The Dispensary Heritage

Was a little surprised to have found The Dispensary making its return to the local F&B scene yet again — while these folks are probably most remembered during its stint located in a former dispensary that is situated within a shophouse unit at Tiong Bahru, there was a period of time that The Dispensary was operating as The Dispensary Bistro within the compounds of the d’Leedon condominium. The folks at The Dispensary had since ceased operations at that location as well, and is now found to have opened as The Dispensary Heritage that is located within the compounds of Sims Urban Oasis. Unlike their former location at d’Leedon, its Sims Urban Oasis location is known to be opened to public — the space that it occupies at Sims Urban Oasis is one that was once tenanted by the now-defunct ALTO Cafe. For those whom are unaware of where the publicly-accessible entrance of The Dispensary Heritage is located, it is just after a flight of stairs after one drops off at the bus stop beside the condominium complex along Aljunied Road. The entire lower level of the space is dedicated to dine-in seating — there are some fittings such as the ceiling lamps that seems to have been around since the space was Alto Cafe; that being said, the space does feature a checkerboard-style flooring, whilst featuring cushioned seating matched against tables with white table tops. Meanwhile, one can find posters on the wall depicting past locations of The Dispensary over the years, and the upper level is solely dedicated to their kitchen as well as the counter to place the order. The menu at The Dispensary had somewhat changed a lot leading up to its current iteration at Sims Urban Oasis — gone would be the notable selection of cakes that they used to serve up during the days when they were at Tiong Bahru; the menu now features a variety of hot food spread across categories such as All Day Breakfast, Soups, Sides & Sharing, Salads, Mains and Rice Mains (only available till 4pm). Beverages available at The Dispensary Heritage includes coffee and a variety of teas.

Skimming through the menu at The Dispensary Heritage, the item that seem to have stood out to us the most was the Otah Aglio Olio that is being listed in the Mains section of the menu — likely so considering this was one of the very few items that sees the incorporation of a local element to form a dish with a fusion dish. The menu does not describe on the components that come with the Otah Aglio Olio, though it could be observed from our order that the Otah Aglio Olio does come with linguine that is tossed with chunks of Otah, as well as what seems to be Lao Gan Ma-esque chili considering the Chili oil that sits at the bottom of the entire dish. One can also notice the inclusion of onions, as well as chili padi in the dish as well. Whilst we really wanted to like this dish quite badly, we found it rather hard to do so — one of the biggest letdowns of the dish here was the consistency of the pasta itself. The dried pasta was not executed well; itself carrying a chewy texture whilst some parts stood out particularly having seemingly been charred and dried up — something which we found to be particularly appalling especially when The Dispensary isn’t a name that is new to the local F&B scene, as it also considered to be a fairly popular spot at some point of time in its history as well. The chunks of Otah does feel like they came from the commercially-made slabs of Muar-style Otah that one can obtain from supermarkets around; not something which we are particularly bothered with and was something which we liked — the Otah being soft and chunky; all that whilst also adding a spicy kick with a light hint of rempah spices for some contrast.

That being said, the addition of Lao Gan Ma-esque chili seems to have made the entire dish feel rather flat; Lao Gan Ma-esque chili usually helps to further enhance the notes of a dish when there is an inherently savoury element such as meat in the dish, though this felt like there was a lack of depth to the fragrance of the chili oil that could further bring its flavours out. Even the Cafe Latte that we have had fell short of expectations as well; the coffee whilst coming with milk just felt too diluted — the milk failing to provide a richness that thickened the coffee even, not to mention the oddly sourish body that it carried with the addition of milk that just isn’t particularly appealing. The Dispensary had been a spot that has quite a vibrant past being an icon of the local cafehopping scene; a location that was not only about their cakes, but also one that celebrates the heritage of the shophouse that it was once located at. In its current state, it does seem that the entire spirit that The Dispensary has once been so celebrated upon have become a story of the past — the vibes of its former location is definitely one that cannot be recreated; something that has also haunted other brand names that are well-focused in the heritage of their initial location until they are forced to relocate. That being said, The Dispensary Heritage has a lot to look into especially in respect of their food offerings which some work is definitely needed.