Local cafe chain Bakerzin, better known for its desserts and pastries, has introduced a new menu with a section dedicated to local tastes.

What makes new section "Just like home" special is that many of the recipes within were handed down from CEO Daniel Tay's mother, grandmother and even aunt. Think of your own grandmother preparing a hearty meal for you - the result is what you should expect when trying dishes from this section.

Take the Assam prawns with rice ($14.80, main picture), for example. This recipe, by Tay's father, has a rich, full-bodied gravy that is spicy and sweet. The tamarind flavour, while strong, is not overpowering. If you want something a little more unusual, try the assam prawns with linguini instead of rice.

Pork lovers will have a field day with the braised pork belly with Japanese rice ($13.80) and prawn ramen soup with braised pork belly ($14.80). In both dishes, the braised pork is soft and tender. I preferred the rice version though, as it is accompanied by a dark sauce which enhances the pork's flavour. The prawn ramen soup tasted slightly bland in comparison when I tried it last week, but the al dente texture of the noodles made the dish a decent one.

The two local desserts which I tried were well made. The cheng tng was ($6.80) full of premium ingredients such as gingko nuts, lotus seeds, sweet potatoes, longan, white fungus and persimmons. It was not too sweet, and can be served either hot or cold. I tried the cold version, and felt it would have been even better if it was more chilled. One might ask for ice cubes, I suppose, and I don't think this will drastically dilute the dessert as the soup is thicker than most other versions I've tried.

I did wish that the red bean cream ($5.80) was sweeter though. It's probably a Cantonese thing - we often prefer such desserts sweeter, as compared to most other people. Apparently, fine-tuning the recipe's sweetness also posed quite a challenge for Bakerzin. If it was sweet enough for them, it was probably too sweet for most of their patrons. Still, the issue of sweetness aside, the red bean cream had a smooth texture that was almost velvet-like.

 
L-R: Cheng Tng and Red Bean Cream

One item on Bakerzin's new menu which I particularly enjoyed was the tofu salad ($8.80). It's a simple dish - cool, light and refreshing. The slightly sweet sauce - adapted from Japanese soba sauce - gave a hint of flavour, while the fresh mushrooms provided some textural contrast.

It is heartening to see that Bakerzin is not resting on its laurels, even after nine years of success. The constant drive to create new dishes and expand its menu offerings is impressive, and doesn't seem to have negatively impacted the quality of its food. Still, I do wish that they would serve iced tap water, or at least provide other choices of bottled water.

Bakerzin
4 outlets islandwide at
Millenia Walk #01-23/24/25
Paragon #02-09
United Square #01-07/60
Vivocity #01-207

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