Lean & Rich Bakery

One place that those whom have been scrolling through social media on the latest F&B scene happenings in Singapore would have come across in recent times would be that of Lean & Rich Bakery; UE Square had definitely seen quite a number of new tenants move into its premises in recent times, with Lean & Rich Bakery moving in after Greybox Coffee had done so in recent times. Lean & Rich Bakery is located along the same stretch of shops where Greybox Coffee is located there — said to be opened by a Korean baker that used to be the head baker of Tartine in Seoul (the brand originating from the US). The interior of the bakery can be described as rather bare-bones; the kitchen being one that is of an open-concept and occupies one side of the shop unit — the other side would be dedicated to the dine-in area that comprises of furniture and fittings with wooden accents. The stools do come with an orange hue; seemingly a colour that is chosen as a theme colour by the establishment since it is also the same shade that is being used in its signboard as well. The menu for breads it split into two (2) sections; Lean and Rich — the simpler definition would be the breads in the “Lean” menu are made using the “lean dough”, while the ones in the “Rich” section of the menu are made using the “rich dough”. That being said, it can be also observed that breads like sourdough and rye can be found in its “Lean”menu; the “Rich” menu comprises of mainly danishes. For beverages, Lean & Rich Bakery serves up espresso-based specialty coffee, non-coffee drinks, as well as a variety of tea offerings.

The Pistachio is one of the items that is being listed in the Rich section of the menu at Lean & Rich Bakery — this is pretty much a Danish; whilst the menu at Lean & Rich Bakery does not describe the elements that come with the Danish, one can observe a Pistachio-infused pastry cream that is being piped above the pastry; all whilst the cream is also being topped off with chunks of chopped pistachios as well. Slicing the Pistachio, we do note that the pastry is light and crisp — this is one Danish that we had found the layers to be rather well-defined; all that whilst being suitably buttery and pretty befitting of its “rich” categorisation on the menu without being overwhelming. The Pistachio-infused pastry cream is smooth and creamy; carried a light hint of nuttiness and saltishness that one would associate with the nut itself — the flavours being further enhanced by that of the chunks of chopped pistachio over the top that gives an elements of crunch. Turns out, the pistachio-infused pastry cream sits atop a layer of custard that also helps to add a note of sweetness to the Danish.

We also tried the Ham & Cheese Danish; yet another item that was listed under the “Rich” section of the menu. One that is for those whom love their savoury bakes, the Ham & Cheese Danish also features well-defined layers from the lamination process; all so light, crisp and airy whilst being suitably buttery that goes well with the ingeeent savoury notes of ham that is further enhanced by that of the slightly saltish cheese that can be found on the top of the pastry. On the other hand, we did feel that the Vanilla Bean Latte (Hot) did come a little bit on the sweet side; that being said, due credit must be given to them for usual actual vanilla beans for the beverage — one can observe all of the vanilla beans being congregated at the bottom of the entire cuppa. Perhaps a drink that may have fared a little better if we had ordered it as a cold beverage.

One thing to note for those whom intend to drop by Lean & Rich Bakery is how different items are being released at specific timings of the day — those whom are interested to try a particular item should schedule their visits around the time of which they are released. We do think that these folks to serve up some pretty well-made bakes, though we have yet to give those creations that are listed in the Rich section of their menu a go; would probably return some time soon to try the items being listed on the Lean section as well — that being said, we do feel that these folks do have some work to do where their specialty coffee is of concern. Still a spot that we do feel that the expatriate community of River Valley would appreciate as a spot for breakfast or light bites in the early afternoon to head to within their neighbourhood.