Tom While sipping our cup of kopi siu dai (coffee with less sugar) at Earnest Restaurant (Jalan Besar), we noticed a store across the street that said “手工包” (aka handmade pau). The quaint design of the store front, coupled with the use of “psuedo-tiffany” colours, were enough to lure us to cross the road to Chin Sin Huan.
About Chin Sin Huan Handmade Pau and Coffee Shop
Chin Sin Huan started as a coffeeshop in Tanjong Rhu, in the 1960s, serving coffee and toasts. Over the years, the art of making handmade pau was mastered by the second generation and today, the third generation has infused new elements into this traditional trade. Besides the store front, you’ll also notice some of this new elements in the design of this Chin Sin Huan Menu…
Here’s a close up of the Chin Sin Huan food menu – courtesy of Chin Sin Huan’s website…
If you look closely at the options within the Chin Sin Huan Handmade Pau Menu, you’ll also notice a couple of new creations such as the Yuan Yang Pau as well as the Nutella and Banana Toast – which reminded us of the peanut butter and banana sandwich which Elvis Presley enjoyed.
What to Eat at Chin Sin Huan Handmade Pau Coffee Shop
As it was our first time here, we decided to try out their specialty paus. The Chin Sin Huan Specialty Paus are Big Pork Pau (猪肉包 – $1.50), Char Siew Pau (叉烧包 – $0.80) and Yuan Yang Pau (鸳鸯包 – $1.30)…
All three paus were good, definitely above average in terms of taste. The steamed buns itself was fluffy and had a slight sweetness to it – which we enjoyed very much.
However, there are a couple of gripes.
For instance, the pork pau itself was rather small. In our opinion, it should just be called “pork pau” and not “big pork pau”, giving an impression that it would be as big as the big pau (大包) that most people know. The chai siew pau could have had a taaaaad more filling though the taste was legit and it was correctly priced at 80 cents. For us, the bright spot has got to be the Yuan Yang Pau!
The Yuan Yang Pau (鸳鸯包) has a combination of red bean paste, lotus paste and salted egg yolk, all rolled into one. Individually, the red bean and lotus were delicious! Expertly concocted to be smooth in its texture, yet not too sweet – making it perfect for the elderly and kids. We had a bite of all three tastes at one go, which rendered a satisfying salty sweet note. Thereafter, we enjoyed the individual layers, much like a dessert at the end of a meal. Whoever thought of this combination is a genius!
If you enjoyed our content, “Like” us on Facebook Today!
Conclusion
Chin Sin Huan’s handmade pau was definitely a surprise find during our walk down Jalan Besar. Having mastered the art of making great tasting paus, it sits today, at the crossroads of tradition and modernisation. Though the traditional paus were good, the pau that would really draw us back to Chin Sin Huan is its modern take on a traditional filling – the Yuan Yang Pau. Have you tried the handmade paus at Chin Sin Huan? Let us know more in the comments section below!
