Cafe review: Farmers & Chefs is an oasis of healthy and homely food in Singapore's CBD

There're a lot of fancy buzzwords in the clean eating scene these days - raw food, grain bowls, plant-based, and the like.

But say you aren't on a vegan regime or any special diet, and you've had enough superfood salads (or, god forbid, zucchini noodles) to last you a lifetime.

All you want is nutritious soul food - the kind your mum might have cooked at home.

That's exactly what you'll find at Farmers & Chefs, in the heart of the CBD no less. Set beneath a charming canopy outside Singapore Conference Hall, Farmers & Chefs dishes up wholesome meals free of MSG and artificial enhancers.

Any seasoning is done with a very light hand, allowing the natural flavours of the mostly locally-sourced ingredients to speak for themselves.

The goal is what owners Mr and Mrs Elliot Chia (also founders of LeClare Preschool) call 'real food' - fresh, less processed, and nourishing as your homecooked nosh.

Amidst the scorching concrete of Shenton Way, the whimsical white canopy housing the restaurant appears like a desert oasis.

The space is lush with potted plants and rustic wood crafts; clay birds perch upon artfully twisted boughs, while birdhouses and quaint vessels hang overhead.

We step gratefully into this woodsy wonderland and are promptly welcomed with a refreshing mug of homemade barley ($2).

It's thick with chewy shards of beancurd skin and lightly sweetened with rock sugar - just the sort of 'cooling' drink your grandma might whip up on a hot afternoon.

For breakfast fuel, Farmers & Chefs has a small selection of eggs and toasts, but we go big with The Farmer's Breakfast ($10).

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It's brekkie heaven in one platter - tender herbed chicken, buttery ciabatta, tangy greens, and a wonderfully crisp rosti.

Over it all oozes a glorious heaping of scrambled eggs, creamy with clarified butter.

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Each item, we're told, is prepared on the spot, from the grating of the rosti to the beating of the eggs. It's time-consuming work, but it produces that farm-fresh flavour which can't be feigned.

At 12pm, the lunch crowd-friendly options kick in. Think affordable rice bowls like the Yakiniku Beef ($10), a hearty portion of stir-fried striploin and broccoli crowned with a runny onsen egg, or the Teriyaki Chicken ($10), featuring juicy slices of chicken thigh.

Each bowl is a balanced mix of proteins and greens, drizzled with tasty sauces made from scratch.

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There are meatier mains too, like the crowd-favourite Kurobuta Pork Loin ($18), for one.

Pan-seared with butter, this satisfyingly tender pork is even better with a tangy dollop of house-made red wine and apple compote.

The pastas here might be the bog-standard with the pocket-friendly prices - Classic Aglio Olio ($9), Pomodoro ($10), Arrabiata Pasta ($10) - but with minimal salt and oil, the natural flavours in each dish shine through.

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Tossed with dried chili and bird's eye chili, the Aglio Olio ($9) packs quite the punch. And for richer fare, you won't find better than the Truffle Mushroom Cream Pasta ($14).

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Brimming with three types of shroomy goodness, it's deliciously creamy without ever descending into cloying.

Farmers & Chef certainly does healthy, unpretentious nosh right - and at such pocket-friendly prices, too. That's one more for our ever-growing CBD lunch spot list.

Farmers & Chefs is located at 7 Shenton Way, #01-04 Singapore Conference Hall, Singapore 068810, p. +65 8535 7555. Open Mon-Fri 8am - 8pm, Sat 9am - 8pm. Closed Sun.

This article was first published in City Nomads.