In a society where order reigns supreme, desserts must surely come after mains, but the same cannot be said for the hedonist who dives straight for the sweet endings. Satisfying one’s hunger for all things sugary, with four anarchistic establishments with desserts as good as mains.
Antoinette
With a backdrop reminiscent of an elegant boudoir, this quintessential Parisian pâtisserie imbues the French’s artistic and culinary ingenuity into each of its meticulously handcrafted cakes. Its latest collection of “couture cakes” is a testament to its boundless creativity, which draws inspiration from its vogue counterparts. Chocolat No˚5, whose foundation is made up of chocolate Sacher sponge, ornamented with almond hazelnut feuilletine alongside dark chocolate of French and Belgian origin, and topped with chocolate crème chantilly icing, is a palatable interpretation of Coco Chanel’s iconic No°5 perfume. As a tribute to the legendary Japanese designer Issey Miyake, Cheese Please is a pronounced nod to the Pleats Please line. Parmesan shavings are scattered atop the three-cheese mousse, while apricot jelly and almond sables add a layer of evocative geometric aesthetic to the cake.
2am: dessertbar
Bringing an avant-garde approach to the dessert table is Janice Wong’s claim to fame, and her catwalk is 2am:dessertbar. The accolade-laden chef has showcased her edible art to august audiences at various public and private events, and her showstopping works have undoubtedly cemented 2am:dessertbar’s place in the upper echelons of gourmet desserts. The restaurant’s specialities include the petite but flavourful Cassis Plum, whose sphere is made of aerated blackcurrant and white chocolate. It is filled with elderflower-based Choya Shiso foam for a kick of alcohol and sits elegantly on a bed of Choya Shiso granita with Kochi Yuzu pearls and blackcurrant pastel. However, the highlight is the Chocolate H20, which owes its sombre disposition to lifeless corals. Featuring frozen chocolate with water mousse sprayed in grey as the coup de grâce, Wong’s mastery of the challenging dessert confirms the chef’s dedication to her craft.
The Courtyard
Chocolate is the ubiquitous and fan-favourite flavour in contemporary desserts, but how much of it can one eat before it truly expands the taste vocabulary of “rich, velvety, and chocolaty”? The Fullerton Hotel’s The Courtyard tries its unwavering hand at the century-old ingredient with its famed chocolate buffet. Divided into multiple interactive stations, The Courtyard’s chocolate buffet draws guests in with its visual allure and playfully teases the palette with every morsel. At the Live Nitro Station, liquid nitrogen is flamboyantly employed to instantly freeze melted chocolate into a ball. To savour, break the sphere to reveal a core of Valrhona 70 per cent chocolate sponge, crumble, espuma, and meringue for a textural treat. The daring combination of alcohol and chocolate proves provocative with concoctions like the Toblerone Martini, which contains vodka, butterscotch, milk, Kahlua, and chocolate sauce; perfect for diners looking for a quick hit of liquid courage in an unfamiliar yet quirky fashion.
Mother Dough Bakery
Conventional and straight-to-the-point, Mother Dough Bakery serves up no-frills bread and pastries. The bakery is the humble abode of head baker Naadhira Ismail, who hails from the International Culinary Institute in New York. Her modus operandi is the slow fermentation of sourdough bread, which has been field-tested to yield high-quality bread. With countless nutritional benefits to boot, the pride of the bakery, the almond croissant, gleam through it crisp, flaky exterior. A bite into one of these almond-studded gems will expose a sweet and tantalising cream, leaving each taste bud yearning for more
RELATED ARTICLES
