Louisa Coffee (Guoco Midtown)

Was looking forward to having their Taro Pie but was unfortunately unavailable by late afternoon when I visited. Hence, I had Louisa Coffee’s Black Sesame Pie and Matcha Pie instead. Of the two Boston Cream Pies ($6.50/each), the latter fared better in my opinion as the matcha cream really tied the elements together and the surprising addition of crunchy crushed mixed nuts (I got almond and walnut) made it more fun texturally. Crowned with chantilly cream and ground matcha powder, the matcha chiffon-like sponge was lightly sweetened with subtle tea notes. None too cloying, the distinctive earthy matcha flavour was nice. On the other hand, the Black Sesame Pie was pleasantly nutty but lacked a little oomph (would be great if they replaced the chantilly cream with Goma flavoured cream).

The coffee is more of blend side as it is not very aromatic

Taiwan’s coffee chain, Louisa Coffee, is finally here in Singapore. There is a wide range of specialty coffee and tea beverages including freshly made sandwiches, bagels, wrapanini, tarts and Boston cream pies.

With the works at Guoco Midtown reaching its final stages, it seems that F&B tenants are slowly making their move into the building to start operations — F&B establishments such as that of British Indian Curry Hut (originating from Holland Village) and Da Xi 大喜 have already started operations in the building, and it seems that Louisa Coffee had also found home in Guoco Midtown as well. Louisa Coffee takes up one of the most prominent shop spaces at Guoco Midtown, with one side of the facade facing Beach Road — this makes them fairly visible to passers-by to say the least. For those whom are unaware, Louisa Coffee originates from Taiwan and had first opened in 2007; their first store being a takeaway-only shop that is situated in Taipei. They do have some presence outside of Taiwan as well, with operations being in Thailand since 2019. Its location at Guoco Midtown is fairly large; something comparable to that of a space that more commercial brands like Starbucks and The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf will operate out of. The interior can be said to be modern with the use of wooden elements and grey walls; the interior also being brightly-lit from both artificial lighting as well as natural lighting coming from the full-length windows of the space that they operate out of. Focusing on specialty coffee, their beverage menu features sections dedicated to Estate Coffee, Classic Espresso Coffee, Beyond Single Origin Drip Coffee, Specialty Coffee, Iceccino, Taylors English Tea, Taiwanese Tea and Other Drinks. Those feeling peckish can opt for simple hot food items which are categorised into Fresh Made Sandwich (available in Toast or Bagel format), Danish Toast / Focaccia, and Wrapannini, while those craving for something sweet can go for items listed in the Boston Cream Pie and Tart sections of the menu.

Most of the social media posts about Louisa Coffee’s outlet at Guoco Midtown seem to be surroundin their range of Boston Cream Pies. It comes to us with little surprise when we were skimming through the menu on what they have to offer here — the Boston Cream Pie does stand out as probably the most interesting item available at Louisa Coffee since most of the other offerings are rather run-of-the-mill to say the least. For those whom are unaware, a Google search we had made in Boston Cream Pie suggests that the item is “a cake with a cream filling”; the reason on why the cake is being named as a pie is due to historic factors. Louisa Coffee does offer their Boston Cream Pie in several flavour options, but we found ourselves pretty drawn to the Taro one since we are fans of almost all things Taro. Orders at Louisa Coffee can either be made through via mobile phone by scanning on the QR code placed at prominent spots all across the cafe, or via the iPads near the collection counter that acts as a POS machine; patrons would be required to scan a QR code upon collection of order once the queue number has been called to indicate that the order is completed and acknowledged by the patron. The Taro Boston Cream Pie arrives the table all wobbly and jiggly; Louisa Coffee does not describe the elements that comes with the Taro Boston Cream Pie, though we not that there are taro-infused cream, taro paste, mochi, pastry cream, cake and icing sugar based off what we could see and taste.

Taking our first forkful of the Taro Boston Cream Pie, the cake felt soft, light, and pillowy — this is even despite the perceived density and heft of the cake from how it looks; itself being quite eggy and reminds us of a Castella Cake in both texture and flavour and is not overly sweet which makes the Taro Boston Cream Pie fairly easy to eat. As one gets through the middle of the cake, one would hit a layer where the taro paste, mochi and the pastry cream can be found. Truth to be told, we were expecting a more profound note of earthiness from the yam here; there is quite a light hint that one could detect, though much of it did seem like as though it was dominated by the cake itself. The mochi helps to add a chewy texture and was somewhat the neutral flavour that helped to amplify the earthiness of the taro paste at the same time with the pastry cream helping to gel all of the elements together. We had also managed to give the Egg Tart here a go; something a little different from the usual where the Egg Tart has considerable depth as compared with the typical ones that one can get elsewhere, the tart base was of a cookie-esque tart base that is a little more crumbly but holds up the egg curd filling pretty well. The egg curd filling itself was also not too sweet, with a distinct eggy note that perfumes the taste buds. Meanwhile, the Orange Peel Latte was something that really went well with us; the coffee here does seem to have a light body, but the infusion of orange peel makes for a slightly zesty note amidst the earthy and nutty finish of the cuppa. Louisa Coffee should not be mistaken as a coffeehouse serving artisanal espresso-based specialty coffee — they are probably a brand that cater towards the mass market much more similar to the commercially-run coffeehouses like Starbucks and The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf in both its offerings and experience; a place that is worth considering to visit if in the area.