The folks behind Hei Kim Cafe are back — having closed down their previous premises at Changi Road just a year prior, they have became more of a home-based business selling their different cakes and bakes online via their Facebook page. Going back into being an establishment with a brick-and-mortar business model, the folks have since found a shop space at Far East Plaza to call their home; they have also since named themselves as Piccolo by Hei Kim to better reflect their smaller operations these days as well. While the now-defunct Hei Kim Cafe at Changi Road used to carry some sort of a Japandi vibe to it, Piccolo by Hei Kim Cafe can be said as a cafe with an industrial design language with a bit of nostalgic flavour thrown into it — think wooden coffee tables that one would probably find familiar with to the same that can be found in some old-school HDB flats; there is also a corner table that features similar wooden accents and a marble-esque table top. The heritage elements doesn’t stop there — it also goes to the wares that they use to serve the patrons as well. Regulars of their previous space at Changi Road would also be able to spot some familiar elements here — the neon pink “黑金” signage can be spotted hanging on the wall above fr corner table; there is also a small painting depicting a scene by the corner window of the Changi Road premises behind the counter as well. Considering how they are a smaller scale operation these days with no proper hot kitchen being set-up to serve brunch fare, the menu at Piccolo by Hei Kim mainly comprises of cakes and specialty coffee; there are also other beverage options such as Tea by the Pot, as well as special concoctions such as the Iced Strawberry Latte, Iced Black Sesame Latte and Iced Speculoos to look forward to here as well.

Noting that there are only three cakes being served at Piccolo by Hei Kim Cafe — these would be the Black Sesame Matcha Cake, Honey Layered Cake and the Burnt Cheese Cake, we decided to go for the Honey Layered Cake as this was something more of a rare find as compared to the other cakes that they have on the menu. The Honey Layered Cake is essentially their rendition of the Russian Honey Cake — also known as the Medovik. Due to our limited exposure and understanding of the elements that go into the making of such types of cakes, we cannot really comment on how authentic their version of the Medovik is; that being said, we quite liked how the Medovik was a pretty light cake that is made of several different alternating layers of cake and presumably honey-infused cream — the cake gets progressively more tightly-packed as one goes through the layers. The flavours noted for the entire cake can be said as a little bit milky and malty; sure, there is some element of sweetness around but the entire flavour composition was one that was not overly saccharine — very easy to have without being too dense nor heavy on the tastebuds. We found the Honey Layered Cake to be pretty value-for-money as well — the slices are pretty substantial in size considering how it is priced at $9.

Hei Kim Cafe seems to have garnered quite a loyal following ever since their days at Changi Road; the launch of Piccolo by Hei Kim at Far East Plaza is pretty much a piece of good news that their regulars would be pretty stoked to hear about — this is despite the menu being stripped off the brunch-y dishes since there is no hot kitchen in its current space that would have allowed them to do so. This also means that the folks behind Piccolo by Hei Kim would now be able to focus more on their cake offerings — something which they had seemingly had an emphasis on considering how their cakes are all baked in-house even during their days at Changi Road. Sure, Piccolo by Hei Kim does seem to carry a different vibe to what was Hei Kim Cafe of the past; that being said, despite the hipster settings of the interior, we liked how there are splashes of nostalgia that just speaks of some level of familiarity amidst the refreshed vibes — the smaller shop space also does seem to also encourage some form of intimacy between the folks running the cafe and their patrons as well. With pretty well-made and interesting concoctions of coffee like the Iced Sesame Latte as well as delicious cakes on the menu, Piccolo by Hei Kim does make for a very appealing option to have cake and coffee at whilst looking for a spot to rest the legs after a day of shopping at Orchard Road.