When I first saw the pretty cakes on IG, I immediately jio-ed the friend to go down cos she’s a cake fanatic as well. She told me we had to go early cos she has seen queues outside the cafe, but yet, nobody mentioned the system was this confusing. Helmed by Chef Maxine Ngooi, who had worked under a number of Michelin-starred restaurants, the cafe had a botanical themed design which was really pretty and comfortable to chill. At 9am, we were at the doors of the cafe ready for brunch and cakes but we found out cakes only start serving at 11am so we decided to come back later for them

They were pretty crowded at 9am already

Matcha Latte $6.50

Iced White $6

Pain Au Chocolat $4.50

And since we were sharing one brunch item (to save space for cakes), we decided to get the croissant too which was a good decision on hindsight. The plan was to come back to have cakes and dabao the pastries, but more on that later

The croissant was really good – light, airy, crispy and you can taste the chocolate in it. I would buy this anytime

Big Brekkie – Build Your Own! $18

Ciabatta, Kombu Bitter, Scrambled Eggs, Grilled Mushrooms, Spiced Chicken Breast

Honestly, I thought the brunch was pretty good too. Love the soft bread with the Kombu butter and the nicely marinated chicken breast without being dry at all. I find the scrambled egg too soft for my liking, would have preferred it a little more texture for this. And the friend mentioned it would be better if it’s served hot cos we saw the server coming out with multiple plates so I guessed ours could be left in the kitchen for some time

After we were done with brunch, we went to venture around the area and were back at 10.30am to join the queue for cakes. And then we overheard they were almost sold out for pastries so if anyone in line wanted to purchase the pastries, you would need to go inside to reserve and in our state of confusion, we thought their cakes were sold out

Because, look, the sign says so

To summarise:

They will only allow people in at 11am if you are dining in/taking away the cakes

So if you come earlier for brunch thinking you can enjoy both brunch and cake, you would need to join the queue again

Pastries are really good but likely to sell out by 11am, so if you want, please go earlier

Though at 11am, they were giving priority to people that were there for brunch and when I looked inside, the cakes were already in full display

?!?!

After a 45-minutes wait, we were finally in and hence we decided to order everything. The people queuing were really amazed by us and we laughed though they probably could understand why

Forest Berry Taco $9

I thought this was not bad. It had the right balance of sweetness and sourness though we find the taco biscuit too thick. It would be better if the crust was thinner and it would probably won more brownie points

Pistachio Marimo $10

I didn’t like the cream surrounding the pistachio centre. We really enjoyed the pistachio bits and the crunch when you bite into them but I felt the cream could be lighter and thinner cos it felt a little too much. And the green outer layer tasted a little strange to me

Chocolate Hazelnut Tart $15

The friend found this too chocolatey. It’s like bittersweet chocolate but gao. I thought the tart crust was too thick and the flavour a little too heavy so it can be rather filling. But for those who preferred their desserts less sweet, this would be one to consider

Pink Guava & Pear $10

The best out of all. Highly recommended. The flavours were wonderful and everything came together nicely

The Beehive $11

Prettiest, but did not live up to expectations. The crust was too thick and the lemon cream was too much it hit you in the face. Though I understand you need to eat everything together to find that harmony but once you cut into the shell, everything falls apart. They really could use less lemon cream and be a little more generous with the sweetness

In all, the desserts could definitely be improved

I managed to dabao the Mochie blondie though I really wanted the croissants as well. Overhead the server mentioning they are still trying to find a middle ground and the friend went – they opened for 2 weeks already right? at least? I felt like there are certainly many, in fact, MANY areas they can improve on. Like for one – the staff was still unaware how building your own platter from Big Brekkie works – I find this very basic… I mean, come on, the menu is not that extensive. I also find the splitting of timings confusing especially if you are a first-timer there, how would you be aware?? Perhaps they could just do a single timing or come up with a reservation system for their cakes or pastries. I could understand their pastries come in limited quantities (for whatever reasons), but the last I check, they close at 6pm

My advice? There is no need to rush down. Give them a month at least. Hopefully they are able to sort out their operations and there is improvement in the cakes as well. Because to be honest, I thought their food was pretty decent

Tigerlily Patisserie

350 Joo Chiat Rd, Singapore 427598