Yugoslavia Bakery & Cafe (Katong V)

Unique pastries

To be really frank, I am not a fan of how influencers often mention about how COVID-19 has made travelling feel like a distant reality and that an eatery showcasing a particular country’s cuisine is the best way to “travel the world” in the era of the pandemic; perhaps travel isn’t quite something that bears that much of a place in my heart all along. But there again, its also places like Yugoslavia Bakery & Cafe that attempts to bring a piece of foreign culture to us — allows us to better understand the food culture of a particular country to pique our interest further into the other aspects of their culture.

While Yugoslavia is a country that no longer exists, it’s pretty interesting to see how the folks behind Yugoslavia Bakery & Cafe attempts to bring a slice (quite literally) of the country for us to better understand its heritage and culture. One may argue that the food here seems relative to Turkish cuisine; the familiar word “Baklava” especially rings a bell, while the Balkan Coffee evokes similar vibes of Turkish Coffee with a lighter body and cleaner finish. Rather than to argue about it’s origins (I am no historian), let’s just settle it as Southern European cuisine.

The Burek here is available in different forms; 1/8 pie (the one we opted), 1/4 pie, whole pie or as a swirl; flavours include beef meat (the one we opted), spinach and cheese, feta cheese and raisin and brown sugar caramel. Essentially a phyllo pastry; the thin layers of buttery pastry is pretty fragrant here — similar to pie pastry, but more defined. The beef fillings came in a form like a hash, and were surprisingly savoury but not particularly gamey — similar to that of pie filling that usually comes with carrot and peas. The only qualm was that we didn’t ask for it to be warmed up upon order (not that we know if they would; it never came across our mind) — could see how the pastry would have been more crisp and fragrant that way.

Apart from savoury stuff, Yugoslavia Bakery and Cafe also serves up a variety of other breads and bakes; think the Kifla (Balkan Milk Soft Bun), Pogacha (Traditional Balkan Round Loaf) and Vasa’s Cake (Traditional Yugoslavia Cake). While many bakeries and cafes now seemingly compete in the same space where the only distinguishing factors are composition, creativity, execution and aesthetics, Yugoslavia Bakery and Cafe is a pretty unique addition to the F&B scene. I am in no position to comment about how authentic the bakes are here — but they are definitely worth checking out for those looking for a concept that brings something unique into the scene.