Tuesday, April 6, 2010

The Mandarin Cake Shop, Hong Kong

The Mandarin Cake Shop

To come to Central (中環), one can travel via the MTR or take a ferry from Tsim Sha Tsui; and locating Mandarin Oriental is quite easy, given how near the hotel is to both the ferry terminal and Central MTR. Upon entering the hotel, take the lift up to M floor and the signage will bring you to the Mandarin Cake Shop.

My original plan for my last day is to do some last-minute shopping but having walked the entire stretch of escalators that links the Central and Mid-levels, not forgetting the detour made before reaching the Hong Kong Zoological and Botanical Gardens, I was dying to find somewhere to have a drink and rest. Little did I realize, we chanced upon a cake shop that is led by a talented Executive Pastry Chef, Yves Matthey, who has been at the hotel for over 20 years of experience as a pastry chef and maitre chocolatier.

Counter

Apparently, some of the internet reviews have claimed this place to be the city's "must-visit" for sweet indulgences and apart from cakes and chocolates, the place is also a supplier of handmade breads, the famous rose-petal jam and XO sauce to all of Hong Kong and around the world to overseas guests.

Display I

Unlike Mille Feuille pastries and cakes we have seen for the past 3 days, finally there are mousse cakes.

Display II

When we ordered this, we didn't know that the hotel's cheesecake is highly rated for its rich and creamy texture. True enough, if you are a fan of dense non-baked cheesecake, this is one you wouldn't want to miss. Thumbs up to the light yet rich texture but a slight disappointment as the base is almost negligible.

American Cheesecake
American cheesecake (HK$32 + 10%GST)

One mouthful of the Chocolate Truffle is enough to declare that this is the best cake we had during our 4 days trip. The rich, smooth dark chocolate mousse with slight acidic chocolate aftertaste says it all.

Chocolate Truffle

Cross section of Chocolate Truffle
Chocolate Truffle (HK$32+ 10% GST)

We know we are in for a treat when we saw the Easter chocolate goodies displayed in the shop. To see more of Executive Pastry Chef Yves Mathey, renowned cake artist, Bob Tay and team's creations, they have uploaded some pictures on facebook.

Happy Easter Day

Lastly, the attraction at Central? Well, it is very similar to Singapore's business district given the banks and office buildings located within the vincity. Don't forget to pop by International Finance Centre 1 and 2 since that is Hong Kong's tallest office building, shopping mall and cinema.

Central, Hong Kong

The Mandarin Cake Shop
Mandarin Oriental, Hong Kong
5 Connaught Road
Mezzanine floor (M floor)
Central, Hong Kong
Tel: 2825 4008

Operating hours: 8am - 8pm (Mon to Sat)
8am - 7pm (Sun & P.H)

2 comments:

foodaholic said...

sigh sigh sigh! I should've dropped by oriental, the cakes look so yum...but shopping somehow overtook food cravings. =P

taster said...

When you can see the presence of berries like on those blueberry tarts, you know they do not cut short on ingredients.

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