Tuesday, August 1, 2017

Keong Saik Bakery : a East-meets-West cafe

Yu Zhong, 29 and Soon, 29, both of them used to work at Baker & Cook prior to starting this bakery. All the bread and pastries are made in-house daily with no preservatives added. The bakery is located along Keong Saik Street and is directly opposite of the famous Kok Sen Restaurant. 




Sor Hei ($3.20) was recommended when I asked for a recommendation. Another recommended item is XO Lup Cheong ($2.40). I was also offered some sample of Sour Dough bread to try, but I was just too full to eat it right after dinner at Kok Sen Restaurant before walking over. I asked, "Do you have iced coffee?". And, I was served Kopi Susu with ice ($3.30). A pager was given after proceeding with the payment, the 2 buns were warmed up before serving it. 


Sor Hei, a black and white danish pastry is one of their signature items. It is named after the Cantonese name for a traditional ceremony held for the Ma Jie (妈姐), which is known as 梳起 in Chinese. Ma Jie, a group of women who worked as domestic helpers usually in expatriate or wealthy families, between the 1930s and 1970s in Singapore. They were easily identified by their plaited hair or hair bun and their distinctive black and white samfu outfit. This group of women had taken a vow never to marry. One of the former owners of the shop house that they occupy happened to be a Ma Jie. 

The chocolate chips that embedded in between those layers were nicely melted, giving it a chocolaty taste with a mild sweetness. Its texture is light with a buttery flavor, it was crispy on the outside and airy within. Charcoal powder is added to give the pastry the shade of black. It was warmed up before serving to me and it tasted particularly good. 


The XO Lup Cheong is an interesting creation, the slices of lup cheong and mozzarella cheese are served on french bread. We did not like this as much, somehow those lup cheong slices tasted a bit out of place but the bread was nice though. 

The Kopi Susu was served in a nostalgic metal cup with just enough ice cubes to chill it without diluting the taste. Their coffee is brewed using traditional coffee beans, the same type that is for the local coffee. It is freshly ground and is brewed using an espresso machine upon order. And, they are using milk instead of condensed milk for a robust yet familiar flavor. 


There is an All-Day-Breakfast set at $5 which consists of 2 soft-boiled eggs with Kopi coffee O or Teh O and a choice of the bun like Oyster Mushroom, Sardine Cheese, XO Lup Cheong, etc.

This is an interesting place to check out for their coffee and fusionised cakes as well as pastries.


KEONG SAIK BAKERY
41 Keong Saik Road SINGAPORE 089146
Operating Hours: 8.00 am to 8.00 pm (Daily)

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