The Tiramisu Hero, Jalan Besar - Terrific Décor, Mediocre Tiramisu.

If there was ever a restaurant/cafe best described as "style over substance," The Tiramisu Hero would be it. Located in the up-and-coming gastronomic neighborhood of Jalan Besar, this cafe specializes in - what else? - Tiramisu. Decor is quirky and homey, and yet somewhat strangely romantic. It's a very nice place to impress a date, or to just relax and spend a couple of hours in air-conditioned comfort. There's even a mascot: His name is Sir Antonio.


The Tiramisu comes in two sizes - MommaHero ($7.50 for normal flavours, $9.50 for premium flavours), and PapaHero ($17/$21) (MommaHero is just about right for one person). There are a dozen or so flavours, some of which are mighty interesting - for example, Milo, Horlicks and even Durian. We play it safe and go for Chocolate and Lemon Lavender.


With so much effort spent on branding, a killer website, and gorgeous decoration, it's a shame then that the Tiramisu itself is mediocre at best.

For starters, both our jars had no booze. Apparently only the original and Baileys flavours come with booze - the other jars are all non-alcoholic. Is it possible to add alcohol to the non-alcoholic flavours? We don't know, because it wasn't clear on the menu and it wasn't suggested by the waitress. But fine, chalk this one down to us not being "in the know."

Secondly, the savoiardi/ladies fingers were exceedingly dry, having obviously not been soaked in espresso/any form of liquid long enough. Or at all. It follows, then, that the fingers had no coffee taste ... or any other taste.



So ... all style, no substance, and a bit of a pricey disappointment, then (The cafe also serves up an assortment of hot dishes, but we didn't try any of them as we were here for dessert).

The Tiramisu Hero is at 121 Tyrwhitt Road; open 11am-10pm daily. Non-Halal.