situated in the Bras Basah area, this bar and cafe is a great choice for a one-of-a-kind evening out on the town.
Whether you’re headed down with a date or in a gang of five, King and the Pawn has small bites, sharing platters, and mains to keep everyone satisfied. Their Honey Lime Sriracha Wings (S$12.50) are everything you love about fried chicken but made better, with a tangy glaze and a spicy yet sweet, almost sambal-like chili dipping sauce which add great depth of flavour to the dish.
Another great sharing option is their Camembert Brûlée (S$23), a whole baked camembert that’s oh so oozy and melty, finished with a crispy brûlée top. Take your pick of fresh pear, roasted grapes, and crostini to dip into the cheese, or if you’re like us – just dive straight in with a spoon!
For the hungry, a main that’ll keep you fuelled up is their Creamy Duck Confit Pasta (S$21). Creamy, umami-rich white wine sauce coats every strand of capellini, tossed with mushrooms and duck confit.
Playing board games is thirsty work so you wouldn’t want to skip over their cocktail menu either. As the name suggests, the Pandan Pineapple Patchwork (S$16.50) was a delightful concoction of pandan, pineapple, and passion fruit (we’re loving the alliteration here). It’s bright-tasting with a lovely earthy note. If you want to stick to something a little more classic, their Level 2 Magic Maze Mojito (S$16.50) is a great choice, with a passionfruit and orange twist on the usual lime-based tipple.
Feeling lucky? Come down during happy hour (running from Tuesdays to Fridays, 5.30pm to 8pm) and score two cocktails for S$22 if you roll a double. Folks who prefer beer will be happy to see a selection of craft brews available, such as the Hitachino Nest Yuzu Saison (S$13.50), a beautifully floral and citrusy brew made with sake yeast.
Now, we couldn’t come to a board game cafe and not play some board games. King and the Pawn’s daunting collection of board games is organised in user-friendly and practical categories like number of players and difficulty level, so don’t fret if you’re not a board game junkie. They also have board game gurus on hand who are happy to give you recommendations and walk you through the rules, a blessing for us newbies.
They do have a board game fee (S$8 from Tuesdays to Thursdays, S$13 from Fridays to Sundays), but there’s no time limit on this one-time payment. Come ready to game the night (or day) away!
King and the Pawn is located at 24 Purvis St, Level 2, Singapore 188601. Open Tues — Thur 5.30pm — 11.30pm, Fri 5.30pm — 1am, Sat 11am — 1.30am, and Sun 11am — 10pm.
