High/ Afternoon Tea

Google led me to an article that called these one of the best scones in Singapore but sadly they were American biscuits (that I’d pick Popeyes’ rendition over) instead of scones.

The change of hands in the various F&B concepts along upper Thomson road has been significant. Running along these pathways at 10 years old I remember only our favourite chicken rice, Thai food at e-sarn, korean food at parkers and the former Kim family restaurant; then prata for anytime of the day/ night. As I grew older, brunch at habitat became a thing and soon after we see the former Pacarama and one man coffee trodding along.

I am glad the mainstays still remain - just like the nostalgic sugar rolls at Dino, so homely and my favourite even as a kid. These 90cents rolls have an irreplaceable value that far outweigh their monetary worth. Today I snag the last box of scones on the payment counter, having zero recollection of tasting Dino’s scones. They were served re-heated and a bite had me sold. These were soft enough instead of being rock hard like the poor ones I had a month ago at TWG. Very close to my usual from Duke Bakery - reminding me that expensive doesn’t always mean better.

This used to be the best scones in Singapore for me. Sadly it became a thing of the past during my recent visit, for my favourite English tea time treat came rock hard with brittle bits.

Nothing the pristine, vintage interior and classy ambience to spent a weekend afternoon in, and premium tea blends with precise brewing temperature and a no refill policy, could salvage.

I hope this is not the same to be said of other TWG salons.

It took some nudging by a friend to visit Kki. I’m the biggest advocate for desserts, especially those that look like a work of art and “taste the part” but the reservation policy at Kki and excuse of a busy schedule were deterrences.

Thankfully the nudging resulted in an cake experience by a self taught chef that creates exquisite cakes. Some were required an acquired tastebud to appreciate for example the Nero had a strong truffle paste that will set my palate back each bite. Next Koide (above) paired mint and grapefruit together with other sweeter fruits (peach and lychee) - the tiny yet potent mint leaves with grapefruit pulp was either love or hate beside the other subtle flavours.

The friendlier cakes we had were J’s and the crowd favourite Yona. Half the time I was just enamoured by the presentation and wondered what sort of dessert techniques allowed for the mousse/curd to hold so well together yet was smooth and so easy on the palate.

Overall everyone should visit Kki at least once- an invitation to pause from a world of visual clutter and taste what’s been plated (as per written on the unique menu) 😚

It took some nudging by a friend to visit Kki. I’m the biggest advocate for desserts, especially those that look like a work of art and “taste the part” but the reservation policy at Kki and excuse of a busy schedule were deterrences.

Thankfully the nudging resulted in an cake experience by a self taught chef that creates exquisite cakes. Some were required an acquired tastebud to appreciate for example the Nero had a strong truffle paste that will set my palate back each bite. Next Koide (above) paired mint and grapefruit together with other sweeter fruits (peach and lychee) - the tiny yet potent mint leaves with grapefruit pulp was either love or hate beside the other subtle flavours.

The friendlier cakes we had were J’s and the crowd favourite Yona. Half the time I was just enamoured by the presentation and wondered what sort of dessert techniques allowed for the mousse/curd to hold so well together yet was smooth and so easy on the palate.

Overall everyone should visit Kki at least once- an invitation to pause from a world of visual clutter and taste what’s been plated (as per written on the unique menu) 😚

It took some nudging by a friend to visit Kki. I’m the biggest advocate for desserts, especially those that look like a work of art and “taste the part” but the reservation policy at Kki and excuse of a busy schedule were deterrences.

Thankfully the nudging resulted in an cake experience by a self taught chef that creates exquisite cakes. Some were required an acquired tastebud to appreciate for example the Nero had a strong truffle paste that will set my palate back each bite. Next Koide (above) paired mint and grapefruit together with other sweeter fruits (peach and lychee) - the tiny yet potent mint leaves with grapefruit pulp was either love or hate beside the other subtle flavours.

The friendlier cakes we had were J’s and the crowd favourite Yona. Half the time I was just enamoured by the presentation and wondered what sort of dessert techniques allowed for the mousse/curd to hold so well together yet was smooth and so easy on the palate.

Overall everyone should visit Kki at least once- an invitation to pause from a world of visual clutter and taste what’s been plated (as per written on the unique menu) 😚

I’d joke with my mama that if I was not at my day job, puff and peaks could have been us (if we sort out our baking techniques and get 100x more adept at the skill) - double ifs.
That definitely pique her interest to check out the establishment which is conveniently located in our hood.
Of course my mum loves donuts and the filled with stuffing ones here get her nod of approval, $3.80 for a piece is no means cheap but comparable to other boutique bakeries I’ve heard about. Expect fresh dough and well fried, sugar coated treats with a nice sweet filling. But I was more curious about the other bakes - was puff and peaks an all-rounder at all bakes? My verdict: carry the persona of a home baker turned casual cafe, this was truly top percentile home baking, cakes with moist sponge, quite a bit of aeration and simple frosting. While my brookie was more of a cookie, it was good crunchy cookie that wasn’t excessively saccharine.
If I’m not baking at home and need my fill of bakes, puff and peaks would be one option on my mind.

I just had to post this to ditto Burppler Kaki @cweizhi 👽😛

Half the time at this quaint cafe with honest in-house bakes, I wondered what took me so long to visit when school was nearby in the past.

I almost live for days like these - a weekday afternoon with mum over tea treats. These are especially precious after I transition to the working live 2.5 years ago.
To strategically chart a good tea experience, the palate craved golden scones that kindled recollection of our time together in the UK. While the internet touted FFT’s as one of the best in Singapore, they were good yet half the mark of what we remembered from its English mother land.
Separately the sesame lava cake was what I’d term a fusion take on a classic sweet treat, it came with a flowing sesame paste center (see pictorial evidence 😂). The outsourced vanilla scoop was saccharine but the soft lava cake was quite a dessert when paired with tea/coffee without sugar.

I almost live for days like these - a weekday afternoon with mum over tea treats. These are especially precious after I transition to the working live 2.5 years ago.
To strategically chart a good tea experience, the palate craved golden scones that kindled recollection of our time together in the UK. While the internet touted FFT’s as one of the best in Singapore, they were good yet half the mark of what we remembered from its English mother land.
Separately the sesame lava cake was what I’d term a fusion take on a classic sweet treat, it came with a flowing sesame paste center. The outsourced vanilla scoop was saccharine but the soft lava cake was quite a dessert when paired with tea/coffee without sugar.

I knew I could leave any diet plans I loftily have in mind (and hardly act upon 😂), at the door after stepping into Mother Dough. Because even the above 2 left over bakes were tempting enough (time check: 4pm on a Saturday). I first gave the chocolate brownie a shot and it proved itself as a confident square with hard crisp crust and a rich dense gooey like center; truly the gold standard of real brownies.
When we ordered the lemon drizzle it was an equally indulgent, adequately moist butter cake with lemon zest and an icing sugar coat.
Thankfully I shared the 2 with my mother aka partner in crime and we preferred the decadent brownie with a generous scoop of nuts evenly spread in the cake. The yellow cake was not as evenly mixed with jolts of zest in some bites and an absence in others.
I was here for the croissants and shall be back for the croissants.

The rare times I have tea with my Queen aka Mom I succumbed to the excessively beautiful, furnished to the Moroccan-royalty theme: Bacha Coffee. On a weekday afternoon the place was full and I wasn’t surprised after observing all the crockery that took cue form the furnishing; and tasting my selection of coffee from the >100 choices in the menu. Clear attention to detail included: fluffy cream in a small covered dish and vanilla bean from a “pepper shaker”, to pair with your coffee.
While Bacha is a great place to have afternoon coffee, I wasn’t a fan of the slightly thick, chewy and “oily” croissants. Also the pistachio strawberry tart had an only acceptable tart base with a pistachio cream that reminded me more of almond flavouring instead of the shelled nut I was familiar with.