Josh T.
Yelp
Gosh where do you start when reviewing somewhere you've been frequenting since you were 13 years old. Taka, as it's affectionately known by most, is, and was, and will probably be for a long time to come, one of the centres of Orchard Road.
Takashimaya still has their staff line up and opening and closing to welcome and wish shoppers goodbye, the food-lovers basement is still amongst the best in Orchard Road, and they have a kick-ass Cold Storage with a great range of Japanese items.
Yet, as awesome as it is now... I think back to the Library@Orchard fondly, where you could go and read for hours, and still feel like you were out doing stuff because it's in town. Actually, there's a sad nostalgia about that library, where many a day was spent just reading with good company.
Taka's Mos burger was the first time I ever tried Mos... and the same with the Yoshinoya. It was my go-to place when I had an Auntie Anne's craze, and also for Tori-Q. I don't think I ever realised how much of my teenage life happened IN Taka till I started writing this review, and I'm going to bump this to 5 stars (I originally started off with 4) just for longevity. How many other malls have stayed "this happening" for this long?
I'm glad my friend's push for us to call it "NAC" (pronounced knack) never caught on. It's nowhere as charming as "Taka".