Keong Saik Bakery Holland V: Where Retro Meets Contemporary for the Breakfast Run
The Chip Bee Gardens stretch of cafes and boutiques at Holland Village has always been popular, and with the arrival of Keong Saik Bakery’s second outlet, it’s about to get more buzzing; especially since perennial favourites like % Arabica and Sunday Folks continue to draw in the crowds.
Keong Saik Bakery’s new space further up the road is clean and bright as daylight pours in through the wide, expansive windows.
Read: Supernova— Tanjong Katong’s Newest Brunch Cafe
Read: Babba— Peranakan-Infused Brunch at Serangoon
Read: Coexist Coffee Co— Sleek Industrial Paya Lebar Cafe with Carrot Cake Fries
@blakerik traditional kopitiam meets boujee cafe vibes— loads of bakes like matcha cruffin, kouign amann etc. deffo be prepared to queue! #fypシ #tiktoksg #bakery ♬ she looks so perfect acoustic cover - MICO
The external façade is painted in a calm shade of light baby blue, with the typography of the sign and Chinese characters harking back to traditional shops from the past.
Read: The Food Peeps Coffee and Deli— Rustic Cafe Moves to Chinatown
Read: DAWN— Rustic Japanese-Style Coffeehouse at Clarke Quay
This nostalgic influence can be seen inside as well, as the clean and contemporary minimalist counter, by far the most attractive part of the cafe, is complemented with colourful retro tiles for flooring, which adds quite a bit of soul and character into the overall interior design.
Read: DAWN— Rustic Japanese-Style Coffeehouse at Clarke Quay
On the menu, you’ll find standard items commonly found in other bakery cafes, like tarts, croissants, pain au chocolat etc.
However, what makes Keong Saik Bakery special is that a lot of their pastries are infused with local flavours as well. Besides the standard ones, you have things like Miso Salmon Kouign-Amann (S$7), MSW Burnt Cheese Cruffin (S$7.30), and Otak Danish (S$4.40), just to name a few.
Read: Sin and Savage Bakehouse— Cosy Neighbourhood Cafe with Excellent Bakes and Quality Mains
Read: Interim Market— Sentosa’s Industrial Aesthetic Food Hall
Read: Knots Cafe and Living— Botanical Cafe Opens a New Outlet at Pasir Panjang
We had the Matcha Cruffin (S$5.50) with uji matcha ganache, and yes it was every bit as rich as you might expect. Matcha lovers will definitely love this, and I thought it wasn’t too sweet which was good.
The standard Kouign-Amann (S$3.90) was good as well, as it was delightfully buttery and flaky. It’s one of my personal favourite pastries, so I was pre-disposed to like it from the jump, and I’m glad to say Keong Saik Bakery didn’t disappoint.
With almond croissants, these can typically get quite sweet, so the Matcha Almond Croissant (S$4.80) was refreshing, as the slight bitterness of the matcha cuts through the sweetness of the roasted almond frangipane.
Over on the savoury side of things, the croissant cubes are definitely interesting (though pricey considering the size), and the Mentaiko Croissant Cube (S$6.70) impressed with the mentaiko and tobiko cheese filling oozing out perfectly as you cut into it.
Read: Acoustics Coffee Bar— Cosy Brunch Cafe Relocates to Neil Rd
While the bakes were impressive, coffee was so-so and nothing much to write home about. The chocolate flavour of the mocha was also not that evident, so I’d recommend the pastries over the drinks.
Personally, I really love that they do interesting fusion flavours in their bakes, and I have to hand it to them that they do have quite a wide variety on offer to please all sorts of palettes and preferences. The interior is definitely beautiful, and the blend of traditional kopitiam aesthetics and today’s modern cafe look does make them stand out.
However, seats are very limited, which often leads to queues at the door. We waited about 45 minutes on a morning of a public holiday, and in the sweltering heatwave we’ve seen lately, it was genuinely quite uncomfortable. Of course, bakes here are also not cheap, so two pastries and a coffee will easily set you back almost S$20, which is obviously quite pricey for breakfast.
Some diners have also complained that the space gets pretty noisy, but I didn’t find this to be a massive problem during my visit.
The ideal?
Pop in store and take away your bakes, that way you can skip the line and enjoy the best of what they have to offer.
Read: Seng Coffee Bar— Hearty Brunches with an Asian Twist
Read: Neptune Cafe— Beautiful Pastel Green and White Cafe Located at East Coast
WHERE | 44 JALAN MERAH SAGA, #01-42, SINGAPORE 278116
