The likes of baked goods, pastries and cakes may have evolved as the years went by, but there’s still something about the good old-fashioned confectioneries and bakeries that sell traditional goodies like tau sar piah, egg tarts and ang ku kuehs that’s appealing after all this time, standing the test of time. And if you happen to be on the hunt for some of them, check out these Top 10 Old School Confectioneries & Bakeries in Singapore!
1) Tong Heng
Tong Heng has certainly come a long way since its humble beginnings as a street-stall seller in the 1920s. Today, this famous old-school bakery specialising in traditional Cantonese pastries has branches in Chinatown and Jurong Point. Even though Tong Heng has undergone a contemporary makeover in recent years, namely their colourful packaging design, they still stay true to their roots, which is maintaining the tradition and quality of their handmade pastries. Some of their popular ones include egg tarts, walnut cookies, BBQ pork crisps and red bean pastry. You can buy their pastries online or visit one of their two aforementioned outlets.
tongheng.com.sg | FB: tongheng.sg | IG: @tonghengsg
2) Tiong Bahru Galicier Pastry Bakery
If you love Nyonya kuehs, you can’t go wrong with Tiong Bahru Galicier Pastry Bakery. First established in the 1970s, this humble-looking bakery has all their kuehs as well as various baked goods and pastries made fresh in-store. For the Nyonya kuehs alone, you’ll be spoilt for choices here with the likes ondeh-ondeh, kueh kosui and kueh salat.
FB: Tiong-Bahru-Galicier-Pastry-Bakery
3) Dona Manis Cake Shop
For the Katong-based Dora Manis Cake Shop, it’s quality over quantity that matters the most. All of their pastries and baked goods are made fresh on a daily basis. Their bestseller, of course, is the signature Banana Pie — a heavenly combination of caramelised banana filling with flaky and buttery pie crust and chopped nuts sprinkled on top. Those who love chocolate might want to try their bittersweet Chocolate Tarts, which sells in a box of five.
4) Ji Xiang Confectionery
Based on Everton Park, Ji Xiang Confectionery specialises in traditional handmade ang ku kueh. Other than the usual sweet bean varieties, you can also find assorted fillings such as corn, coconut and salted bean. For orders, there are three methods you can choose here: Self-pickup, customised package ordering/delivery, or get in touch with them at 6223 1631 for more info.
jixiangconfectionery.com.sg | FB: JiXiangConfectionery.AngKuKueh
5) 603 Tau Sar Piah
The name of this family-run bakery says it all, with their bestselling tau sar piah sold with either sweet or savoury mung bean filling. You can find other flavours as well, namely black sesame, yuan yang (lotus paste & black sesame) and even unconventional tau sar piah fillings like coffee and durian. All of their tau sar piah as well as other pastries are baked fresh daily using only quality ingredients and contain no preservatives.
603tausarpiah.com | FB: 603TauSarPiah
6) Lek Lim Nonya Cake Confectionery
A family-run confectionery that has been in the business since the ’60s, they initially operated as a home kitchen before venturing into deliveries. It wasn’t until 1972 when they finally set up shop at Bedok. True to their name, they specialise in Nyonya delicacies such as ang ku kueh, kueh salat and ondeh-ondeh Gula Melaka. For more choices, simply head to their Bedok shop or purchase them online.
kuehkueh.com.sg | FB: LekLikNonyaCake | IG: @leklimnonyacake
7) Balmoral Bakery
Balmoral Bakery has been around since 1965, selling different kinds of traditional and contemporary baked goods and pastries. There are a few delicious goodies you can find here, namely cream horn, beef pies, custard puffs, rum balls and sugar doughnuts. Cake lovers can look forward to the likes of old-fashioned pandan cake, assorted cupcakes and cream cakes. You can choose to buy from them conveniently online or visit their bakery at Sunset Way.
balmoralbakery.oddle.me/en_SG | FB: balmoralbakery | IG: @balmoralbakery
8) Tan Hock Seng Cake Shop
The 89-year-old Tan Hock Seng Cake Shop is no stranger to producing all kinds of old-school Hokkien pastries that have been favourites among many locals. Over 40 of them, to be exact and among the bestsellers include beh teh saw and tau sar piah. The former means “horse’s shoe biscuit”, which has a nice, flaky pastry shell on the outside with sweet and savoury filling. You can also other pastries like salty cookies and coconut biscuits.
9) Sing Hon Loong
Nothing fancy, just good old-fashioned baked goods sold in the confines of a traditional bakery. And at Sing Hon Loong, they pride themselves in keeping the tradition alive and well when comes to the bread-making process. That means freshly-baked bread all done from scratch. Their bread is known to be soft and fluffy and unlike the commercial varieties, they have a shorter shelf life since Sing Hon Loong does not add preservatives. Bread aside, they also sell various buns like tau sar (red bean paste) and coconut fillings.
FB: singhonloong
10) Jie Bakery & Confectionery
For 30 years, Jie Bakery & Confectionery has baked their bread fresh on a daily basis, and without added preservatives too. In other words, their baked goods aren’t the mass-produced kinds commonly found in grocery stores and supermarkets. Some of their bestsellers including the fluffy white or rainbow-swirled loaves, where you can have them plain or spread with kaya, butter or peanut butter. Other than loaves, you can also find various old-school buns with the likes of sausage and sambal prawn fillings.
That’s not all! More Top 10s in Singapore are waiting to be discovered!
The compilation of this list was made from accumulation of Public Votes at TallyPress.com.
