Madu the Bakery — Home to Cereal Prawn Croissants & Other Creative Bakes
Trends are ruthlessly fleeting in the cafe scene. One moment, the flavour of the month lures in the most enthusiastic crowds, the next, it’s left vacant and lifeless on a sunny Saturday brunch. Still, if there’s one thing that has stood the weathering of fickle cafe fads, it’s the timelessness of bakes and Madu the Bakery is a solid case study for blending trends with the classics.
Located in the sleepy Farrer Road stretch of Race Course Road, Madu the Bakery rests amongst a scramble of hardware stores and other miscellaneous businesses that stray from the ideal “brunch spot neighbourhood”.
The cafe sticks out like a sore thumb in its rustic vicinage as its elegant Scandinavian Minimalism takes all the attention away from the austerity of its neighbours. Perhaps, you wonder, it would be better suited to the bustling Rangoon Road that sits perpendicular at the far end of this quiet street.
That said, there’s the distinct charm of a hip cafe being hidden away in the calm of industrial businesses, one that’s been lost to time as the swankiest new cafes gravitated towards congregating at hotspots.
Being a distance away from the action does add to the Madu the Bakery experience — it feels a lot cosier and much less hectic, where it feels like you’re isolated from the rest of the street while you’re caressed by its warm lights and the soothing earth tones relax your eyes. A quaint brunch spot, all things considered.
Trend These
I don’t know how often I jump headfirst into the heartier items but it seemed instinctive to start off with Madu the Bakery’s marvellous signature, the Cereal Prawn Croissant ($13.90) that borrows from a local favourite.
Firstly, the cereal fillings were loaded with the perfect ratio of cereal fragrance and sweetness, while also having a sprightly Yuzu cut through it. But the key enjoyment really came from the utterly satisfying sensation of the croissant crumbling into flakes while the cereal crunched riotously.
One thing really stood out to me though that was that Madu the Bakery’s Croissant sandwiches were criminally good, each erupting into a beautiful rain of flakes as the crunch fills the room. Maybe not that technically pristine French croissant but perfect in the context of its sandwiches.
Case in point, the Meatball Croissant ($12.90) which was drenched in a tangy but robust Marinara sauce. The croissant adds just enough oomph and butter to accentuate the succulent meatballs but doesn’t detract from it — as the perfect complement should.
What might have put them in the crosshairs of every cafe hopper in Singapore though might be their Signature Buns, voluptuous brioche buns that were left airy inside while lightly crispy on the top.
Madu the Bakery offers a few permutations for their Signature Buns with the most popular being the Mentaiko ($6.50) but I found the boisterous Umami Mushroom ($6) and sweet but sharp Classic Garlic ($5.50) a tad more satisfying.
A Touch of Classics
Out of Madu the Bakery’s entire repertoire though, nothing can beat the sublime Truffle Brie Honey Foccacia ($4.80). Despite the no-frills and straightforward pairing of ingredients, this astounding flavour bomb simply blew us away.
Few words can do it the justice it deserves — the flavour combination was intoxicatingly fragrant, astoundingly rich, and carried elegant hints of floral sweetness. Pretty much the ultimate indulgence.
On the flip side, the similarly classic Nori Jambon Ciabatta ($14.90) was quite a letdown as our incisors struggled with the task of serrating through the stale Ciabatta. Admittedly, the visit near coincided with closing hours so natural degradation is to be expected but perhaps not to this extent.
Luckily, the aromatic and toasty Genmaicha Financier ($2.50) alleviated some of that disappointment. Not flamboyantly done but just a timeless pastry that Madu the Bakery propped up with a refined dose of Genmaicha.
After working our way through the traditional bakes, we reached a sweet finale — a block of Espresso Pistachio ($9.90) Tiramisu which was sadly quite unbalanced as the saccharine pistachio dominated most of the profile save for the robust espresso.
There are many ways to approach a bakery in Singapore’s cafe scene and I think Madu the Bakery strikes the balance perfectly with a healthy mix of trends, classics, and its own unique interpretations. In a scene wrought mainly on ephemeral trends, it’s this kind of diversity and creativity that would stand the test of time.
Make your online orders here.
Madu the Bakery
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- Address: 421 Race Course Rd, Singapore 218668
- Hours: (Tues–Sun) 10am–8pm
*This was an invited tasting.