Oh. Croquant Zakuzaku is FINALLY coming to Singapore, replacing the used-to-be-very-popular Bake Cheese Tart at ION Orchard Mall basement 4.
The brand will debut in Singapore on the 30th of November.
It also reminded me of the times (3+ years ago) when these cheese tarts were so popular in Singapore, long lines were formed, and many lookalike brands started sprouting out.
Seems like the shelf-life of trendy food is getting shorter, and we are just always on the lookout for the next instagrammable food.
To be honest, I was surprised it took this long for Croquant Zaku Zaku to reach Singapore, which already has overseas branches in Taiwan, South Korea and Thailand.
While it did open to much anticipation in many cities, queues have already dwindled as the novelty factor has worn off.
The Croquant Chou ($2.80 for one in Singapore, $10.50 for set of 4) is a stick-type cream puff that is filled with fresh cream, complete with unique crunchy texture.
It is made of almonds coated with sugar and egg white, as well as a blend of flour with its custard cream filling made from fine milk.
There are 3 “principles” on where they are so delicious: they are baked fresh in store (in fact you can smell them a distance away); milk from free range cattle raised in the stress free environment of Hokkaido is used; and the fine custard cream used is made with the high speed vacuum cooker.
You can see them as the plumper ‘cousin’ of churros, or familiar choux cream pastry taking another form.
Part of the ‘fun’ is also watching the staff bake and pipe them on the spot, while the buttery caramelised aroma hits your nose.
The Singapore outlet will also served up Soft Serve Ice Cream ($6), made with Hokkaido Milk and coated with croquant chunks; and Hiyazaku ($3.80) which are crispy puffs containing soft-ice cream.
I reckon Zakuzaku will attract some attention (because we love new things and foreign brands), but the local outlet probably has to continually introduce seasonal products to keep customers interested.
Zaku Zaku Singapore ザクザク
ION Orchard #B4-33, 2 Orchard Turn Singapore 238801
(Opening 30th November 2019)
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