Came across the social media pages of Anna’s Sourdough and decided to check them out. Opening its doors pretty recently at Oasis Terraces in Punggol just a stone’s throw away from Oasis LRT Station, Anna’s Sourdough is a new concept by the folks behind The Soup Spoon — taking over a unit that is situated on the ground level that faces the event space, Anna’s Sourdough is a retail-cum-cafe concept where one would be able to purchase ancient grains, dried botanicals, freshly-milled flour, house-made sauces, soups etc. off their shelves; all that whilst also being able to dine-in to enjoy their sourdough creations. The interior of Anna’s Sourdough can said to be split into two sections; the air-conditioned space is where the reception and counters displaying the various sourdoughs loaves and other bakes which they have for the day, alongside the retail area and the espresso bar are at. Moving further to the right, the dine-in area does also have a view that looks into the kitchen via a glass window; the interior decor for the dine-in area attempts to be warm and welcoming, with a bit of a rustic vibe going on with the retail area considering the large use of wood furnishing and fittings with red tiles on the walls. There is also the outdoor seating area for those who would like to catch a view of the waterway whilst having their brunch as well — this would be accessible through a sliding glass door from their air-conditioned space. The menu is separated into three sections — Healthy Start, being the brunch menu from 8:30am to 3pm, Lunch & Dinner from 11am onwards, and Plated Desserts from 6pm onwards.

We made our visit on their very first day of operations, and was told that only the “Healthy Start” section and some part of the “Lunch & Dinner” section of the menu are available for the day — the items from the “Lunch & Dinner” section that were missing during our visit to Anna’s Sourdough included the Sharing Plates, Stews, Handmade Sourdough Pastas / Pizzas; all of which are supposedly available considering that we made our visit at past 12 noon. Considering the limited number of items which are available on the menu, we then went for the Chicken Gumbo OG Version — the description on the menu mentions it as a “classic chicken gumbo with deep fried marinated chicken, potatoes, carrots, okra and celery cooked in a spice-perfumed broth, served with sourdough”; the service staff who came by to serve our order to the table also mentioned that this was also her favourite item on the menu here. Digging into the Chicken Gumbo OG Version, we really liked how the soup came with a prominent hint of spices that somewhat evoked a Middle-Eastern influence — all that whilst being very clean with a slight tang that Carrie’s tomato-esque flavours. The slices of sourdough would be the vehicle to soak up all that goodness from the broth — crusty on the outside yet chewy in the interior, we liked how the sourdough was pretty on-point in terms of texture, whilst carrying that tang that one would associate from the fermentation process of making the bread. The chunks of potatoes, carrots, okra and celery created a good chew / crunch amidst that broth; all that with bits of chicken sausage that further provides a little bit of meatiness and a bite. The deep fried marinated chicken did come with a flavourful fried skin; something almost comparable to that of our local roasted chicken rice, though the flesh of the chicken was just so tender as it came off the bone really easily. We have an inkling that this item might likely be a little bit of a spin-off from one of the specials previously served up at The Soup Spoon alongside sourdough bread that Anna’s Sourdough specialises in. That being said, it turned out becoming an item we really liked; something which we performed well above our expectations.

Despite being a brand that is somewhat linked to a rather established name that has become quite mass market over the years, Anna’s Sourdough does carry that artisanal, home-made vibe that most commercial brand names just seemingly lose over time as they expand their operations. We really liked how the sourdough is seemingly made in small batches from how it was being displayed in the counter; the bakes also came with a good quality as per the Chocolate Rye Raspberry Broffin with Sea Salt that we have tried — a hybrid of a muffin and brownie that sees a suitable dense chocolate cake that comes with a gooey centre, featuring bits of raspberry in between and topped off with melted marshmallow in the middle. We were also very impressed with how their Flat White was actually well-pulled for such an establishment where execution tends to be a little bit off — not only did it feature a pretty latte art, but we found the cuppa to come with a light body with earthy notes that were actually pretty prominent; not overly milky nor did the beans felt burnt here during the extraction process. Overall, Anna’s Sourdough is a great addition to the ‘hood — we would definitely see ourselves coming by here on the weekends if we were Punggol residents; definitely a spot worth making a trip for considering how it’s affiliation with The Soup Spoon also pretty much speaks about the quality of food that one would get at Anna’s Sourdough!