Review: The Artisan’s Table is a promising neighbourhood grocer-cafe gem with room to grow

A gelato counter, a pizza menu, cream tea sets, and a wall of European pantry goods — you probably won’t expect all of that to be sitting behind a single shopfront at Rail Mall, along Upper Bukit Timah.

But therein lies the charm of the all-new The Artisan’s Table. Compact and cosy, it still has enough going on, both on its menu and within its space, to make you sit up and take notice.

The backstory

The cafe, which opened in early February, is the latest concept by Gourmet Grocery by OurChoice, a Singapore-based importer and exclusive distributor of European gourmet foods. 

If you’ve ever picked up Taylors of Harrogate tea, Rodda’s Cornish clotted cream, or La Favorita pasta sauces from a speciality grocer here, there’s a good chance that Gourmet Grocery is the reason they’re on the shelf.

Its catalogue is built around small, independent European producers — British, Italian, and beyond — with a strict preference for no GMOs, no artificial colouring, and no additives.

The brand has a physical grocer at Takashimaya Shopping Centre’s basement, but The Artisan’s Table is its first dine-in concept, where the very ingredients it imports are put to use.

The menu here is made up of pizzas and Italian sandwiches, which draw on Italian pantry staples stocked by the company, and the cream tea sets leverage the distributor’s exclusivity to Rodda’s clotted cream and Taylors teas.

Even the in-house gelato, which is churned on-site and additive-free, is made up of the same clean ingredients and products that define its grocery line. 

The unit space is modest so there are only a handful of tables indoors — we counted eight — and two al fresco tables. 

There are also a small number of retail shelves along the back wall, which make the link between the dine-in concept and the online grocer more tangible — it comprises a curated, albeit limited selection of Gourmet Grocery’s produce highlights.

Our verdict

The Artisan’s Table at Rail Mall keeps things refreshingly simple. With just seven pizzas and four sandwiches on the menu, it gets its fundamentals down pat — a strategy that works in its favour, especially given its cosy dining space. 

The pizzas — starting from S$13.90 for a margherita — offer solid value for the area, though we did note that the team uses a supplied dough rather than proofing it in-house. 

The focaccia sandwiches, which start at S$11.90, are excellent, but the in-house gelato is arguably the concept’s strongest expression of its quality-focused approach.   

The physical space, though, seems to be where the concept runs into its own limitations. While cosy on a quiet afternoon, it can feel cramped when busy. 

Its small retail section, while a nod to the parent company’s grocer identity, feels more decorative than integrated into the overall experience. 

Given the parent company’s emphasis on premium produce and provenance, it feels like a missed opportunity not to weave that story more deeply into the space.

What it’s good for

If you’re coming to The Artisan’s Table for the first time, the margherita (S$13.90) is a good and honest place to start.

It’s a simple build — housemade tomato sauce, fior di latte (high-quality cow’s milk mozzarella), pecorino romano, fresh basil, extra-virgin olive oil — which also makes it the perfect litmus test for any pizzeria. 

With so few ingredients involved, each component has to pull its weight.

While I’ll admit I’m biased towards the chew and depth of flavour that comes with a proper Neapolitan pizza, this holds its own as a straightforward, no-fuss pie.

The crust takes on a pleasant char while remaining light, the fior di latte melts evenly without pooling, and the tomato sauce brings enough acidity to keep everything balanced. 

At S$13.90, in such a venue, it’s really difficult to ask for much more.

However, if there’s one thing worth coming specifically for, it’s the parma ham (S$14.90) focaccia sandwich. 

The focaccia base is impossibly airy, providing the perfect canvas for the fillings rather than competing with them.

Layered with crunchy arugula, herbaceous pesto, creamy burrata, and salty prosciutto di parma, it’s the sort of sandwich you’ll want to eat slowly, partly because the flavours and the focaccia deserve the attention, and partly because the generous fillings spill over the edges with every bite.

The interplay of textures — the pillowy-soft focaccia against the crunch of the peppery arugula, and the silkiness of the burrata against the chewiness of the ham — is particularly satisfying. 

If you happen to be passing through Rail Mall, this alone is worth a detour and a takeaway.

Then, there’s the gelato, where The Artisan’s Table’s in-house craftsmanship is most tangible. 

Priced from S$7 for a single scoop — with premium flavours costing an additional $0.50 — it’s served only in cups, with the focus squarely on the gelato itself.

I went with the premium pistachio (S$7.50) and dark chocolate orange (S$7.50), and the quality was apparent from the first scoop.

Both had the dense, elastic texture that comes from a proper slow churn, and felt substantial enough without being too heavy.

The pistachio leans earthy and genuinely nutty, with just enough sweetness to keep it approachable. It’s a far more natural expression of pistachio than the sweet, bright-green versions that have become commonplace — pistachio purists will love this.

The dark chocolate orange was the surprise standout of the two, which is saying something, given how rarely I encounter a well-executed version of this chocolate-citrus flavour pairing.

What won me over was the restraint of the orange: It doesn’t overwhelm but instead lifts the deep, bittersweet chocolate with a lingering brightness. It’s a subtler execution than I expected, and a significantly better one than most I’ve had before.

What it could improve on

The spicy sausage (S$15.90) pizza is a good illustration of where the menu plays it perhaps too safely.

Built on the same base as the margherita, it swaps basil for chicken harissa sausage and onions, but the spice barely registers owing to the relatively sparse amount of sausage on the pizza — it feels like a margherita with onions instead. 

It’s not an unpleasant pizza by any means, but we were expecting something meatier and more assertive when we opted for this. Perhaps the mortadella ($18.90) or parma ham  ($19.90) pizzas might do better on this front.

The drinks menu, too, feels like an area with room to grow.

While its line-up of tea and juices, such as the AB Black Tea & Lemon (S$3.50), is perfectly serviceable, adding a short, curated list of wines or craft beers might do well as a natural extension to the concept, which is rooted in quality European produce.

It’s not a dealbreaker, though we did find ourselves wishing for a glass of wine or beer when we were lingering there for a bit, on a quiet weekend afternoon.

The one point that lingers, though, goes back to the dough.

For a concept built on honest, thoughtfully made food, it is quite a glaring point that neither the pizza dough nor the focaccia is made in-house. 

The menu items are enjoyable overall, but bringing the bread programme in-house would bring the product and the concept’s premise into even closer alignment — the gelato proves how much better it could be if this were realised. 

That said, The Artisan’s Table is a genuinely worthwhile stop, particularly if you’re in the Upper Bukit Timah area and not looking to travel far for a decent afternoon out. 

The focaccia sandwich and gelato justify a visit, while the pizzas are generally attractively priced and well executed.

It’s definitely not destination dining, but if you come with the tempered expectations of a neighbourhood cafe built on quality ingredients and thoughtful sourcing, you’ll have an enjoyable experience. 

For now, The Artisan’s Table has all the right foundations and already does enough to warrant a visit. Whether it eventually grows into the full breadth of its own story is something worth watching.

Our quick takes

Is it conducive to conversation? There’s no loud music to compete with, but the closely spaced tables mean this isn’t the best spot for private conversations.

Is a reservation necessary? As the space is quite modest, reservations would come in handy, especially on weekends or if you’re planning to come here with a bigger group.

How to get there? The Artisan’s Table is a five-minute walk from Hillview MRT Exit A.

HungryGoWhere paid for its meal at this restaurant for this review.

For the latest eats, read our story on Milli, a new rooftop concept at the National Gallery that’s a restaurant, bar, and club all in one, and our round-up of crowd-favourite stalls at Holland Drive Food Centre.

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