Summer Folks Cafe & Steakhouse is one of those dining establishments that had moved into Guoco Midtown ever since the construction works of the building had concluded — these folks are located around the same area where one can find other F&B establishments such as that of Mashi No Mashi, Umai Artisanal Udon Bar, The Telegraph by Olivia and the outlet of Dal.Komm Playground there. This may be a well-known fact considering how Summer Folks Cafe & Steakhouse had been in operations for quite a while; for those whom hadn’t heard of it yet though, Summer Folks Cafe & Steakhouse is actually a concept behind the same folks of The Royals Cafe at Siglap — these folks also do operate W39 Bistro and Bakery at Jalan Mas Puteh around the West Coast neighbourhood as well. The shop unit in which Summer Folks Cafe & Steakhouse occupies features a glass facade all around the dining hall of the establishment — the glass windows being tinted to allow some light to pass through, though it does minimise the chances of any glare from intense sunlight to say the least. The interior of the cafe is actually decked rather simply in an attempt to create a cosy and unpretentious vibe — the white walls matching the grey walls, while the counter does come with a brick-like look that adds on to the ambience of the dining establishment; there is the use of wooden furniture for the dining furniture of the establishment that fits just nicely to the entire setting as well. Tables at Summer Folks Cafe & Steakhouse are configured to a set-up that caters to patrons visiting in pairs or inJust like how The Royals Cafe & W39 Bistro and Bakery are, Summer Folks Cafe & Steakhouse is a halal-certified dining establishment; Summer Folks Cafe & Steakhouse attempts to be a cafe by day and a steakhouse by night as its namesake suggests — offering different menus during its daytime and evening operations, the menu at Summer Folks Cafe & Steakhouse is split into sections dedicated to Salads, Sides, Soup and For Our Mini-Me(s) (i.e. kid’s menu), Pastas, Burgers / Naan and Seafood which are available all day, The Folk’s Brunch and The Royals Signatures that available from opening till 5pm daily, and the From Our Charcoal Grill and To Share section that is only available from 5pm to 8:30pm daily. Beverages available at Summer Folks Cafe & Steakhouse will include espresso-based specialty coffee, teas drinking chocolate and a line-up of housemade concoctions listed under the Summer Folks Specials section of the menu — just to name a few.

We had been wanting to give some of items at Summer Folks Cafe & Steakhouse a go for a quite a while considering how the establishment does seem to serve up dishes with an Asian-influence despite being a cafe and steakhouse that also sees more brunch-style offerings as well as charcoal-grilled meats that are being listed on their menu. The Ayam Bakar with Nasi Berigin is one such example of a dish that can be found in the The Royals Signatures section of the menu only available from opening till 5pm daily. The Nasi Berigin is described on the menu as a dish featuring fragrant basmati rice and homemade achar — other elements coming along with the dish would be that of the sambal chili that comes along on the side; patrons do actually get a choice to opt between the Ayam Bakar and the Ikan Bakar which we opted for the former and both options do see the addition of the Chef’s Special Bakar sauce being drenched atop. For those whom hadn’t heard of Nasi Berigin, the dish is said to have been originated from Johor in Malaysia and is one that is served to royalties — itself being fragrant basmati rice that is said to feature elements such as lemongrass, Pandan and ginger; the entire result does seem to bring the flavours of the dish closer to a lighter version of pineapple-infused rice, though way lighter in flavour without the stark sweetness and zippiness that sometimes comes along with the typical pineapple fried rice. The Ayam Bakar was one that really caught us by surprise given how it was executed; the Ayam Bakar sauce here does seem closer to a very mild version of a Peri-Peri Sauce but the highlight is certainly on how it was being grilled — the Ayam Bakar comes all tender and juicy, whilst being marinated in turmeric for an added flavour. It seems that the Ayam Bakar itself has gone through the charcoal grill treatment here that gives the Ayam Bakar a hint of smokiness; some would liken this to how satay would typically be like, though this is also rather similar to that of Balinese-style grill to a certain extent as well. The achar that Summer Folks Cafe & Steakhouse had added to the dish provided a refreshing, tangy crunch to the dish — liked how they have also excluded the use of peanuts that seemingly caters to those whom may be allergic to them; some attention to detail there since there wasn’t mention of the use of peanuts in the dish in the menu as well. The sambal was fairly intriguing as well; whilst coming with a hint of spices lingering in the front whilst carrying a savoury and spicy kick that should
be manageable for those whom are tolerable to moderate levels of spiciness.

During the same visit to Summer Folks Cafe & Steakhouse, we had also went for their Signature Nyonya Mee Siam — this is a dish that is pretty notable ever since the days that The Royals Cafe had been established, and is yet another time that is featured in the The Royals Signatures section of the menu being served up from opening till 5pm daily. Summer Folks Cafe & Steakhouse describes their Signature Nyonya Mee Siam to come with elements such as tamarind chili prawn broth, sous-vide egg, beansprouts, beancurd puffs, homemade sambal, lime and tiger prawns — it also further adds that the broth does come with dried shrimp, coconut milk and peanuts; a useful note for those whom may be allergic to these elements. For one whom is usually not too intrigued with Mee Siam in general, the Signature Nyonya Mee Siam was something that piqued our tastebuds and left us yearning for more. The key here seems to be in their tamarind chili prawn broth that comes with a refreshing tang and with a zippy note — despite the use of coconut milk, we liked how it provided sufficient depth to the flavours of the Mee Siam without being particularly heavy nor altering the flavours of what one would expect out of a typical Mee Siam dish. The thin Bee Hoon used in the Mee Siam soaks up the flavours of the broth, while the beancurd puffs does come with a spongey, airy texture that also absorbs all of that broth; the beansprouts adding a crunch to it. The sous-vide egg does come with soft whites and a runny egg yolk; gives the dish a silkier and smoother texture.

We also managed to try the Kaya Toast Set which is an item that is listed on The Folk’s Brunch section of the menu. These folks had described the variant of the Kaya Toast Set to come with Pandan Kaya, French Butter and Grilled Butter Top Loaf — coming as a set, this also comes accompanied with sous-vide eggs and a drink of the patron’s choice; the drink available as part of the set for the patron to choose from being just a limited variety of drinks that is listed in their full beverages menu. We found ourselves opting for the Hot Cafe Latte to go along with the Kaya Toast Set that we have ordered. It is worth noting that the Kaya Toast Set is only available as a set at Summer Folks Cafe & Steakhouse; there is no ala-carte option for the dish. The Grilled Butter Top Loaf does come sliced pretty thinly; well-toasted with the bread coming with some grilled marks and carrying a slight crispness while coming with Nonya-style Kaya that has a green hue — the Kaya being aptly sweet against the slab of butter that adds a slight savouriness to the toast. The sous-vide egg that comes along on the side comes with runny egg yolks and soft whites; the folks at Summer Folks Cafe & Steakhouse also provides light soy sauce and pepper on the side to pair with the sous-vide eggs.

Opting for the Hot Cafe Latte, it is worth noting that Summer Folks Cafe & Steakhouse uses a blend of beans roasted by local-microroastery Six Four Coffee named Seahawk for their espresso-based specialty coffee offerings — this blend features a mix of beans from three different origins namely being Ethiopia, Columbia and Indonesia; the tasting notes being that of plum, blackcurrant, malt and honey. The cuppa is pretty well-pulled; creamy and smooth while being one that comes with a medium body and an earthy flavour profile — quite a cuppa that would work well as a morning perk-me-up. Despite giving only a small number of the items that they have to offer a go, Summer Folks Cafe & Steakhouse does seem to have already impressed us with the food that they have to offer — it does seem pretty clear that Summer Folks Cafe & Steakhouse is an establishment that builds on the success that The Royals Cafe has become to be over the years; all that whilst expanding on a clear focus on charcoal grilled meats that is definitely a highlight at Summer Folks Cafe & Steakhouse for us. Prices of the items which Summer Folks Cafe & Steakhouse serves up during lunch hours are within the range of $9.80 to $29.80; the lowest-priced item being the Kaya Toast Set while the priciest would be the New York Strip Linguine. Being a cafe and a steakhouse, it does seem that Summer Folks Cafe & Steakhouse caters to those looking for just a spot serving up brunch-y fare for a weekend catch-up as well as those whom celebrating occasions with friends and family — service staff are also attentive to the needs of their guests and are also very quick to give patrons an introduction of the establishment and its various offerings as well. Considering our pleasant dining experience with food that delivers, Summer Folks Cafe & Steakhouse is one of those halal-certified dining establishments that we would recommend for celebrations as well as a place for casual meals worth checking out in the Bugis neighbourhood away from the Kampong Glam area.