Actor Adam Chen opens scenic hotel rooftop cafe at Havelock Road with free pool access for diners

“It was an itchy backside situation,” quipped actor Adam Chen. He was explaining to 8days.sg why he opened a new cafe, after toughing out the recent COVID-19 pandemic where he saw business for his eateries fall by as much as 90 per cent.

His latest venture, called Sunset on 11 (abbreviated as Soll), is located at the 11th-floor rooftop of Louis Kienne Serviced Residences at Havelock Road. Adam, who grew up in the neighbourhood and still lives there, came across the space by chance while looking for a location to open a cafe.

CAFE USED TO BE A MEETING ROOM

Before Adam took over his cafe space, it used to be a corporate meeting room that was open for bookings. “When I first viewed this place it was a dealbreaker for me, ’cos there was no kitchen,” he recalled. But he returned for a second viewing in the evening, where he saw the sunset from the rooftop. “The view blew me away,” he said.

The serviced apartment building, which also functions like a tourist hotel, had a pantry on the 10th floor just below the rooftop. Convinced on the location’s potential, Adam got approval from the building management to convert the pantry to a commercial kitchen. “I retrofitted it with an exhaust hood at my own cost so that the kitchen is functional,” he shared.

Over the years Adam has opened and shut F&B concepts like yakitori bar Birders, donburi restaurant Ebisu Bowls and Park cafe at Holland Village, but still maintains a can-do attitude in the competitive industry for his loyal staff.

“My chef has stayed with me for over 13 years, and my staff were the ones who helped me earn money when times were good. At least I give them something to look forward to when I open a new outlet,” he explained. He still runs his longtime restaurant-bar Ikki Izakaya at The Metropolis.

'HIDDEN' SPOT

His new cafe’s location is hidden and relatively hard to access, which means that only people who know of its existence might patronise it. “This place is tough, I will admit. It’s not easy for me to market this place,” laughed Adam.

He reasons that customers’ tastes and expectations have changed after the pandemic. “When people go out these days, they really want to make it count. They want a special ambience, so I have to focus on giving people an experience,” he said.

CAFE WITH A POOL

Sunset on 11 has 40 indoor air-conditioned seats, which overlooks a scenic rooftop pool and has a bird’s eye view of the Havelock Road neighbourhood. The pool area comes with 10 deck chairs and another 30-person patio which cafe customers can also use. “It makes for a good event space,” shared Adam.

A unique perk for diners: You can bring your swimsuit and have a dip in the pool without having to book a hotel room. The caveat? There are no shower facilities save for an outdoor pool shower to rinse off, so plan your visit accordingly.

According to Adam, there is a confinement centre operating in the building too. He revealed: “The rent for a three-bedroom apartment here costs around $12,000 a month.”

THE MENU

The cafe serves a Western-style brunch menu similar to Adam’s defunct Park cafe. There are burgers, burritos, mac & cheese, loaded bagels, pastas and pizzas to go with beer, wine and coffee.

SOLL TALL STACK, S$24

Prices start from S$12 for a har cheong gai wings appetiser, and average at S$16 to S$19 for a main dish like seared mentaiko salmon burger (S$19), Parma ham pizza (S$16), fish and chips ($16) and rib eye steak wrap ($18).

For big eaters, there is an “ultimate beef burger” called the Soll tall stack (S$24), which comes with a thick beef patty, sautéed mushrooms, caramelised onions, fried bacon, sunny-side up egg, blue cheese dressing and guacamole.

ESPRESSO PORK CHOP BURGER, S$18

Portions here are generous, like this hearty zi char-inspired coffee pork ribs burger draped in a sticky house-made espresso glaze. The succulent boneless pork chops are stacked with caramelised onions, pineapple and toasted buns, and served with fries.

TRUFFLE MAC & CHEESE, S$17

The truffle mac & cheese is also good, baked with turkey ham, gruyere, cheddar and finished with a drizzle of truffle oil.

TRUFFLED BEEF CAULIFLOWER FRIED RICE, S$20

Avid gym rat Adam confesses that he wanted a diet-friendly dish to order at his own cafe, which is why he also offers cauliflower rice (which is basically cauliflower florets blitzed into grain-sized bits). This is paired with a slab of Australian rib eye steak, an onsen egg, caramelised onions and teriyaki dressing. Not exactly clean eating, but reasonably tasty and filling.

SOL REFRESHER COCKTAIL, S$18

Wash down your food with a draught beer like Asahi Dry (S$8.50 for half a pint; S$12 for a pint) or coffee like a latte (S$5.50). There are also cocktails, including a vodka and lemon juice-spiked Soll Refresher (S$18) that’s topped off with sparkling wine. Non-alcoholic drinks such as calpis soda (S$5) and juices (S$6) are available too.

Sunset on 11 is at L11 Louis Kienne Serviced Residences, 554 Havelock Road, Singapore 169639. Tel: 8887 1280. Open daily except Monday. Tuesday-Friday 12pm-11pm, Friday and Saturday 10am-11pm, Sunday 11am-8pm. www.facebook.com/sunseton11 

This story was originally published in 8Days.