Being to Tiong Bahru area repeatedly, this year was just my very first time visiting this well-known bakery. Some of you might think that I was so last year, yet late's always better than never, wasn't it?
It's so lovely to be back in this area, tiny alleys with small cafes and stores located side by side. Able to walk passing the roads, breathing the fresh air, and simply enjoying the day without being rushed by deadlines; such delightful moments!
Resided at one of the hook, the stall was actually visible from quite a distance, especially as the pictures of its infamous Kouign Amann were all over the venue. As expected, it was packed with people having light meals and afternoon tea, or perhaps just spending their Saturday while having something nice.
Since it was quite crowded, my friends and I had to be satisfied with getting the outdoor-seating only. Yeah, not a big big space, but quite sizable compared to typical cafes around Tiong Bahru which were usually petite. It was quite a competition to be able to get vacant seats there as they're quite many people going for it. Luckily, the turnover of customers in this bakery was quite fast, letting us passed the patience test quite easily.
Because the place had the concept of self-service, we immediately headed to the pastry spots to figure out what were the available selections. They were still quite complete regardless there were mountainous customers including those who just came and ordered for take-away. Nice implication there, as it meant that they were continuously baking new products so everything served was fresh from the kitchen.
 |
| Yuuuummm! |
 |
| Hey you little buddy! |
Visiting this home of viennoiseries, I guessed having the classic original one was a must. My self judgement, if they could go awesome with the basic one, they would have high probability turned out marvelous with the more complicated ones. In contrary, if even the basic one wasn't satisfying, then please expected others would mostly go wrong (well you might think differently *wink*). Cutting it short, I got a try on this simple plain croissant served with butter and it successfully wow-ed me, being flawlessly flaky with indulging aromatic butter flavor burst out in every single bite. The proof of ultimate sophistication delivered from simplicity.
Green Tea Almond Croissant (SGD 4.00)
The upgraded version of the prior one, adding extra ingredients of green tea and almond. It reminded me of the Matcha Croissant, which were only available during summer at Gontran Cherrier Tokyo, the croissant that made me rushing in the evening from the office just to get it in time before the stocks ran out. Yeppp, I loved it to that much, and finally I found the substitute, which was much more accessible!! Fun fact, I finally found out that actually Tiong Bahru's indeed a collaboration with the celebrity chef, Gontran Cherrier. No wonder why their pastries looked so similar! I was one happy kid! Same as Gontran Cherrier's, the green tea was impeccably blended into the batter, giving bold green tea taste to the croissant. Additional green tea filling and rich almond toppings were given, making it a complete satisfaction for the taste bud.
Chocolate Vienna (SGD 3.20)
Another simple one, the choice of my friend who's a chocolate holic. For my palate this was a bit too plain as it's indeed just bread with chocolate chip, yet I adored the soft texture much. Nice to try, but not something mandatory for me.
Original Kouign Amann (SGD 3.50)
And where's my drumroll??? Yeaaayyy! Best of the best!! The shining star of Tiong Bahru Bakery, the most famous one that all the giant posters might be showing its snaps. For you who might be unfamiliar with this French pastry, it's basically layers of butter and sugar, made from bread dough. Excellently flaky croissant-alike layers, added with extra happiness of caramelized sugar. Simply said, I just couldn't stop having another bite of it; that crispy texture with a hint of burnt taste were simply irresistible. Not overly sweet and wonderfully succulent.
Cappuccino (SGD 5.50)
Collaborating with 40 Hands for their coffee, Tiong Bahru Bakery used the beans from Common Man coffee roasters. It's a decent one with medium body and nutty flavor in it. Just a little bit sour, but still at the acidity level my palate could handle.
I really wish Tiong Bahru Bakery got inspired to eatablish a new branch in Indonesia so that I needn't fly miles away anymore to get my all-time favorite matcha croissant. Amen to that with fingercrossed! *LOL*
TIONG BAHRU BAKERY
Address: 56 Eng Hoon Street #01-70, Singapore
Phone: (+65) 62203430
Operating Hours: Sun- Thu 8am - 8pm, Fri - Sat 8am - 10pm
Find me on:
No comments:
Post a Comment