On my last visit to Spice Alley to visit Hokie Poke, I spotted Chefs Pastry. Newly opened in December, Chefs Pastry is a collaboration between Kaisern Ching (Chefs Gallery) and Stanley Quek (founder of the Kensington Street dining complex) and offers both sweet and savoury pastries that blend Eastern and Western influences.
Tucked behind Gin Lane when I visited three weeks after opening, they were experiencing teething issues. Indeed, it looked as if they weren’t even going to open that day, but the lady saw that we were idling and interested in between her phonecalls frantically trying to resolve them, and offered a complimentary tasting of their selection of cakes leftover from earlier.
This is the Yuzu Meringue Choux Puff ($5.50).
This the choux we wanted to visit especially to try. The yuzu flavour came through brightly in the cream, with refreshingly zesty notes that distinguish it from the flavour of lemon. The meringue added a gentle sweetness to the choux, although I’d have enjoyed a more of it.
This is the Chilli Chocolate Choux Puff ($5.50)
This was surprisingly enjoyable. The choux is slightly savoury which pairs well with the light chocolate cream that’s infused with chilli. Tiny specks of red chilli are visible in the cream, and the heat increases from barely there to a healthy intensity as you eat with the salty notes from the choux marrying the flavours well.
The choux pastry was worse for wear being old stock, but that was expected. We’d return to try them fresh.
Chefs Pastry is located at Spice Alley, 16 Kensington St, Chippendale NSW 2008.