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One of the perks of working at Sethlui.com is the opportunity to sniff out new food spots. Heavenly Bread & Desserts is a new Vietnamese eatery that quietly opened in early March, and it would have been completely under my radar if not for a chance sighting of one of their promotional standees at a bus stop I frequent.
From the name alone, I would have assumed they specialised in pastries and cakes, but instead they have bánh mì, the incredibly popular Vietnamese sandwich, and other Vietnamese classics.
Heavenly Bread & Desserts is located at Block 151 in Serangoon North Avenue 1 – except for 2 tiny tables out front, there’s no dine-in space.
The menu features 3 different varieties of bánh mì (beef, pork and chicken) and a small selection of desserts.
I decided to ask the owner for her recommendations and she recommended I try the Pork Bánh Mì (S$8) and Chicken Pho (S$9), the latter of which was made with kampung chicken as “kampung chickens taste sweeter and nicer”.
I also wanted to try the Vietnamese Spring Rolls (S$7), but they were unfortunately sold out. For the sweet stuff, I asked for Royal BoBo ChaCha (S$6) and Vietnamese Coffee (S$4). “The bobo chacha has no yam today,” the owner told me. “I give you for S$5.” I was a little sad because I like yam.
The Pork Bánh Mì was stuffed full of tender pork slices, pâté spread, lashings of homemade chilli sauce, pickled vegetables, cold cuts, and coriander. After being assembled, the sandwich was toasted in an oven, which made the bread deliciously crisp and crusty.
The pork was a wonderful combination of sweet and savoury, while the pickled vegetables and coriander came together with the other fillings to create a harmonious symphony of flavour.
The Vietnamese Coffee was the perfect accompaniment to the bánh mì. I was given a choice of sweetness levels, so I opted for “less sweet”. (Other renditions of Vietnamese-style coffee I’ve had have always been far too sweet.) It proved to be the right choice as the coffee’s robustness was allowed to shine through instead of being overwhelmed by sugar.
The Royal BoBo ChaCha from Heavenly Bread & Desserts came with a slight twist. There was the usual sweet potato and sago pearls suspended in a thickened coconut base, with an additional ingredient I haven’t had before – peanuts. They added an extra nutty flavour to the dessert, along with additional crunch. Very enjoyable.
The Chicken Pho had the broth packaged separately from the main ingredients. It included a serving of rice noodles, chunks of chicken and generous amounts of coriander, mint and beansprouts. The chicken was quite tasty on its own and very tender, but unfortunately, the chunks I received in my portion consisted mostly of bone.
Upon the stall owner’s advice, I reheated the broth over the stove. The pho broth was clean-tasting with a flavour that’s best described as delicate and gently sweet with chicken goodness.
If you’re in the neighbourhood, why not drop by Heavenly Bread & Desserts? It really is a little bite of heaven.
Order Delivery: foodpanda
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