One 18 Bakery: Neighbourhood bakery with 18 croissant varieties from $2.50 like beef rendang, Horlicks & chicken satay
If you are an Eastie and are obsessed with the luscious layers and butteriness of croissants, boy do I have the place for you. We swung by Muslim-owned One 18 Bakery at 826 Tampines Street 81, an 18-month-old neighbourhood bakery opened by Mr Mahdi Bamadhaj.
Mr Mahdi, who didn’t possess any culinary prowess, had learnt the ropes from his mum. When I visited him, he was running all over the place, as he had just opened his 2nd outlet in Tampines Ave 2. The name ‘One 18’ came about due to the stall’s current unit number, #01-118.
Since One 18 has already become an established brand known to its regulars, the new branch will use the same name despite having a different unit number.
Everything at the stall is entirely hand-crafted. Besides cheesecake and the Swiss rolls, I was welcomed by an impressive array of croissants that were proudly displayed up front. With savoury and sweet options stretching over 15 varieties, this place is definitely heaven for croissant lovers.
What I tried at One 18 Bakery
We kickstarted our morning breakfast with the Beef Rendang (S$6) supreme round croissant. It was sliced in half, with chunks of beef rendang sandwiched in between.
The pastry was as chunky as a burger, making it impossible for my small mouth to take a whole bite. I ended up splitting it in half horizontally before savouring it. Though the croissant was crispy and flaky, it wasn’t overly buttery, making it easily palatable without feeling jelak.
We tried the Chicken Ham wif Sriracha Mayo Sauce (S$5.50). The croissant looked aesthetically pleasing with its vibrant red outline and a drizzle of orangey sriracha mayo on top.
The spiciness of the sriracha mayo was gentle but fragrant, which cascaded down the layers of fluffy pastry. The piece of chicken ham in the fillling was comforting and gave it a nice texture and savouriness.
After sampling 2 savoury croissants, I decided to introduce my taste buds to something sweet and moved on to the Horlicks (S$5.50). It had a layer of Horlicks puree crowned with almonds, then drizzled with caramel.
The Horlicks was sweet, and the aromatic malt notes soon came into play. The caramel was rich, and the crunchy bits of almonds were so addictive, providing a contrast in textures to the lightly crisped and fluffy pastry. It was a great dessert and would pair perfectly with a hot cup of Joe.
Switching back to the savoury side, the Fried Chicken Satay (S$6) had a filling that looked like a chunky peanut gravy shoved between the thick, round croissant. With the first bite, the piquant spiced notes of satay took centre stage with a texture of grounded nuts, just like an actual satay.
Croissant and satay may be opposites, but just like the saying “Opposites attract,” both elements complete each other, making it a combination that works.
The Pistachio (S$5.50) was a sweet round croissant piped with a thick layer of pale green filling, sprinkled generously with chopped pistachios.
The thick green filling was decadent and luxurious with a subtle nutty and piney taste. We were thankful that it wasn’t overly sweet, making it less overwhelming.
The pastries at One 18 Bakery are definitely light. The makcik assistant at the stall initially didn’t think that my 2 dining partners and I would be able to finish all 6. But here we are, with our 5 croissants digesting in our bellies and tackling the last pastry, the Rainbow Nutella Filled Croissant (S$4.50).
The croissant looked picture-perfect for Instagram with its dark green and red swirls on the surface, topped with Nutella ganache and chopped hazelnuts. The bakery also sells Plain Croissant (S$2.50 each) and plain Rainbow Croissant (S$3).
The colours were just there for the visuals and didn’t contribute any flavour to the flakey croissant. The double nutty dose coming from the thick and buttery Nutella and the chunky bits of hazelnuts was luxurious, and brought a smile to my face.
Final thoughts
With such a huge repertoire of pastries available at One 18 Bakery, it would take more than 1 trip to explore their whole range of savoury and sweet pastries. For those who live in Tampines, go down and checkout this friendly bakery for yourself.
Expected damage: S$2.50 – S$12 per pax
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