Xiao by Crustz at Happy Mansion feels a little bit like a gallery – a smallish space that caters to a maximum of 15-20 pax at a time. This patisserie focuses on French-inspired creations, all beautifully crafted and extremely photogenic. The set-up is clean and minimalistic which I like, though it can get a tad noisy if one chatters louder than usual.
Clean and minimalist
Desserts on display
Everything looked pretty so it can be tough to make a choice without being tempted to buy them all. At least that was how I felt when I was at Xiao. But we settled for the Goma Goma (RM13), a pretty éclair of sesame ganache and hazelnut mousseline, topped with chocolate and edible gold.
Goma Goma
I liked the combination of sesame, chocolate and hazelnut but the eclair was dry and bordering hard, which was a bummer. Perhaps it would have tasted better earlier in the day but I was there in the evening and it wasn’t at its prime.
La Vie En Rose
La Vie En Rose is a pretty composition of shortbread cookie crust with mini choux filled with a custard-like centre, and lined with rose-flavoured cream. I honestly don’t know how to eat this elegantly so I’ll just come clean and tell you I ate choux after choux before attacking the base.
Le Fruit
Le Fruit (RM13) is a fruit tart with creme patisserie, vanilla mousse and almond cream – fairly straightforward to understand and enjoy. That said, this didn’t have any wow factor for me but the base was solid enough to hold the cream and fruits, yet buttery enough to cut through with a fork.
Earl Grey Madelines
Xiao by Crustz offers Earl Grey Madelines (RM4 per pack of three) too, which I thought tasted more like Earl Grey butter sponge cake rather than madelines. It was a tad too dense for my liking, and while the tea notes were quite strong, it was somewhat muted by the weight of the madeline.
Lime Fizz
To be fair, they are quite new and are probably still refining and tweaking the recipes, so I’ll wait for a couple more weeks before checking them out again. 😉
Ambiance: 6.5/10
Price: 6/10
Food: 6/10 (pork free)
Verdict: Very pretty French-inspired desserts. I enjoyed the La Vie En Rose best.
Xiao by Crustz
B-G-6, Happy Mansion Block B
Section 17, Petaling Jaya
46400, Selangor.
Tel: 016-211 0932
Business hours: Wed-Fri, 3pm to 10pm; Sat-Sun, 12pm to 6pm
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