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2013-12-09
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Johan Paris is a Japanese bakery with origins in France known for its traditional French breads. It recently hit our shores at the Isetan branch at Westgate, at B2, which we were thrilled to check out when we were there for the Isetan Hokkaido Harvest Fair.We were hit with the strong aroma of freshly baked bread the moment we entered the bakery. I thought I also detected a whiff of chocolate in the air. Then there were rows of wonderfully displayed breads in bright, warmly lit counters. There we
Johan Paris is a Japanese bakery with origins in France known for its traditional French breads. It recently hit our shores at the Isetan branch at Westgate, at B2, which we were thrilled to check out when we were there for the Isetan Hokkaido Harvest Fair.
We were hit with the strong aroma of freshly baked bread the moment we entered the bakery. I thought I also detected a whiff of chocolate in the air. Then there were rows of wonderfully displayed breads in bright, warmly lit counters. There were various kinds of French bread ranging from the usual croissant like the Pain au Chocolat ($2.80) to other kind of French breads like the Pain de Campagne ($5.20 for a full loaf). We also spotted Japanese buns like the An Pan (with Whole Beans or Bean Paste, $2.00). Other than breads, there were also a selection of housebrand jam like the Confiture Strawberry/Orange/Apple/Blueberry ($10.00) and even honey and soup like Clam Chowder if you want something to go with the bread! To top it, there was also a friendly staff handing around samples of freshly baked Corn Pan ($1.00) for customers to sample. Talk about an assault on the senses! It took us quite a while to eventually decide on a few breads to buy.
There are actually two 'sections' of the bakery, the main bakery and a 'kiosk' outside just next to the store. Here at the 'kiosk', you can find freshly made mini breads such as Mini Croissants and Mini Canelé which are sold by the gram (starting from 100 gram). There are also sandwiches like the Ham & Egg Croissant Sandwich ($6.20). We were told that you had to buy and pay from each section separately. As we already bought breads from the main store, we didn't want to buy too many of the mini breads. The salesgirl at the counter was really cheery and helpful despite the crowd and was willing to accommodate us by selling us 50 gram instead. This scored some brownie points from us for service! From the kiosk
Mini Croissant ($2.40 per 100 gram; about 4-5 pieces)They had the original and chocolate variant but we opted for the original. We paid $1.20 for two pieces (50 gram) which was quite reasonable. The croissants were quite crisp on the outside but soft inside although it was more crunchy than soft overall due to its small size. There was also a hint of sweetness, which was nice.
Mini Choco Macadamia ($3.60 per 100 gram; about 6-7 pieces)This cost us $2.15 for three pieces. This was very soft and really chewy! It was like eating mochi in bread form! There was a decent amount of chocolate chips and pieces of macadamia nuts in each bread which made it quite nutty; I even found a huge chuck of halved macadamia nut in one of the bread!
From the main store
Corn Pan ($1.00)After sampling the piece the staff handed out, we were convinced enough to get this bun. It was mostly bread with corn bits in it but the bread was very soft and spongy! There was a slightly sweet corn taste too. At only $1 each, this was really quite a steal!
Pain au Chocolat ($2.80)We were initially going to get the Sacristan Johan which was a chef's recommendation, but we chanced upon this Pain au Chocolat so we got this instead. This was basically a croissant with chocolate filling, topped with sliced almonds. It was slightly crispy, flaky and chewy to bite. The chocolate filling was also quite plentiful and had a tinge of sourness mixed with sweetness.
Tartelette au Fruits ($3.40)There was no label for this so we asked a staff and she said it was chocolate tart. Which was why we were mystified to find it tasting rather fruity instead. A check with their Facebook page confirmed this to be Tartelette au Fruits instead. To be fair, it did look like chocolate tart. Despite the hiccup, I found this to be quite okay. It had fruit bits in it and was quite sweet, although for that level of sweetness I'd have preferred it to be plain old chocolate instead, obviously.
Hard toast (1/4 Loaf $1.90)This was actually my favourite out of all the breads we got. This was just slices of plain bread, with hard, chewy crust, but the bread texture was just so soft and delicate! This was great to eat on its own or with filling. We ate it both plain and with homemade egg mayo and even with filling, the goodness of the bread still shone through; we could still feel the light, soft and chewy texture of the bread. Best of all, it's sugar and fat free!
We only tried a few items out of their entire range, but based on the few we had, we thought that they were quite decent. I personally love the bread loaves here even though the price can get a tad pricey. The hard toast costs $1.90 for just a quarter loaf, which came up to about 3-4 slices. There were also a variety of the bread loaves in other flavours such as the "Chocochoco Marron" bread with chocolate and chestnuts, but this was quite pricey at $6.00 for 1/2 loaf. Nevertheless, I think their bread loaves are worth a try! I know I'd definitely return to try other types of bread in future, such as the Sacristan Johan, Melon Pan and Chocochoco Marron!
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