Penang Bagus - Penang and Korean Food and Dessert Cafe

• Operating Days: Closed on Tuesdays
• Operating Time: Mon, Wed & Thu: 11.30 AM to 11 PM
• Fri & Sat: 11.30 AM to 11.30 PM
• Address: 232 Tanjong Katong Road, S 437020
• Facebook Page

Penang Bagus is a newly renovated shop located beside Ponggol Nasi Lemak at Tanjong Katong, serving Penang street food, as well as serving Korean desserts and snacks.

Previously, this cafe serves only Korean Bingsu and other Korean snacks. It was only until recently, Penang Bagus took over the premises to sell Penang dishes, and still preserving the original Korean dishes.

This is an air-conditioned restaurant with a relaxing ambience. Most of the decorations from the previous Korean cafe were preserved, with adding of some Penang feel to it. Changes were quite a minimal as compared to previously.

One of the staffs informed us that all the food from the Korean menu will still be prepared personally by a native Korean.

So there is the Penang famous street art wallpaper with the real bicycle on it, very much similar to the original one located in Penang. With that, it felt almost like we were dining at a street-side stall in Penang, with the comfortable air-con ambience!

Penang Bagus is pretty much an all self-service restaurant. You order and pay at the counter, then collect your food when the buzzer beeps. There is no service charge here so the prices stated on the menu will be the nett price you pay.

 We ordered a Korean Injeolmi toast and a Chocolate Banana Bingsu.

The tiny mountain of shaved ice was covered with Milo powder and topped with banana slices, almond flakes, chocolate syrup, served with a scoop of vanilla flavoured ice-cream on top.

Like most bingsu, the ice shavings were milky and slightly sweet. Even with the ice-cream and chocolate syrup, the dessert was surprisingly not too overwhelming. In terms of texture, the shavings were more icy than creamy.

Next was the Injeolmi toast. It is actually a Korean rice cake sandwich. The toast was delicious, crusty and crispy on the edges and the cheese added a savoury dimension to it. It was thick with a good layer of rice cake sandwiched between the two bread slices. You can top it up with condensed milk but I liked it as how it is served.

The toast was slightly sweet, with the salty cheese layer which can be seen on the top. It was a nice combination in my opinion.

The air-conditioned dining space makes the overall dining experience a good one, with friendly staffs and the good service seen. We will be back soon to try out their Penang dishes.

Dessert Hut 甜品小屋 - A Traditional Chinese Dessert Stall with Korean Bingsu inspired desserts?!

• Operating Hours: 10 AM - 8 PM
• Operating Days: Daily
• Address: People's Park Centre, #02-48/58, 101 Upper Cross Street, S 058357
• Webpage

The hot weather in Singapore gets even hotter these few weeks! Happened to chance upon Dessert Hut 甜品小屋 while we were running errands at People's Park Centre, so we decided to give this stall a try, as well as to seize the chance to enjoy the aircon in People's Park Centre.

A "mother-daughter" team established Dessert Hut 甜品小屋 in the year 2004 to share their passion in making Chinese traditional desserts with all the like-minded individuals. As time goes by, the owner has introduced new flavours and items to be added to their menu, to improvise their desserts and also to keep up with the market trends. 

There is another dessert stall right beside Dessert Hut 甜品小屋 that sell similar desserts, but you can't miss Dessert Hut 甜品小屋 as they have expanded their business space by buying over the area directly opposite their stall.

These are the hot and cold dessert they have.

We decided to go for their Oreo Kakigori (Shaved ice in Japanese), Milo Kakigori and Tau Suan.

The Oreo Kakigori came first and taking the first look at it, it is 90% similar to a bowl of Korean Oreo Bingsu! A good amount of crushed Oreo used, topping up with condensed milk; the only difference between the Oreo Kakigori and Korean Oreo Bingsu is probably the price. $4.80 for this bowl of goodness, seriously?

The amount of condensed milk used was just right for us. Though we all have sweet tooth, we can't really take desserts that are too sweet/rich, and very often we would stop eating halfway. The Oreo Kakigori here was what we are looking for - generous amount of Oreo powder used, topped up with the right amount of condensed milk on a bowl of snowflake ice that literally melts in your mouth. Perfect!

We were surprised to see a small piece of Oreo Cheesecake hidden in the middle of the bowl. To Oreo fans- this is a bowl of dessert you should go for. Highly recommended!

Next came was the Tau Suan. Priced slightly on a higher side ($2.20), the Tau Suan served here is actually a healthier version (as compared to the regular hawker stall), which is less sweet. 

The last item came was the Milo Kakigori. This was actually the additional order (as we really like the Oreo version) so we were having high expectation on this as well. Similar to Oreo Kakigori, a generous amount of Milo Powder was given, topped up with condensed milk and marshmallow bits. The condensed milk given in the bowl of ice was significantly lesser, not sure if it is due to the marshmallow bits are given - as it will definitely affect the overall sweetness level of this bowl of dessert. 

Instead of the Oreo cheesecake, a small piece of the brownie was given instead. The brownie was slightly dry but overall it does taste good as well when you pair it with the ice. Personally, we felt that the Milo Kakigori is a fusion dessert (Milo powder - Singapore, Kakigori ice - Japan and Bingsu look alike - Korea) whichyou can try if you are a fan of these three countries like us.

All in all, the dessert served at Dessert Hut 甜品小屋 are generally on a healthier side as it is not as sweet as compared to the desserts served at a regular dessert stall. Though we did not try many of their traditional desserts while we were there, we have seen many patrons ordering their hot desserts despite the hot weather. Being in the market for more than 15 years selling traditional Chinese desserts, we like how the owner improvised their menu to keep up with the current trend, opening up the new market with potential to attract a younger crowd to patronize their stall. Do give it a try and share with us how you feel after visiting!

Bingsu in Kopitiam?!! Cheapest price of $5.90 for an authentic Korean Shaved Ice!

• Address: Tiong Bahru Plaza, Kopitiam #03-01, 302 Tiong Bahru Road, S 168732
• Food I had: Oreo Banana Bingsu, Mango Bingsu
• Total Cost: $12.40 with Kopitiam card (10% discount)

Korean dessert Bingsu has hit the town! It’s shaved ice dessert that many called it the Korean ice kachang, the difference between ice kachang and Bingsu is bingsu has its ice shaved so finely that we were not exaggerating when we say it really melts in your mouth. Most of the Singaporeans were spotted having Bingsu at a stylish cafe, or in a restaurant. Now you can satisfy your Bingsu cravings in Kopitiam!

When we were having dinner in Kopitiam, I saw something surprising, Bingsu and I thought to myself it must be like ice kachang just that they will arrange the item like Korean Bingsu at $5.90. To cure my curiosity, I went to buy it.

The Bingsu at Gangnam Bingsu comes much more affordable than any other places, where could you get Bingsu priced at $5.90?!

$5.90 is the portion that is almost the size of a usual Bingsu and a large portion $7.90 that's filled to the fullest! It really tastes like any other Bingsu, milk ice was finely shaved and a flavor that's getting more with every scoop. 

Right here this is the Oreo Banana Bingsu, covered with banana pieces, 1 and a half piece of Oreo, whipped cream, a scoop of milk ice cream and sprinkled with all the oreo biscuit bits covered the shaved ice.

This is the mango Bingsu, covered with Mango, cranberries, whipped cream and a scoop of milk ice cream, this is for the price of $7.90, the mango is not too sweet, mixed with the ice is not very overwhelming with the mango syrup sweetness.

Overall it has to be one of the most affordable Bingsu options out there that you don't have to sacrifice too much on quality for the sheer cheapness in terms of price.