Roti Corner (Homies Bakery) • Good Handmade Egg Tart @ 183 Toa Payoh Central

This wasn't in my plan. Hurrying along Toa Payoh Central to my destination on this stormy rainy morning. Stubborn me refused to carry an umbrella and even declined free of charge, sharing umbrellas provided at the MRT station. (Don't know who indoctrinated me with this silly dogma that officers do not use umbrellas under any circumstances 🙄 Perhaps, it was the US Air Force during my impressionable years.)

Bakery name: Roti Corner (Homies Bakery)

Address: Blk 183 Toa Payoh Central, #01-300, Singapore 310183

Nearest MRT: 5 minutes walk from Toa Payoh station

Hours: 9:00am - 9:00pm

Scurrying along a walkway, I stumbled upon Roti Corner. I noticed that they knead their own dough and bake their own breads, pastries and cakes. They have traditional Chinese pastries like tau sah piah, beh teh sor, siew bao, and also Vietnamese style baguettes, etc.

The rain wasn't going to let up anytime soon, so I got myself ready for Plan B (park a while in a coffee shop with kopi and roti [bread] to sit out the rain).

Then I noticed these egg tarts. A true blue Cantonese Ah Seng whose ancestors came from Toisan, egg tarts always catch my eye and nose.

The dalmatian blotches of browned caramelised sugar called out to me first.

Then, I looked at the cup fringe. My heart beats a bit faster if they are puff pastry cups with many folds. (Cookie cups don't cut it for me 🤪 )

I fall easily but learned long ago never to test water with both feet. Strange white hair uncle, got just one piece for $1.70, declining the enticing deal of four for $6 😆

The egg tart was small but had quite a deep cup.

The cup was crisp, flaky with bits falling onto the table with every bite. The pastry cup tastes buttery sweet.

The soul of the egg tart, the egg custard was good. Jiggly soft, creamy and smooth inside, just very slightly stiffer than tau huay (bean curd). Eggy and not too sweet. The pastry cup was sweeter, so the whole tart had a nice layered buttery sweet egginess.

It was perfect with my usual bitter sweet kopi C kosong gao ☕

Roti Corner's egg tart compares favourably with some of my favorite egg tarts in Johor Bahru like at Oriental Kopi and Hanyuan.

As I sat down to write this post on my phone, the rain stopped to a light drizzle and the sun peeled out coyly.

I am going to have a busy and good day ahead 🌞 🙏 Wish you a great day too.

*About that no umbrella policy ☔

Oh..., it's actually a 200 year old US Army regulation that was abolished in Nov 2019. But, old habits die hard.

Furthermore, I remember the year it ~~rained~~ poured on our National Day Parade. The way everyone from Prime Minister, ministers to soldiers, and students to spectators stood firm in the heavy downpour left a deep imprint in me.

Written by Tony Boey on 5 Oct 2022