Archive for August 2015

Listicle: Best local flavour desserts in Singapore

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Hello all! I am finally in Berlin, but amidst all the hustle and bustle of settling in, I'm really missing home, so I decided to put together this listicle as a form of reminiscence on the experiences the past few months in Singapore. I'm a huge fan of incorporating local flavours (e.g. Kueh kuehs) into bakes, and these are a few of the bakeries/ cafes in Singapore that I think have done a fantastic job of fusing these flavours with western style bakes! So let's get started. 


1. Orh Nee Cake and Pulut Hitam Tart at Bloomsbury Bakers
Definitely my favourite of all, because these were just SO well done and delicious The Orh Nee Cake is made of a very light sponge with orh nee stuffed in between, and a light orh nee buttercream to top it off. Very light, yet extremely taro-ish somehow. Very well-balanced cake indeed and cannot recommend it enough.
The Pulut Hitam (black glutinous rice) tart was just PHENOMENAL. My mother, who doesn't even like pulut hitam much, loved these. I've come across a lot of bakeries in Singapore that just don't get how important the crust is to a tart, but here at Bloomsbury Bakers they do. The crust is thin and crispy, without being burnt. The pulut hitam lies at the bottom of the tart and a delicious, coconut cream layer drapes over it. 
Also, how cute is the decor here? Totally reminds me of my time studying in London. It's is a little out of the way, under some HDB blocks in the Bendemeer region, but it's absolutely worth the trip. 
Address: 30 Bendemeer Rd #01-889, 330030
Opening Hours: Tuesday to Friday 11am to 7pm, Saturday 10am to 7pm, Sunday 10am to 6pm, Closed on Mondays

 2. Ondeh Ondeh Cupcakes at Fluff Bakery 
I've been obsessed with Fluff Bakery's cupcakes for the longest time and started following their Instagram page long before I was even back in Singapore to try their cupcakes. The star of their cupcakes, in my opinion, is the Ondeh-ondeh flavour. The pandan cupcake is ethereally light and fluffy, and the gula melaka filling is orgasm worthy. They also have plenty of other local flavour bakes, such as teh tarik and goreng pisang cupcakes, although I have yet to try them. 
Address: 4 Jalan Pisang Singapore
Opening Hours: Tuesday to Saturday, 12pm-7pm 

3. Taro Waffles at Froth Cafe
Technically, not really a flavour profile that's exclusive to Southeast Asia I suppose, although I feel it features quite predominantly (re: Orh Nee, etc) and I can't help but put this in because I'm obsessed with taro, and this is one of the better waffles I've had. Be warned, the waffles are more dense than fluffy, which I personally like but others may not. What makes this a winner is the intenseness of the taro flavour throughout the waffle, and the generous dollops of taro puree. Tip: Don't go on a weekend, you'll never get served in time! 
Address: Big Hotel Lobby, 200 Middle Rd, 188980
Opening Hours: Monday to Sunday 7-10am then 11.30 am - 10pm

4. Milo Ice cream with Waffle at iScream
Not a bake, as with the previous ones, but had to give a shoutout to iScream because it's located in my neighbourhood, Bedok! One of their fan favourites is the milo ice cream, but they also have some other local ice cream flavours! Another big plus is that students get 20% off on weekdays! If you're ever heading here for some ice cream, I can definitely recommend the crispy waffles. They are, true to their name, crispy but also very fluffy on the inside.
Address: Blk 89, Bedok North Ave 4, #01-109
Opening Hours: Monday to Thursday and Sunday 3pm to 12am, Friday to Saturday 3pm to 1am

Okada Coffee House

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Am in one of those moods where I'm just bored by everything around me and yet I can't figure out a way to entertain myself because I just don't feel like doing any of the things that usually make me happy, like baking, and honestly even thinking about sweet treats doesn't bring much of a buzz anymore. I'm trying to combat this mood by looking through old photographs and I came across this series of photos I took at Okada Coffee House. It's one of those really rare finds where there's literally no one around most of the time and you get to sit and just contemplate while enjoying a really good cup of coffee and of course, some sweets. 

Okada is located at One KM which is nearest to Tanjong Pagar MRT, and it's just a really ulu kind of mall with nobody around (especially during office hours) but I kinda like that because nowadays all the trendy food places are packed with people wanting to get their next Instagram post (present company guilty). Maybe it's the introvert in me but I get pretty sick of being surrounded by people sometimes and it's cool to find a cafe where you can pretty much sit down for hours with a book and a coffee and not worry about being considerate and giving your table to the next customer, or whether you'll be chased out or not. Not that I've done it, but I imagine that would be entirely possible. Their coffee is really good, and a huge plus point for me, comes with whipped cream! They specialise in chestnut desserts, which I absolutely love. The Mont Blanc was probably my favourite, because it comes with intense flourishes of chestnut puree and is just so....chestnutty! I love it.
This is one of their signatures, the chestnut swiss roll. It's pretty good, the chestnut flavour is not as intense but the cake is very nicely done, good texture, fluffiness is on point and not too sweet.
Wasn't sure what else to get so we got a reliable old matcha cake! I've never really had a pairing of grapes with matcha before, but it's pretty good.
Final verdict: Desserts: 4/5, Ambience: 3.5/5 (good if you're sick of overcrowded cafes, but as it's in a mall there's not much of a view), Coffee: 4/5, Service: 4/5 (no complaints here, they were sufficiently attentive and polite but you know, as it is with most places in Singapore, not the most outstanding either). I believe they have a high tea set that looks pretty worthwhile too, might try it out next time!

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