Low Roof 로우루프 (Seoul, SOUTH KOREA) ★★★☆☆

Located directly across the street from the O’Sulloc Tea House, Low Roof (로우루프) is a café, bakery, and pastry shop all under one roof. The space spans three spacious floors, each with a slightly different theme.

The ground-floor bar area is a convenient spot for a quick sip of their signature beverages. The bakery section looked interesting, blending modern baking techniques with classic Korean flavors. Unfortunately, their standout chestnut cream croissant was nowhere to be found. Instead, the oversized Dirty Chocolate Au Pain immediately caught my eye. (No Dubai chocolate version, though.)

I decided to climb the stairs to check out the other floors.

Second floor: Some fabric seating and a shared table in the middle — it felt a bit like a kids’ playroom.

Third floor: More like a meeting space in a commercial building.

I didn’t get to see their traditional hanok backyard, which has made the place so famous, since it was already closed for the day.

After walking up the hill to Bukchon Hanok Village, I certainly wouldn’t mind a frosty drink. Perhaps with a slice of cake. 😜😜

Green tea latte (₩6,500) — The green tea flavor was very light; instead, it was extremely milky.

Sikhye rice mousse cake (₩9,200) — One of the café’s most unique desserts. A nice effort to blend Korean heritage with modern French pastry technique. 

The pastry was designed to mimic the elements of sikhye (traditional Korean sweet rice punch). A soft rice dacquoise base paired with a rice coulis, was topped nicely with a smooth cream made of rice and jocheong (traditional Korean brown rice syrup). Hidden inside was an unexpected core of sikhye jelly and persimmon cream. There was also rice in the syrup to give the dessert some extra texture.

All in all, not bad. But if I had to be picky, a bit of sharp acidity or a firm, crunchy base wouldn’t hurt.

I was really happy to snap a few photos at the Bukchon Hanok Village just before sunset.

Two quick desserts in a row, and I’m starting to realize I might not need dinner after all.

Food Rating: 6.1/10

Price: ₩₩₩

Address: 175-2 Gahoe-dong, Jongno-gu, Seoul, South Korea

Closest Metro Station: Anguk

Tel: +82 2-747-0709

Website: https://www.instagram.com/cafe_lowroof/?hl=en

Opening Hours: 10:00am - 8:00pm daily

Abebe Bakery Seoul (Hong Kong, CHINA) ★★★☆☆

Abebe Bakery Seoul is one of the city’s most viral dessert sensations in recent memory, famous for its decadent, Jeju Island-inspired cream-filled donuts and artisanal buns. Originally from Jeju Island, the bakery has built a loyal following with its soft, chewy breads filled with rich, inventive pastry creams.

I first came across the bakery while researching for my upcoming trip to Seoul. What I didn’t realize was that it had recently arrived in Hong Kong, soft-opening its first shop near K11 Art Mall in Tsim Sha Tsui.

The shop offers a colorful selection of cream donuts and cream buns, showcasing ingredients from Jeju Island. Favorites include Jeju matcha and Wimi Hallabong, a vibrant local citrus fruit. Other signature flavors include Dirty Chocolate and Pistachio.

The main difference between the cream donuts and cream buns is their texture and preparation. The donuts are lightly fried and coated in sugar, crumbs, or cocoa powder while the buns are baked, dusted with Castella cake crumbs, and almost always have a thick, ultra-chewy layer of traditional Korean rice cake (mochi) at the bottom.

Black sesame cream donut ($38) — I’m a sucker for anything with black sesame ganache, so this was a no-brainer.

The black sesame crumb coating and rich black sesame pastry cream made this a dream treat for any black sesame lover. The only slight drawback was that the donut seemed to be lightly fried only on the outside, so it tasted more like a bun than a classic donut.

Food Rating: 5.5/10

Price: $$$

Address: Shop W, G/F, Ocean View Court, 31-43 Mody Road, Tsim Sha Tsui, Hong Kong

Closest Metro Station: Tsim Sha Tsui

Opening Hours: 11:00am - 9:30pm daily 

Manteigaria (Hong Kong, CHINA) ★★★★☆

I’m back at Manteigaria for the first time since they debuted in Hong Kong back in June. The artisan bakery from Portugal, who has gained a loyal fanbase over the years, opened its first store in Hong Kong near The Central Market (中環街市), and I was on hand during its first week of operation to get my first taste of their signature pastel de nata. 

I brought some home for my team, and they just love the texture of the vanilla-infused egg custard and the crisp but slightly chewy shell. So, I wrote it down as a note to myself — a return visit is a must.

And return I did in August — but not to their Hong Kong outpost. Instead, I went to their branch in the heart of Paris, just steps from our apartment hotel during our stay in Paris. The textures and flavors were exactly how I remembered them from June.

Here in Hong Kong, it looks like the price has gone up a little since my first visit (now $15 each), but the flavors remain top-notch.

While Hongkongers might find it a little too sweet for their liking, I love the hint of vanilla and cinnamon. It makes it unique from the local egg tarts.

Food Rating: 7/10

Price: $$$

Address: Shop B G/F, Man Hing Commercial Building, 79-83 Queen's Road Central, Central, Hong Kong

Closest Metro Station: Central

Tel: +852 6336-5059

Website: https://www.instagram.com/manteigaria.hk/?hl=en

Opening Hours: 10:00am - 8:00pm daily

Doughman Bakery & Coffee Tsuen Wan (Hong Kong, CHINA) ★★★☆☆

Little nugget is an absolute sucker for mango pomelo sago cream (楊枝甘露) so when I saw on the social media that Doughman Bakery is launching a limited-time only mango pomelo sago danish (楊枝甘露丹麥酥), I knew I had to get one for him.

Interestingly, it is only available at their Tsuen wan outpost but not their original Lai chi Kok flagship.

With this price tag, I knew immediately that it’s going to be a pretty tough sell.

Mango pomelo sago danish (楊枝甘露丹麥酥) ($33) — I joked with little guy that this looked and tasted a bit more like a Chinese youtiao.

I was hoping it would be rich and buttery, with a delicate, flaky crust but that wasn’t entirely the case. At the same time, the mango pomelo sago cream custard was way too artificial, lacking the freshness and fruitiness I was hoping for.

Like Jelloman said, it’s much less refined than any artisanal baked goods from the shop. They tried too hard to make this work.

Food Rating: 5/10

Price: $$$

Address: Shop 208-212, 2/F, Tsuen Kam Centre, 300-350 Castle Peak Road, Tsuen Wan, NT, Hong Kong

Closest Metro Station: Tsuen Wan

Opening Hours: 8:00am - 8:30pm daily

Santa Nata (Hong Kong, CHINA) ★★★★☆

The acclaimed Santa Nata from London has opened its first Asian venture in Central this July. Known for its 300-year-old traditional monastery recipe for making Pastel de Nata (Portuguese egg tarts), the brand has added an exciting twist to the local food scene just after Lisbon-based Manteigaria was welcomed here last month.

The shop features an open kitchen, allowing customers to watch their pastry chefs work diligently behind the scenes.

Pastel de Nata ($14) — This was noticeably less sweet than the ones from Manteigaria or those we’ve tasted in Portugal. Perhaps the recipe has been finely tuned to better suit local palates?

What I enjoyed most was the flaky pastry shell and the caramelized custard centre, infused with vanilla, cinnamon, and lemon zest. Overall, the flavor is gentler on the palate, thanks to its subtler sweetness.

Verdict:

Known for my seriously spoiled sweet tooth, I would say the Pastel de Nata from Santa Nata and Manteigaria are equally delicious. The difference really comes down to preference: do you like it sweeter (more authentic) or slightly less sweet (more healthy)?

Food Rating: 7/10

Price: $$$

Address: G/F, 25-27 Lyndhurst Terrace, Central, Hong Kong

Closest Metro Station: Central

Tel: +852 3594-5724

Opening Hours: 8:00am - 9:00pm daily

Boulangerie-Pâtisserie Dudot (Metz, FRANCE) ★★★★☆

We’re doing a bit of glamping in the southern part of Metz tonight. To get us a little more prepared, we’re grabbing some supplies from a local supermarket before our check-in.

While my team was busy figuring out what to get from a nearby Auchan, I sneaked out for our sweet treats tonight at a neighborhood boulangerie-pâtisserie.

Boulangerie-Pâtisserie Dudot is a historic artisanal bakery institution in Metz. 

Founded by the Dudot family in 1936, the bakery and cake shop has grown into a beloved local staple with three distinct locations across the Metz area.

I was still deciding what to get from the boulangerie but after seeing this signage outside, I had a pretty good idea.

Eclair Paris-Brest (€3.5) — An éclair-shaped twist on the Paris-Brest, combining the elongated shape of a classic French éclair with the rich, nutty flavors of a traditional Paris-Brest.

Instead of the classic bicycle-wheel ring, this came in a straight-lined choux pastry éclair shell. The filling was a rich, velvety hazelnut praline crème mousseline, piped beautifully inside. The top of the choux was garnished with toasted, flaked hazelnuts, a light dusting of powdered sugar, and a praline-flavored glaze.

It was truly a hazelnut lover’s dream. The richness and nuttiness of the hazelnut praline meshed wonderfully well with the choux pastry. Crisp on the outside, firm yet light overall while keeping everything balanced.

Vanilla flan (€4.2) — 25-year-old pastry chef Clara Rodriguez from Boulangerie-Pâtisserie Dudot has won the national title of “Champion of France” for their pastry flan at the very first Concours National du Meilleur Flan Pâtissier (National Contest for the Best Pastry Flan). So, this was an easy pick for me.

In a perfect world, I would have bought an entire flan (€33) to enjoy for the week, but since we’re on the road, I elected to get a slice of this heavenly dessert instead.

This was simply incredible. Just very delicate and firm texture, and the aroma of vanilla was right on the money.

I’m so blessed to have had the spare ten minutes to sneak away for these two wonderful desserts. Let’s see if I can find the time to sample more while we’re still in Metz.

Food Rating: 7/10

Price: €€

Address: 22 Rue de Pont-à-Mousson, 57000 Metz, France

Tel: +33 (0)3 8762-6152

Website: http://www.boulangerie-dudot.com/

Opening Hours: 6:00am - 7:30pm (Mon - Fri), 6:00am - 7:00pm (Sat), 6:00am - 1:00pm (Sun)

Bäckerei Konditorei Wolf Steingasse (Augsburg, GERMANY) ★★★☆☆

Bäckerei Konditorei Wolf is a traditional bakery and confectionery chain that originated in Augsburg, with roots dating back to 1655. With over 30 branches these days, it feels like they’re in every corner of Augsburg (Augsburg is not that big). In fact, when we arrived, we quickly ran into two branches, and this one is just a short walk from Rathausplatz.

We decided to go inside to check out some baked goods for tomorrow’s breakfast, and there were some great selections available.

If we hadn’t been on such a tight schedule, it would have been nice to sit down for a sip of coffee at their café, but we had dinner already lined up within the next hour.

Wolf-Krapfe — One of the bakery's signature item.

The traditional German equivalent of an American donut, this had a similar pillowy texture but was filled with house-made currant-raspberry jam (Johannisbeer-Himbeer-Konfitüre), from which all seeds have been manually strained. I thought it was pretty decent. Compared to the American version, it was less sweet and had a more noticeable, eggy flavor.

Dinner was next, and we have another German meal lined up for tonight. It may very well be our last one on this trip, as my team hasn’t been particularly impressed with German cuisine so far.

Food Rating: 5.4/10

Price: €€

Address: Steingasse 8, 86150 Augsburg, Germany

Tel: +49 821 151514

Website: https://www.baeckerei-wolf.de/

Opening Hours: 7:00am - 7:00pm (Sun - Thu), 7:00am - 8:00pm (Fri - Sat)

Ben's Cookies Shinsaibashi (Osaka, JAPAN) ★★★★☆

One of the reasons we kept coming back to Shinsaibashi for during our stay in Osaka was the familiarity of the names — everything from Mugi to Tori (麥×鷄) to Krispy Kreme and the next place, Ben’s Cookies.

The cookie display and that sweet, buttery aroma always made it impossible for me to walk past the shop without going in.

In the end, I treated myself to two cookies for my afternoon snacks.

One important fact about enjoying Ben’s Cookies is that you really have to eat them fresh (pretty much true for any freshly baked cookie).

What set these apart from the competitors was the thick, soft, gooey center, packed with large, melting chunks of chocolate. The Double Chocolate cookie was the best way to experience those massive chocolate pieces — because they basically pool inside the cookie.

My other favorite is the White Chocolate cookie, preferably with macadamia nuts. Unfortunately, only the one without the nuts was available this afternoon.

Again, it came with an incredibly light texture and almost too wobbly to hold up.

I thought I made the right choice to enjoy these before meeting up with the team so this way, I didn't have to hide them from little nugget who's a fan of Ben's Cookies too. 😆😆

Price: ￥￥￥

Address: 2-2-21 Shinsaibashisuji, Chuo-ku, Osaka, 542-0085 Japan

Closest Metro Station: Shinsaibashi 

Tel: +81 (0)6 6755-8875

Website: https://www.benscookies-jp.com/

Opening Hours: 11:30am - 9:00pm daily

Charmi Shenzhen Bay MixC 深圳灣萬象城店 (Shenzhen, CHINA) ★★★★☆

We’re back in Shenzhen’s Nanshan district for a couple of hours of pickleball this morning. It was a ton of fun. I was surprised the kids held their own for much of the game.

After the game, we took a cab to Shenzhen Bay MixC (深圳灣萬象城) looking for a light meal. There were enough dining options at the luxurious mall to feed us for a month, but Jelloman explicitly pointed out that she wanted something light at Charmi so without hesitation, we headed straight for Pink Street (粉紅大街), a trendy avenue full of shopping and dining options inside the mall.

Once everyone got settled, it was time to check out the bakery goods available today. And there were some new creations we hadn’t seen on our last visit. 

It was stuff like this brioche with Italian meatballs and fish-fragrant eggplant (意式肉丸魚香茄子包) that kept us coming back for more.

Mugwort red bean sea salt roll (艾草紅豆海鹽卷) (¥18) — A local twist on the Japanese butter and red bean baguette we grew to love during our Japan trips. These weren’t bad, but for them to really work, the brioche needs to be a little firmer —something that can actually stand up to a thick slab of butter and red bean paste. And this one failed in that regard.

Truffle mushroom chicken confit egg danish (松露蘑菇雞油封蛋丹麥) (¥28) — Much better than sea salt roll I thought.

Inside the flaky crust, there were diced chicken and mushroom, all drizzled with a delicate cream sauce and finished off nicely with a subtle hint of truffle. The shaved Parmesan and confit egg topping didn’t really distribute enough to make a big flavor impact, but overall it was a solid danish.

We’re planning to have hotpot dinner in a few hours, so not surprisingly, the daddies all got a memo from top management (the wives!) advising us not to have too much food here. Of course, we’re all well-trained to follow orders from top management.

Food Rating: 6.4/10

Price: ¥¥¥

Address: Shop B1-40, Pink Street, Shenzhen Bay MixC, 3213 Keyuan South Road, Nanshan district, Guangzhou, China

深圳市南山区深圳湾万象城B区粉红大街B1层B1-40号铺

Closest Metro Station: Houhai (后海)

Tel: +86 18028704994

Opening Hours: 10:00am - 10:00pm daily

Map: https://j.map.baidu.com/06/05nM