The Place One concept which I am very excited to check out this year. The newly opened Ami Patisserie is quite unlike any patisserie in Singapore. Housed in a colonial black and white bungalow at 27 Scotts Road, Ami Patisserie is located in a charming standalone Kyo Machiya (京町家) styled after a Kyoto-style wooden townhouse, surrounded by a lush garden. The patisserie cafe is helmed by Chef Makoto Arami, where the name Ami (亜実) means ‘friends’ in French and plays on Chef’s Anglicised last name ‘Arami’.

For those who are familiar with the brand, it first started back in 2021 as a fine pastry online shop, where Chef Makoto brings with him a vast experience in pastry making with various stints at Michelin starred restaurants around the world, as well as coming from a third generation to a family with a business in wagashi – traditional Japanese confection. 

I really love the space at Ami Patisserie. There are two dining concepts within Ami – the Patisserie Café which sits up to 12 pax; and the Tsudoi Dining Room which sits up to 8 pax. The interior is elegant with wooden touches, and it does make me feel like I am in Japan instead of Singapore.  

Ami Patisserie is part of Sarika Connoisseur Café Group’s which includes fine-dining restaurants Buona Terra and Ki-sho, as well Japanese-style cocktail bar, Bar Kakure, and more. 

The Food I went for the pastry-led Chef’s Table Discovery Experience ($118++ per person) which takes place at the Tsudoi Dining Room (‘Tsudoi’ meaning ‘a friendly gathering’ in Japanese) which features a stone dining counter where you get a close interaction with chef, and also the best view in the house where each pastry is finished à la minute.

This is a unique pastry-led six-course lunch and dinner tasting menu, where the meal commences with a snack and house-baked breads, followed by a repertoire of savouries, a palate cleansing pre-dessert, a duo of desserts, and ‘Oyatsu’ – a dainty confectionery to finish. You can expect European-style pastry creations with flavours of Japanese produce. 

It might not be typical in Singapore to have pastries for dinner, which I did at Ami. There is a rather cool ethos of the brand which resonates with the Japanese concept of Tsudo (都度) where the team believes that you can have pastries ‘anytime, all the time, and whenever’.  

Another noteworthy highlight is that each plate, bowl, and coaster is hand-crafted for Ami Patisserie by Chef Makoto’s personal friend. 

Here is what to expect from the Chef’s Table Discovery Experience I had: 

Piedmont Hazelnut Financier 
A snack to kickstart the meal. Instead of opening the menu with a savoury, Chef Makoto chooses to start the meal with a sweet bite and this Hazelnut financier is spread with hazelnut praline and topped with shaved roasted Piedmont hazelnuts. So good! 

Sourdough Bread; Iwa Nori Escargot Bun 
Next up are two types of bread, which is also the forte of Chef Makoto who also used to be the Executive Pastry chef at Beni Singapore where I vividly recalled that the bread at Beni was very good back then during my visit. Have the sourdough bread with the accompanying applewood smoked and whipped unsalted Lescure butter with a little maldon sea salt on top; while the Iwa Nori Escargot Bun is delicious on its own where its texture is similar to a croissant. The taste of the Iwa Nori Escargot Bun is quite buttery, as its dough is laminated with French Lescure butter and Iwa nori paste of butter and Iwa nori (rock seaweed). 

Signature Choux 
Moving on to the first course proper, the Signature Choux is inspired by Japanese tamago sando (egg sandwich). The typically sweet French pastry comes with an organic Japanese ‘Mangetsu’ egg filling like a classic custard and it is filled and topped with crème fraiche, Schrenckii caviar, ‘hanaho’ shiso flowers, and edible gold flakes. Overall, I really enjoyed this savoury “sandwich” which is creamy, indulgent and delicious at the same time.  

Shizuoka Tomato Tartelette 
The second course is inspired by chef’s penchant for tomatoes and Italian flavours. I am usually not a big fan of tomatoes but these ones from Shizuoka are really good. You get that familiar Italian savoury taste from the 24-month aged Parmesan cheese tartelette topped with Fromage Blanc cream, along with Japanese Amela tomatoes, micro basil, and a drizzle of basil oil. 

Japanese Uni Brioche 
One of my favourite courses in this experience is this Japanese Uni Brioche. What I like is that the brioche spots a crisp texture especially on the edges as it is pan fried with brown butter. The whole flavour of the brioche is buttery, and it holds up that creamy Hokkaido Bafun Uni so well. There is also something very wicked about the Uni taste which makes it more savoruy than usual, which I found out that the Uni was brushed with shoyu and sesame oil. Other than Uni, the brioche is also topped with lime cream, grated fresh wasabi, finger lime, lime zest, and kinome leaf. So good!  

Nasu Brulee 
Not Creme Brulee, but Nasu Brulee. This course is inspired by a Kyoto specialty – Miso Dengaku – chargrilled eggplant with miso. A transition course from savoury to sweet, you get a brûléed eggplant custard accompanied by a deep-fried then binchotan-grilled Japanese Beinasu eggplant drizzled over with miso caramel. It goes quite well with the accompaying soy and miso ice cream. 

La France Pear 
Next up is a palate cleanser, a refreshing cold course of fresh La France pear topped with pear puree, chamomile gelee, and yuzu and pear granita. 

Marble Dark Chocolate 
The fifth course is one part of the two dessert courses on the experience menu. Chocolate lovers will likely love this dark chocolate course which showcases three types of ganache – 72% Araguani Valrhona chocolate, coffee, and mascarpone; layered with plain and chocolate tuile; and finished with quenelle of Amaretto ice cream. An ode to the ‘Shigaraki Yaki’ or ‘Shigaraki ware’ master who hand-crafted the tableware for this experience, the Marble Dark Chocolate features Chef Makoto’s take on the tiramisu with hues of black and brown inspired by the marbled swirls on the ceramic ware. 

Ichigo Milk 
This dessert highlights the ‘king of Japanese strawberries’ – Amaou strawberries from Fukuoka prefecture. You get Amaou strawberries mixed in strawberry sauce, accompanied by fromage blanc mousse, mint gelee, Hokkaido milk ice-cream, strawberry granita, micro mint, and edible gold flakes. Overall, a relatively light dessert after the chocolate course to complete the meal.  

Oyatsu 
Last but not least, the Oyatsu is a seasonal small bite to conclude the meal where I had the Kumquat & Kokuto Pineapple Pie which comes with a mille feuille puff pastry filled with almond cream and pineapple jam simmered with Okinawan kokuto black sugar, alogn with kumquats from Miyazki prefecture. It is then finished with caramelised golden-brown icing sugar and edible gold flakes.  

Rants If anything, I thought that the menu could do with a bit more savoury element, take for instance a mini soup course paired with a pastry.  

Will I Return Again? I had an excellent experience at Ami Patisserie, and I highly recommend this space if you are a big pastry and dessert lover. The concept is also something which is not common in Singapore’s dining scene where a tasting menu is curated around pastries and dessert, and this by itself is enough reason to check out this place. I am also very keen to dine at the cafe section on my next visit to try their specialty coffee, croissants and other bakes.

This was an invited tasting, though all opinions expressed are our own.

TheRantingPanda says:
Taste bud: 4.5/5
Hole in the pocket: 4/5
Ambience: 4.5/5
Overall Experience: 4.5/5

Ami Patisserie 
27 Scotts Road 
Singapore 228222 
Tel: +65 8907 6146 

Patisserie Café 
11.30am to 6pm (Tuesday to Friday) 
11.00am to 6pm (Saturday, Sunday, and Public Holiday) 
 
Tsudoi Dining Room 
Lunch: 12pm to 3pm, last seating at 1pm (Wednesday to Saturday) 
Dinner: 7pm to 9pm, last seating at 8pm (Wednesday to Saturday) 
Brunch: 12pm to 6pm, last seating at 4pm (Sunday and Public Holiday) 

Ranted by The Ranter