It does seem that establishments serving up Chinese-style desserts are quite the trend these days — opened to much fanfare of the late would be that of YIMANFEN 怡满分 that is situated at 313@Somerset which had taken over the former premises of the now-defunct outlet of Awfully Chocolate there. YIMANFEN is an establishment of mainland China origins; the brand having first started out in Hangzhou — their 313@Somerset is their very first international location, though it is said that they do run multiple outlets in different cities in mainland China. With the store being situated in the middle of the shopping aisle, the dine-in area is located right beside the shopping aisle as well with the tables being best catered for patrons visiting in pairs of groups of up to four (4) pax. Whilst there are instructions for patrons to make their orders before finding a seat, there is a lack of crowd control at the establishment with all tables being up for grabs by patrons passing by the store and streaming in as long as there is an empty table. That aside, YIMANFEN serves up a variety of desserts that one can find at establishments that serves up Chinese-style desserts; the desserts menu is being split into sections dedicated to Manfen Desserts, Manfen Snowy Gelato Bowls, Manfen Golden Fruit Bowls and Manfen Soya Pudding. Beverages are categorised into Manfen Frappes & Smoothies, Manfen Fresh Milk Tea, Traditional Winter Melon Series and Manfen Loquat Series.

The Taro Snowy Bowl with Gelato is an item that is listed in the Manfen Snowy Gelato Bowls section of the menu and is described in the menu to come with elements such as that of Vanilla Bean Ice Cream, Taro, Black Glutinous Rice, and “White Snow Smoothie”. Going straight for the Taro Snowy Bowl with Gelato, this presents itself as a rather predictable combination of elements — the “White Snow Smoothie” here does seem to be that of shaved milk ice that one would typically be able to find in Korean Bingsu. This does give the dessert a milky base note that wasn’t overly sweetened. Taro elements included in the Taro Snowy Bowl with Gelato would include chunks of Taro and Taro Paste — the latter did provide a slight earthiness with a smooth and somewhat creamy texture that was suitably dense, though the cubes of taro did come in sizeable chunks; we weren’t quite a fan of these given how they seemed a little bland and could have been stewed for a little longer for a softer bite that would have integrated better with everything else in the bowl. The Vanilla Bean Ice Cream did come with a smooth and creamy consistency whilst also carrying an evident hint of vanilla fragrance throughout; complimenting the flavours of the “White Snow Smoothie”. Meanwhile, the Black Glutinous Rice came with a sticky consistency and adds on a roast-y, grainy and lightly sweet note to the dessert.