Hollin, Suntec City
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Eli, the bubble tea lover, introduced me to Hollin when the bubble tea brand has just opened its first store in Toa Payoh. The only thing I remember was her comment about it being pricy but she did not mind because thankfully, it tastes good. The problem is I am too lazy to go all the way to Toa Payoh just to try out Hollin so it kinda slipped my mind after that. Until I found out that it has another stall at Suntec City.
To be honest, I would only go to venture out all the way to Suntec City from my office in Tanjong Pagar if I am not too busy on that day and I eat by myself. Not everyone is up for this kind of foodie adventure during lunch hour so I don’t dare to impose this habit on anyone. I found out that Hollin is located in the East Wing (which is actually nearer to Promenade MRT station). So if you are able to locate Marche at the ground floor, you just need to go up 2 levels and walk further down to spot it. It’s pretty near to Toys’r’Us if you know where it is.
The staff was giving away tester for its Strawberry Rock Salt Macchiato and it tastes pretty yum for a macchiato lover like me. I am a fan of Koi’s green tea macchiato so I think I would like Hollin’s macchiato too. So despite it’s somewhat pricier range (cheapest is SGD 3.20), I decided to pick hazelnut rock salt tea macchiato with the pearls of the day, coffee pearls (SGD 4.20 for the drink + SGD 0.70 for the pearls). Hollin offers different pearls each day in addition to its standard honey pearls. It advertises the no added preservatives and no coloring but since it’s flavoured, I supposed it will be kinda sweet. But the coffee pearls are not that sweet tho because after all, it’s coffee-taste.
Upon collecting my drink, the staff told me that I should not mix the macchiato (which actually what I usually do for KOI’s green tea macchiato, oops) because it will ruin the drink. I decided it’s better for me to follow his instruction and sip it from the hole on top of the cup and oh boy, I love the taste of cheese froth layer which subsequently followed by the black tea. I think 25% is just right for this drink because otherwise, it would be too sweet. But I suppose everyone have different sweetness tolerance. The problem is, there’s no way I can reach the coffee pearls if I don’t use the straw. And once you’re using the straw, the drink will be somewhat mixed at certain degree. Hahaha. I still enjoy the drink nonetheless but I do suggest you follow the staff recommendation not to stir the macchiato too much. Maybe I should try another time without the pearls.
Btw, there is a small sitting area (with around 5 or 6 seats) for you to sit down while enjoying your macchiato for a while if you are tired of walking to reach Hollin at Suntec City. Hahaha.