King and the Pawn is a boardgames café. It’s on Purvis Street directly above SLATE which I had visited a few weeks earlier.
Ambience, Service and the Staff
You’d be forgiven for completely missing the entrance to this café. It’s on the upper two floors of a shophouse. You get there by going up a flight of steps that leads to a nice, open area with lots of natural light and a quirky decor.
We were a party of 5. I had made reservations via Chope. A couple of my friends had already entered and been seated. We were served with water and provided with menus straight away by the friendly staff. We discovered that this café has two levels and the staff were kind enough to move us up to the upper level that we had entirely to ourselves.
The lower floor is decorated with earthy tones, a Snakes and Ladders motif on the wall, artwork referencing board games, and plants on elevated racks that add an amazing atmosphere to a room lit through large windows with elegant ironwork. Tables are large and generous that will allow people to play games while getting a meal together. The upper floor is painted white, and has lots of natural light through skylights. There are a combination of dinner tables and a lounge area with coffee tables and couches that allow for an awesome gaming session among friends. Seating on both floors come with bright and cheerful cushions that will keep one comfortable while playing board games with your party here.
The staff here are courteous and friendly and took very good care of us.
The Food
Our party of 5 ordered a selection of tea and coffee for our drinks – a couple of lattés, a hot and an iced mocha, and a pot of earl grey tea – to go with our order of a Big Breakfast, 3 orders of the Smashed Avo with eggs, and an order of Smoked Salmon and eggs.
Being on the upper floor, we expected our food to take a bit longer and were pleasantly surprise as our coffees began arriving 10 minutes later, with the food following straight after.
The portions are generous and well presented. The options for eggs are either scrambled or sunny side up. The big breakfast is served with a pork sausage, candied maple bacon (which was very interesting – in a good way), and brioche toast with hazelnut butter. The smashed avo is beautifully presented and fresh, as was the smoked salmon. All the mains came with a portion of salad keeping our meals healthy.
The Price Point
For our meal, our party of 5 paid just under $135 including taxes. That’s about $27 per person – great value for this part of town.
The Final Verdict
We had a very pleasant experience at King and the Pawn. They serve a decent quality of food while offering a great environment to bond with people while playing a board game. This is the sort of place that is great for a team builder with work colleagues, or to meet new people for someone new in town. It’s also great to come out here with old friends to spend some time while reconnecting over a board game. You’ll be well looked after, and will have a huge selection of games to choose from. Maybe not the place for a first date… but definitely a place that you’d try for a second, third, or fourth date! Come here for breakfast, brunch, lunch, coffee or drinks!
Address: 24 Purvis St, level 2, Singapore 188601
Phone: +65 6259 1913.
Website: https://www.kingandthepawn.com/
