Wandering around Japanese Garden, the sounds of Studio Ghibli music filled the air as we approached the Sunken Garden. The music was coming from a hidden cafe tucked away at the Japanese Garden attractions: the Ice-Cream Man And Friends Garden Cafe.
Hidden Cafe at Japanese Garden’s Sunken Garden: Ice-Cream Man And Friends
Ice-Cream Man And Friends Garden Cafe is the only cafe or eatery within Japanese Garden. While other eateries at Chinese Garden like Canopy Jurong Lake Gardens at the Main Arch building serves food along with beverages, this small little cafe focuses on ice cream.
However, they may have hit across something because in the heat of the nearing mid-day, we found ourselves gravitating towards the alcove where they are located.
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Drawn by the need for some refreshment and respite from the heat, we found ourselves settling down at the Ice-Cream Man And Friends Garden Cafe for a rest.
The cafe is very much made up of a counter and focuses on selling ice cream and beverages.
Amongst the ice cream flavours available at Ice-Cream Man And Friends were familiar ones like Cookies & Cream, French Vanilla and Hokkaido Milk. Some other ice-cream flavours that caught our eye included the bright blue Cookie Monster and the pink-and-blue of Bubble Gum. Each tub of ice cream had a cute cartoon character attached to it. We thought that it would be fun if there was a backstory tied to each flavour and the character.
Other notable ice cream flavours at the cafe included Green Apple Yakult and Grape Yakult.
We eventually settled on the Momo (Peach) Sencha flavour.
Cups start at $4.50 for one flavour and from $5.50 for one flavour in a cone.
Waffles & More
What goes better with ice cream than waffles. You can get buttermilk waffles, red velvet waffles or charcoal waffles at the cafe too. Prices start from $11.50.
There is also a Breakfast Club set comprising of either Waffles with Caramel Banana & Black Coffee at $9.50 or a Croissant & Black Coffee for $5.50.
Seating Area
The seating area at Ice-Cream Man And Friends Garden Cafe is made up of tables and wicker chairs under broad umbrellas that provide welcomed shade.
The environment is lovely and we found ourselves glued to our chairs for longer than expected. For those who are not familiar, the Sunken Garden at Japanese Garden is meant to simulate a collapsed limestone cave. It features plants growing on the wall as well as the gentle sound of trickling water.
We also appreciated the Studio Ghibli music that was being played from a loudspeaker, which created a magical ambiance. Our only complaint was that the music was being played too loudly. While we can understand that it is let people know that there is a cafe at the Sunken Garden, we found ourselves moving further and further away from the loudspeaker to preserve our eardrums.
Another good thing to know about the Ice-Cream Man And Friends Garden Cafe environment is that there is a restroom next to it. So it is easy to wash your hands, if you need to, after enjoying the ice cream.
Overall, Ice-Cream Man And Friends Garden Cafe is a nice place to visit for its chill vibes. It probably best to visit for lazy mornings, or in the late afternoon and evening time.
Ice-Cream Man And Friends Garden Cafe at Japanese Garden
Where: Sunken Garden at Japanese Garden, Jurong Lake Gardens (view map here)
Opening hours: Weekdays (Mon to Fri) – 10 am to 10 pm; Weekends (Sat to Sun) & Public Holidays – 9 am to 10 pm
Website: Ice-Cream Man And Friends
