Maison Kayser Revisited

After lovely dine-in and takeaway experiences at Scotts Square's Maison Kayser, I decided to visit the branch at Wheelock Place. Located at B2 beside Nam Nam Noodle Bar, it is just across Paterson Link from Ion Orchard where Marks & Spencer used to be. My order of Original Blend Coffee had a nice aroma of roasted beans and was bitter with muted acidity. Neither too strong nor light, it was good enough sans condiments and served with Financier – there was an aroma of butter, the taste of which I found too overwhelming. Lacking a crisp on the outside and an aroma possibly because the Pain Au Chocolat was cold, it was not as fluffy on the inside as its croissant that was named the best by Paris newspaper Le Figaro. Still airy and soft, the lightness was somehow missing. While the chocolate was sweet and rich, it was overall a tad disappointing. Unlike its Croissant Praline which still had the same nice texture, with the bonus of a smooth hazelnuts and praline cream reminiscent of Nutella.

Maison Kayser

According to its website, a new bread is created for every new bakery. And each shop has a unique layout and décor to reflect the neighbourhood, city and country. All breads, pastries and brioches are prepared using in-house techniques with an exclusive leaven followed by slow kneading and long (traditional and natural) fermentation before they are shaped by hand and baked on-site daily. Quoting Chef Eric Kayser, "Good bread doesn't lie: it says everything about the quality of its ingredients and the know-how of its creator." Natural products, such as liquid leaven that offers a range of aromas devoid of acidity, are used as far as possible at every step in production. In fact, butter is tailor-made with a dairy producer in Japan just so the croissant can be as good as those in France. To meet demand, new openings in Japan had to limit every customer to no more than two croissants each. Such success meant I had to try Maison Kayser when it came to our shores.