You know I’m all about the view and vibes! When I found out about Hortus, I was really excited to make a reservation for an afternoon tea. I thought of coming here for dinner but the menu seems really.. what’s that word for not extensive?

Limited! The dinner menu here is limited.

Hortus is located right inside Garden By The Bay’s Flower Dome so of course, the view is nothing but spectacular.

With the cool temperature here, it’s somehow an added advantage to escape from our scorching hot weather too.

Access to the Flower Dome is complimentary and buggy rides from the entrance to the restaurant are also provided for patrons of Hortus.

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The afternoon tea comes in a three-tier display with mini sandwiches on the side. While everything looks cute and pretty, the portions are relatively small and disappointing. It really was underwhelming.

The price tag really didn’t justify the portion, let alone the quality of the food. For roughly the same price at the Fullerton Hotel, I could get better service and of course, better portions. Better quality of food too, definitely.

For the savouries; we had Quiche Florentine, Corn Custard with Trout Roe and Lamb En Croute.

The taste? It was mediocre. Nothing special, really. The size of the savouries are literally so tiny, I can’t even savour the taste.

The two sandwiches served are Madras Curry Egg sandwiches and Turkey Ham sandwiches. It’s just so weird and bland.

The smell and taste of turmeric was super strong for the curry egg sandwich. And Turkey Ham sandwiches? Am I on a primary school excursion trip?

I love scones. The reason why I love afternoon teas is always because of the scones but the ones here are so bad, I am actually offended.

The scones were pale, cold and doughy. Was the oven faulty? Or is that just the standard here?

The experience and the food was so bad, I literally didn’t bother to try the sweets. I guess I was done with being disappointed. The Google reviews for the restaurant are mostly 5 stars so I was really surprised that I didn’t had a great time here.

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All in all, I think I am pretty mad at myself for not making a reservation at the Fullerton instead. This was just a major scam. Pricier than the best hotel brand in Singapore, but the quality of the food is just abysmal.

Honest review? I only got two words to sum up my experience here; don’t bother.

I’m not gonna sugarcoat, don’t waste your hard-earned money here. You want a great afternoon tea? TWG and Fullerton Hotel is there for you, bestie.

If you’re in the mood for disappointments, do make a reservation here. Do also note that the restaurant requires a working credit card for the restaurant to hold a certain amount on it. The authorisation amount on your card will be charged if there’s a no-show or last minute cancellation within 2 days from the date of reservation.

So make sure your plan to dine here, is really concrete!

I get pretty uncomfortable when a restaurant requires to hold an authorisation amount on my card, even worse if it’s non-refundable. It feels like I’m being held hostage almost. With my schedule not being very certain at times, this kinda “rule” when doing reservations can get really annoying.

I’m not even done yet, there’s more.

The restaurant also requires you to spend at least $50++ per person if you’re having lunch or dinner. For a menu that is so limited, I hope that is attainable for diners. I just don’t understand why there is a minimum spend, not everyone wants to have a big feast when they’re dining out.

You know what? Don’t bother.

The highlight for me here is prolly only the buggy rides and the complimentary access to the Flower Dome.