Caro Pâtisserie

Found ourselves noticing a post about Caro Patisserie whilst scrolling through social media one day; made a mental note to make a trip down to Caro Patisserie just to check them out. Located at Yio Chu Kang Road, Caro Patisserie is located behind Serangoon Swimming Complex — the store is actually situated within a private housing complex named The Stradia, and is just a couple of steps away from Eleven Strands; a bistro that is opened by the same folks behind South Union Park, Restaurant Mia and Tok Tok Beef Soup. Occupying a corner unit at The Stradia, Caro Patisserie is pretty noticeable from afar given its pastel pink facade that seemed rather prominent against its surroundings. Positioned as more of a location for takeaways or for collection of orders, the interior of the shop is dedicated to display shelves and display fridges carrying the various cookies and beverages which they have on retail. The counter would be where all their tartlet offerings are displayed at — a few flavours of the tartlets that they have to offer includes the Mango Tartlet, 70% Dark Chocolate & Salted Caramel Tartlet and the Strawberry Tartlet. Apart from the beverages in the display fridge, Caro Patisserie also serves up espresso-based specialty coffee as well. Whilst there are no dine-in seating within the air-conditioned space, there are some outdoor seatings that would fit a group of two to three pax should they wish to dine-in at Caro Patisserie.

Having skimmed through the various tartlets which Caro Patisserie has to offer, we found ourselves opting for the Lemon Meringue Tartlet — a little bit of a common flavour that one would encounter these days, but still a safe flavour which we find comfort in when we have not much of an opinion on what to order. The meringue of the Lemon Meringue Tartlet at Caro Patisserie comes piped in a squiggly pattern; slightly browned from being possibly torched using a flame-torch that gave it a pretty appearance. Digging in to the Lemon Meringue Tartlet, we note that the tart base is a bit harder here as compared to some tarts that we have had at other establishments — this one seemingly a bit more cookie-like and breaks off pretty neatly, though requires a bit more effort to slice through. Sitting atop the tart base would be the lemon curd; we liked how the lemon curd here was smooth without feeling particularly gelatinous, but what really caught us with the lemon curd here is how it carries a zippy note without being overly sweetened — something which would gel well with those who love sour-ish desserts as opposed to the sugary ones. The meringue layer was also well-executed; the meringue being smooth and luscious without being too airy; provides a lightly sweet note that compliments the zingy lemon curd beneath without overwhelming it. Quite a decent offering overall.

Whilst we had only given one of their various tartlet creations a go, our impression of Caro Patisserie’s offerings was a pleasant one. No doubt that we are not quite a fan of the tart base; the tart base could have been a little softer and yet achieve that consistency of not being too brittle at the same time, but we found the other elements of the Lemon Meringue Tartlet to be especially well-executed — the balance between the lemon curd and meringue layer was something which we especially loved here. The Americano that we have had was also pretty decent; a cuppa that came with a fruity body which we found to be quite an easy drink — exactly the mid-day leisurely cuppa which we were looking for. Considering the consistency of the Lemon Meringue Tartlet that we have had, Caro Patisserie is off a pretty good start — perhaps just some time needed to fine tune the tart base as they gather more feedback on their tarts. A spot that is worth checking out if in the area — probably one spot that residents around the area would also be glad to chill out at for some coffee and tarts as a mid-day treat without the need of travelling out of their neighbourhood to settle their cravings for dessert tarts!