Whilst there is quite a saturation of cafes within the Joo Chiat / Katong neighbourhood in recent times, it does seem that there are some new entrants that are eager to set up shop within the said neighbourhood. Enter Hainan Immigrants — these folks can be considered as the newest addition to the neighbourhood being situated at 74 Joo Chiat Place; the address makes them somewhat within the same area as the Singapore outpost of You Kee XO Restaurant 有记XO烧腊之家 and Cata Coffee. In fact, the shophouse had once played host to the Louis Vuitton x Murakami Pop-Up not too long ago. For those whom have been following the F&B scene for a while, Hainan Immigrants is a dining establishment that is opened by the same folks behind the now-defunct 1932 Story which operated within the compound of Bukit Timah Railway Station along the Rail Corridor after the redevelopment of the old railway tracks into a green corridor. These folks also once operated as Smoke within Esplanade Mall at some point of time before its revamp as Addicted to Black when they had shifted to Ubi. The way which Hainan Immigrants is decked seems to have been inspired by the brand’s existence as 1932 Story; Hainan Immigrants does seem to be themed after an old-school traditional Chinese medicine hall; the interior being filled with vintage furniture and fittings where some may also feel the space being a little cluttered. Each corner seems to tell its own history; one section at the back even being styled like an old-school salon. The centrepiece here seems to be the old-school traditional Chinese medicine hall cabinets that can be found behind the counter, while the counter is also filled with old-school photographs that adds on to the rustic vibes of the entire space. One can also hear the vintage clocks going tick-tock, while they also do play chimes after every hour. Tables at Hainan Immigrants are configured in a manner that suits patrons visiting the establishment in pairs or in groups of up to six (6) pax. The food menu at Hainan Immigrants comprises of sections dedicated to Small Bites, Breakfast (available only from 9am to 11:30am), Pasta, Local, Western & Burger and Dessert. Beverages available at Hainan Immigrants include quite a number of their own concoctions apart from espresso-based specialty coffee and tea.

There are quite a number of items on the menu at Hainan Immigrants that seem to suggest that the establishment might be one that not only serves up western fare and Straits-style western fare, but also a small number of dishes that consists of local fusion elements. One such item will be the Signature Chili Crab Pasta which is said to be available during lunch and dinner service. The menu describes the Signature Chili Crab Pasta to come with elements such as tomatoes, chili sauce, slipper lobster, mussel and mantou. Portion size of the fish does seem to come across as pretty generous considering how the dish came in a larger-than-usual plate; it also came with quite a fair bit spaghetti whilst the seafood elements are also substantially sized — the slipper lobster coming whole and sliced into half for the convenience of the diners. We weren’t too big a fan of the spaghetti which somehow did come with a slightly doughy note that we weren’t too fond of; that being said, the chili crab sauce did help to mask some of that with its sweet-ish notes and a slightly tang. We liked how the sauce does replicate the flavours of the classic chili crab dish; coming with a suitably dense consistency with streaks of curdled egg white coming within for a silkier texture. If anything, we would have preferred for jt to come with a more intense kick of spiciness just to tickle the tastebuds even further. The slipper lobster flesh does come fresh with a slight sweetness of crustaceans, though the mussels does fine with varying levels of freshness though none of those served for our Signature Chili Crab Pasta did come across as bad. The inclusion of the deep-fried mantou was a nice attempt to bring the dish close to what it intends to replicate; these definitely came with a crisp exterior and a fluffy interior — the interior being sweet on its own and whilst a little greasy on the exterior, wasn’t soaking wet with oil within.

During the same visit to Hainan Immigrants, we had also went for the Hainan Immigrants Kaya Toast Bun — this is an item that is available as an ala-carte dish, or can be bundled as a set that only includes Latte or a Long Black. We had our order of the Hainan Immigrants Kaya Toast Bun as an ala-carte item. Interestingly, Hainan Immirgants serves their Hainan Immigrants Kaya Toast Bun in a form of three (3) mini-sized UFO buns; think of these as almost like a Singaporean form of a “Dim Sum” offering as one may. These do look a little plain Jane on first sight, but we did realise that the bread was served warm and toasted; these brown surface of the bun carrying a little bit of a crispness to it. We would say that Hainan Immigrants did get their Hainan Immigrants Kaya Toast Bun right by serving it with Hainanese-style Kaya; the one that comes with a brown hue that comes from the use of caramel in its preparation process, though the Hainanese-style Kaya does seem to be one that is commercially-made. The slab of butter is well-portioned and served chilled; slightly salted to bring a contrast of sweet and saltish notes for the Hainan Immigrants Kaya Toast Bun. We paired everything up with the Charred Smoke Latte — this will be an espresso-based specialty coffee concoction that sees the infusion of charcoal into the beverage. This explains the slightly greyish / blackish appearance of the cuppa as opposed to that of standard lattes that we are used to seeing. Truth to be told, we didn’t find it to come with any smoky notes as what it seems to have promised, though this is an earthy cuppa with a roasty flavour profile that we did find was a little bit on the milkier side though still fairly well-pulled in general.

Overall, Hainan Immigrants does feel like an establishment that is more for the vibes than that of the fare; that being said, this is a rarity where this much emphasis has went towards the entire decor of the space — this does remind us of some cafes in the past where the operators spent a lot of time and effort into the design of the space; something that feels different from the tired and overused minimalist, clean and industrial themes that cafes these days tend to go for. With such vibes that one can only find in cafes that are located overseas these days, Hainan Immigrants do feel like an establishment that would have a bit of presence on social media. Prices of its individually-sized dishes from the Breakfast, Pasta, Local and the Western & Burger sections of the menu are priced between $8.90 to $19.80; the lowest-priced item on the menu being the Classic Club Sandwich listed in the Breakfast section, while the highest-priced item would be the Signature Chili Crab Pasta that we went for. Given its unique vibes against other cafes within the local F&B scene, Hainan Immigrants is worth making that trip to soak into the environment that they have painstakingly created for its patrons.