Rise Bakehouse Heritage (Chinatown)

Had been hearing the news about a new outlet of Rise Bakehouse that was in the works for a while; got to realise that they had opened their doors when scrolling through social media one day. These folks had definitely been on a phase of slow expansion; their very first location that is being branded as Rise Bakehouse was their Potong Pasir outlet — they have also since marked their footprint in the heart of town with a second outlet an 111 Somerset. Their third is located yet again in the city; this time being situated at South Bridge Road within walking distance from Maxwell MRT Station along the same stretch of shophouses where one can find the traffic junction that leads up to September Coffee. This does seem to be Rise Bakehouse’s largest outlet yet, and their first that is located within a conserved shophouse; these folks had also seemed to have taken the opportunity to create a concept that gels into the heritage of the district of which it is situated in — branded Rise Bakehouse Heritage, Rise Bakehouse had styled this outlet closely to resemble a coffee house of the past with a slightly modern touch. The interior of the cafe sees the use of plenty of wooden furniture and fittings against white walls and concrete floors with a mix of tiles for a rustic vibe unlike the other Rise Bakehouse locations elsewhere; there are some pieces of decor that really gives it that old-school feel such as the likes of the signboard as well as the dining tables used for some tables that features big marble surfaces, as well as dividers containing see-through motifs that are a feature in some buildings of the past — overall very quaint and chic. The dining hall at Rise Bakehouse Heritage features dining tables catering to patrons visiting in various group sizes; a good mix of two-seater and four-seater tables, while larger groups can sit around a circular dining table. It does seem that Rise Bakehouse is expanding its variety of dishes that they have to offer with every new outlet — the food menu at Rise Bakehouse Heritage is being split into categories such as All Day Brunch, Mains, Waffles, Sides, Cakes, Teacakes, Small Bakes and Gelato — the variety of Cakes, Teacakes, Small Bakes and Gelato that it Carrie’s can be viewed from the display cases / shelves that here located around the counter. Rise Bakehouse also offers a variety of beverages such as that of espresso-based specialty coffee, non-coffee, Cream Series, Iced Drinks, tea (sourced from TWG Tea) and some special concoctions which are listed in the “Made in Singapore” section. 

Skimming through the menu to see what they have to offer that would work great as a light lunch item to have, we found ourselves gravitating towards the Crab Scrambled Eggs Tartine with Chilli Oil that is an item listed on the All Day Brunch section of the menu. This does seem like a little bit of a fusion item; perhaps one that is inspired by that of scrambled eggs on toast, chili scrambled eggs and also pretty loosely of the local chili crab. It can be observed from our order that the Crab Scrambled Eggs Tartine with Chilli Oil comes with a tornado egg that sits atop buttered toast; all that whilst coming with shreds of crab meat that seems to have been smothered with chili oil over the top — included as a garnish would be the sliced chili padi that gives the dish a visual pop from the contrast of colours. By all means, the tornado egg here is executed pretty well — we liked how the egg is soft, fluffy and sufficiently moist; it also does come sufficiently eggy which is also the most dominant flavour amidst the entire dish. The chili oil added is much akin to that of Lao Gan Ma-esque chili that is savoury and smoky — this does remind us of some variants of chili scrambled eggs that we have come across from other cafes previously; all that whilst coming with a hint of spiciness which we found to be rather manageable for those whom are tolerable to moderate levels of spiciness. The shredded crab meat came fibrous, providing a slight hint of natural crustacean sweetness that also gives the dish a slightly more substantial feel. Whilst the toast does come crusty and with a light note of butteriness on its own, we did feel that there was a slight disconnect in between the scrambled eggs and the toast; the toast didn’t really had any element that would make it gel with whatever that comes above it, while the moistness of the scrambled eggs also didn’t seem to get through to it either — something which we thought they could look into that would have rounded the Crab Scrambled Eggs Tartine with Chilli Oil nicely.

Rise Bakehouse is an establishment that has been particularly known for their Cakes, Teacakes and Small Bakes ever since its inception — it is needless to say that we have to give one of them a go during our visit to Rise Bakehouse Heritage. Turns out, Rise Bakehouse Heritage does offer a variety of exclusive cakes that are only available at this South Bridge Road location — the Kaya Pistachio Cake being one of such offerings. The Kaya Pistachio Cake is said to come with Pandan cake that comes with layers of homemade Kaya and crushed pistachio that comes in between. The frosting of the cake does seem to remind us of the old-school buttercream cakes that feels especially period-correct in a dining establishment that carries a nostalgic vibe; the homemade Kaya that is layered on the top of the cake coming with a dark green hue does seem to come lightly flavoured, though carried a suitably sweet note that balances well with everything else that comes below — the Pandan cake layers were especially well-made considering how soft and fluffy they were much like how one would expect a Pandan Chiffon Cake would be. There is a prominent hint of nuttiness coming from the crushed pistachios that came along in between the layers; definitely one that would capture the hearts of pistachio lovers out there. 

During the same visit, we had also decided to give their Singapore Latte a go — Rise Bakehouse Heritage describes their Singapore Latte as a beverage that features elements such as condensed milk and Gula Melaka, as well as a sprinkle of salt and pepper. Available only as a hot beverage, the Singapore Latte is presented in a style similar to an espresso-based specialty coffee complete with latte art. Despite sounding rather sweet on paper, we did find that the inclusion of Gula Melaka and condensed milk didn’t really do much to sweeten the cuppa; the inclusion of elements like salt and pepper does somewhat remind us of a similar beverage that we had previously come across at Guerilla Coffee. There is a slight hint of peppery notes that one can detect in the cup of coffee here that comes with a light body and an earthy note, though there wasn’t that sort of spicy kick that some will find particularly intimidating if it carried it. The hint of salt does seem to get stronger as one goes further into the cup however. 

Rise Bakehouse does seem to have come a long way; from their very early days as Cafe Coco at Gardens by the Bay, the brand has really showcased its ability to change constantly over the years — always bringing patrons a unique experience through its innovative offerings that started from their special concoction of cakes, to dainty and pretty cakes. Rise Bakehouse Heritage is the brand’s most daring concept thus far; not only have they ventured into serving up proper hot food as part of its menu offerings, they do also seem to want to be an integral part of the cultural heritage that surrounds it whilst evolving with time — being right there in between transition of the old and the refreshed Chinatown that the area has been going through over the years. The items being listed in the All Day Brunch and Mains section of the menu are priced between $18.90 to $31.90; the lowest priced being the Crab Scrambled Eggs Tartine with Chilli Oil, Bratwurst, Eggs & Avo and Avocado & Eggs Croast from the All Day Brunch section of the menu, while the priciest is the Pineapple Chimichurri Steak & Frites from the Mains section of the menu. Given how Rise Bakehouse has set up Rise Bakehouse Heritage to be, Rise Bakehouse Heritage will definitely pique the curiosity of both locals and tourists alike — a spot that is worth checking out at least once to see what they see all about; also somewhere which is likely to see crowds forming as they get more traction on social media in the days to come.