The famous Wu Pao Chun Bakery from Taiwan has opened in Singapore, at Capitol Piazza.
Baker Wu Pao-chun 吳寶春 himself found fame when it won the Les Masters de la Boulangerie world-championship held in Paris.
He is known for the Lychee Rose Royal bread created, which included rose petals, dried lychees and millet wine.
There are outlets in Taiwan’s Kaohsiung, Taichung and Taipei. This is Wu Pao Chun’s first flagship store in South East Asia.
Its opening may bring about new-found attention to Capitol Piazza, which has been less visited in the recent year due to low foot-traffic and shops living. A revamp of the mall is in the works.
Walking in, you may feel that Wu Pao Chun Bakery is “BreadTalk 2.0” with its décor, shelf displays, bread offerings and even the Toast Box nearby. Just FYI, BreadTalk has an 80% stake in this joint venture.
The two main breads to look out for are the award-winning Lychee Rose Royale and Red Wine Longan ($20.80) each, handcrafted in small batches, available only at specific timings.
When I visited, the Lychee Rose Royale was not available, while there was about a dozen or so Red Wine Longan still around.
There were customers looking around, some questioning about the heavy price-tag.
I read online reviews commenting about the high prices of the breads – TWD350 (SGD15.25) in Taiwan, and RMB95 (SGD18.90). Well, Singapore’s prices take the cake for now.
Talking about China, Wu Pao Chun Bakery’s opening in Shanghai was not without its share of controversy, with many Chinese netizens calling for a boycott due to his previous remarks on the mainland market.
Looking at initial response, Singaporeans seem welcoming of the bread shop amidst the slightly higher prices.
The staff members were generally friendly, and there was even a Japanese supervisor who would welcome with ”Irasshaimase” (Though they made some customers wonder if this was a Japanese bakery.)
I bought and tried a couple of breads on my own, and the quality (softness) and variety (with many types of fillings) were slightly higher than the average bakery here. Here are some of the breads you can expect:
Red Wine Longan ($20.80 for whole bread)
With fresh longan smoked over 6 days using a recipe accentuated with red wine, wheat sprouts and walnuts.
Tom Yummy ($2.60)
Filled with mildly spicy tom yum chicken
Spicy Tuna ($2.80)
Sawadee ($2.80)
Bun with rich green curry chicken, mushrooms and cashew nuts.
Mentaiko Baguette ($3.00)
Sausage Roll with German pork sausage ($2.20)
Spring Into Life ($5.20)
Bread with ham, cheddar cheese and mozzarella cheese.
Spring Blossom ($2.20)
Soft and chewy bun topped with spring onions and shallot oil.
Satay Satay ($3.50)
Inspired by the Singapore hawker food, this is filled with satay chicken, satay sauce and cheese, topped with onions and peanuts.
Fuji Spring ($2.20)
Matcha almond topping, red bean cream cheese.
Brown Sugar ($3.40)
With melted brown sugar imported from Taiwan.
Wu Pao Chun Bakery
Capitol Piazza, 13 Stamford Rd #01-19/20, Singapore 178905
Opening Hours: 8:30am – 9pm (Mon – Sun)
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