Cafes are the perfect place for when you want a day out but don’t know where to go. Cute, cosy and usually coming with a side of creative pastries and snacks, we’ve all crashed at a cafe for a whole afternoon before – whether it’s for some last-minute cramming or just to chill. Well, here’s one you should add to your list. Let’s welcome another cafe into the Tanjong Pagar and Tras Street area: KOKO Cafe & Patisserie!

Now before you brush this one off as just another cafe, KOKO Cafe & Patisserie brings something a little different to the table. Filled with pastries that are freshly made by the day, ‘simple is best’ with this quaint Japanese hang-out. From the same minds behind Gyutan-Tan, escape into the vibrant world of Japanese-inspired culinary prowess.

*Check out the display of cakes and pick your favourite!*

With a colour scheme of coral, beige and tan, KOKO Cafe & Patisserie is the place to be – literally! Derived from the words ‘here’ and ‘happiness’, KOKO Cafe & Patisserie is here for you if you’re looking to press pause on your fast-paced life to recharge and indulge in the simplicities of life.

And there’s no better way to do so than to sink your teeth into some meticulously crafted delights! Let me preface this by saying, I’m not usually a fan of sweet things. While I do crave sweets occasionally, this was not one of those days! So, I was having a bite of all of these pastries without the lens of a sugar craving.

Choux Puffs

The first of the six I tried, the Choux Puffs was not what I was expecting.

Let’s talk about its texture first. Easy to mess up if not done correctly, many Choux Puffs I’ve tried were overly doughy on the outer. However, this one, oof – perfectly crumbly and oozing with cream. Its outer is rough and crisp; push too hard and you’ll crack the entire shell! Cutting into the puff, the custard was smooth and thick, immediately clinging to the knife and fork. The medley of textures was already a feast for the eyes – imagine when it’s in your mouth!

Available in three flavours piped fresh every day – the original, featuring custard filling, chocolate with a dark chocolate whip, as well as the one I tried out: matcha. The outer shell was dusted with the beautiful green powder while the inner filling was a radiant green as well.

The matcha custard on its own was rich without being too overwhelming, flawlessly bringing out the earthy notes of matcha without oversaturating it with sugar. The outer shell was mild in sweetness as well, bringing out the flavours and enriching the fusion of the textures of the whole pastry. No wonder it’s a crowd favourite!

Rating: 8/10

Doughnuts

*Watching them pipe the filling was so satisfying*

Another crowd favourite are KOKO Cafe & Patisserie’s Doughnuts. The dough is hand-kneaded and freshly made every day, and its filling is piped in-store daily as well. Light and fluffy with custard oozing from its centre, these are treats you have to try if you are a doughnut lover. With a huge range of flavours available, you’ll never run out of options!

Of the many choices presented, I tried the pistachio one, featuring a filling that blended custard cream and pistachio praline, creating a wonderful harmony of luscious flavours, encased in a fluffy, sugar-dusted outer. Be careful while eating though, with how full the doughnut is, custard flows out with every bite or cut!

While I did enjoy my doughnut, I found it a tad too sweet for my liking. Towards the second half of the doughnut, the praline filling in combination with the sugary dough became too much for me. If you aren’t much of a sweet tooth like me, share this with someone instead and get multiple different pastries!

Rating: 7/10

Yam Mont Blanc

*Look at the swirls of yam balancing on the meringue base*

A classic dessert with a twist, the Yam Mont Blanc is KOKO’s signature showstopper. A deceptively plain-looking pastry, I would’ve glanced over it if I saw it in the display case. However, you’re in for a surprise when you cut into it! Hidden behind the facade of pale neutral colours is a vibrant and deep purple berry mix purée, creating a stark contrast from the light palette of the dessert.

Personally, I am not much of a yam person – I never really understood the craze for it. However, for this dessert, the yam wasn’t the aspect that took me off guard, it was the berry purée. The yam was surprisingly light in flavour, melding perfectly with the crisp meringue base and creating a light, gently sweet profile. Once the purée was introduced to the mix, there was an added layer of tartness that added to the flavour experience, elevating it as more than just a normal yam dessert. While I wouldn’t have gone for this myself, I can see why many would, with the berry purée creating a bright and pleasant surprise to the overall taste.

Rating: 7/10

Okinawan Rum Chocolate Sand

One of the cakes that I would love to try again at KOKO Cafe & Patisserie, the Okinawan Rum Chocolate Sand was a fascinating flavour experience that blended a series of different tastes and mouthfeels. This little chocolate taco confused me at first, as I wasn’t sure how to eat it. Presented to you when served is a luscious hazelnut praline topped with a velvety dark chocolate ganache infused with Japanese rum. Sandwiching them is a buttery biscuit crust dipped into chocolate with a tinge of salt – in short, a very chocolatey dessert and yet… I didn’t hate it!

I’ve never been a chocolate lover but that was mostly due to its overwhelming sweetness. With the Okinawan Rum Chocolate Sand, while decadent, the use of dark chocolate as well as the addition of the salted butter biscuits balanced out what would have been an explosion of cloying sweetness.

A single bite coats your tastebuds in the luxurious chocolate ganache before you crunch down on the biscuit and get hit with a splash of savour. Well-balanced with a rollercoaster ride of flavours, the Okinawan Rum Chocolate Sand is definitely what I would go for if my favourite cake was unavailable.

Rating: 9.5/10

Strawberry Shortcake

If it’s not broken, why fix it? If KOKO Cafe & Patisserie had to be boiled down into a single pastry, this would be it. The Strawberry Shortcake is a quintessential dessert in Japanese patisseries and cake shops, with a flavour profile you cannot go wrong with. Want a cake but don’t know what to get? This is gonna be your safest bet. Unassuming but reliable, the Strawberry Shortcake is an adequate – if not, perfect – fix for a sugar craving.

Call me basic but this is always hands-down my favourite – it has strawberries, light milky whipped cream and a simple sponge cake base, what’s not to like? While the sponge cake and cream may come off sweet at first, eating them with the slightly tart strawberries creates a perfect bite filled with balance that neither tips into too sweet or too bland. Absolutely the closest to perfection a cake could get in my book, this Strawberry Shortcake is one of my favourites I’ve tried.

Rating: 10/10

Apricot Almond Mousse

If you’re a fruit lover, then the Apricot Almond Mousse might just be for you! This demure dessert is a bright tropical orange hue, topped with a single daisy and is sure to enchant your tastebuds. A multi-layered dessert, it features a core of apricot purée, balanced on a bed of crisp feuilletine and surrounded by an almond mousse. Layered at the top is an apricot jam, with the rest of the dessert encased in a glossy shell of cacao butter.

This dessert definitely leaned into the more saccharine side of flavour profiles, which may be overwhelming for those who don’t prefer sweets. However, while I wasn’t the biggest fan of how sweet it was, I do like the blend of textures this dessert presented. After cracking into the cacao butter shell, your teeth sink into the next layer of delicate mousse before meeting the crisp feuilletine and the soft apricot purée – truly a beautiful medley of mouthfeels!

Rating: 7/10

Overall Thoughts

KOKO Cafe & Patisserie did not disappoint, keeping its minimalistic aesthetic not just in the cafe but also in its food offerings. These pastries are composed of simple, straightforward ingredients that result in a balanced and delectable taste profile—you’re guaranteed an experience that will reinvigorate you.

Besides the pastries, we tried the drinks as well. With so many drinks, you’ll be spoilt for choice. We went with the Kurogoma Ice Cream Milk Float and the Rose Matcha to wash all the sugar down. The Kurogoma Float was, as the name suggests, a generous scoop of black sesame ice cream floating in a cup of milk, black sesame seeds sprinkled on the surface. Here’s a tip: let the ice cream melt and soften before you drink. This will allow you to press and break apart chunks of the ice cream and drink it alongside the milk, making the black sesame flavour even more fragrant!

The Rose Matcha called to mind another pink and green drink – a strawberry matcha. Similar in concept, the Rose Matcha creates that pink and green contrast by using a rose foam topped at the mouth of the cup, rather than a rose syrup. This retains the classic earthy matcha flavour that is complemented by a touch of rose – perfect for those who wanna change up their usual matcha latte orders.

Comfortable and simple, KOKO Cafe & Patisserie is a great place to recharge and unwind. Backed up by its unassuming and cosy interior as well as its exquisite offerings, I can see myself coming here to spend the afternoon relaxing or people-watching. But don’t just take my word for it, come down and check it out for yourself!