Le Grenier a Pain at Sembawang Shopping Centre

Le Grenier a Pain at Sembawang Shopping Centre

You will not miss this shopfront as you enter Sembawang Shopping Centre, a prominent 800 square feet bakery, sitting at the main entrance.


Opened in December 08, by a pastry lover, Ms. Ellis Noval attempts to bring in French pastries and bread to Singapore. To accommodate to the local flavours, the breads are stuffed with savoury favourites such as bacons, hams and chicken curry.

The other specialities are the bite-sized French pastries ranging from croissants, madeleines and caneles, that are sold by weight.

Traditional French pastries such as macarons and other cakes will not be missed out on their colourful display. According to the staff, French pastries are generally more colourful and sweeter so don't be surprised by the brightly coloured macarons and the sweet Carolines.

Apart from the cakes we had, we did try 3 of their breads, namely Champignons Jambon et Oeufs Focaccia (basically foccacia with mushroom, ham and egg), Fromage francais (cheese bread in short) and M. Chocolat Pain. The staff has advised to warm the Champignons Jambon et Oeufs Focaccia and Fromage francais in the oven before consumption.

Champignons Jambon et Oeufs Focaccia has a good layer of ham which goes pretty well with the hard bread while Fromage francais has a soft-chewy interior which compliments well with the tough exterior and chunks of cheese.

M. Chocolat Pain is also pretty hard with a crispy top and its chocolate chips emits a nice chocolately scent.

Overall, all 3 breads are worth a try but do keep in mind that their selection is a direct opposite of a conventional soft bun.

Le Grenier à pain (Closed)
#01-01 Sembawang Shopping Centre
Singapore 758459
Tel 6752 7627
Operating hours – 10am to 10pm (daily)
http://www.legrenierapain.com/

[ ... ]

Carolines cake

Carolines cake

Recommended by the article “Best in dough” on Business Times, 07 March 09, this is one cake to try if you have only limited room for desserts. Why so? One get to try their macaron shell, their Choux a la crème caramel (vanilla praline puff) and chocolate mousse.

Carolines cake ($6.20)

Quoted from Business Times, this is a “sticky chewy chocolate mousse cake layered with chocolate and almond biscuits topped with caramelised profiteroles filled with vanilla praline cream imported from France”.

Yuan personally highlighted his liking for the caramel vanilla puff as the caramel gives the puff the additional crunch. The chocolate mousse is no doubt smooth and is comparable to most of the good chocolate mousse cakes which we have tried but on the sweeter side. The chocolate cake that is sandwiched between the chocolate mousse is springy and contrast pretty well with the mousse. The almond biscuit at the bottom of the cake were pretty ordinary and was soft like their tart base. Worth a try if you happen to be at Sembawang Shopping Centre.

Le Grenier à pain (Closed)
#01-01 Sembawang Shopping Centre
Singapore 758459
Tel 6752 7627
Operating hours – 10am to 10pm (daily)

[ ... ]

Choux a la creme caramel

Choux a la creme caramel

Macaron was the reason why we have decided to drop by Le Grenier but with limited flavours, we thought it was hard to pick 3 flavours given that we have a liking for floral flavours. Thus, we opted for the Choux a la crème caramel to lay our verdict on their macarons.

At a price of $7.90, one will expect 3 caramel macarons on hazelnut tart. The macaron shells lack the almond-y texture which most macarons will have. It is more to a soft biscuit with caramel filling. As for the hazelnut tart, the tart base and hazelnut mousse share similarity with their chocolate tart.

Le Grenier à pain (Closed)
#01-01 Sembawang Shopping Centre
Singapore 758459
Tel 6752 7627
Operating hours – 10am to 10pm (daily)

[ ... ]

Chocolate tart from Le Grenier

Chocolate tart from Le Grenier

Chocoholics will be disappointed with this tart. Unlike the chocolate tarts (i.e. Prive, 2am, Laurent, 12+1 and Patisserie Dessert Couture), this tart barely contains chocolate.

Chocolate tart ($4.90)

We wouldn’t say this is bad, but rather it is a unique combination of hazelnut cream, a thin layer of milk chocolate, a cheesy curd-like mousse on a soft pastry base. We personally thought that locals may not be accustomed to such a combination.

Le Grenier à pain (Closed)
#01-01 Sembawang Shopping Centre
Singapore 758459
Tel 6752 7627
Operating hours – 10am to 10pm (daily)

[ ... ]