Plain Vanilla Bakery

This lovely looking little bakery and pastry shop is located on the ever popular Yong Siak Street in Tiong Bahru. The place is fairly small and the space a bit narrow but they do have some space outside, still covered by a roof so possible to use when raining as well. They actually also have a big swing there for people to play in. It is however also a lot of people who take the cupcakes and other pastries with them.
The focus seems to be cupcakes in many forms and shapes. In general not one of my favorite pastries or baked goods but here they actually make some really good ones. They are not on the fantastic side of the scale but well worth to stop by if you are in the neighborhood but would not travel out here just for this.
They also offer some beverages, would not recommend the coffee but the tea is decent as well as the cold beverages. The prices for the beverages are however a bit steep.

Cute little bakery shop with a nicely decorated outdoor patio. We tried a couple different desserts there including cupcakes, raspberry cake, dark chocolate with filling, and a brownie. I thought the desserts were all ok, but not spectacular. The drinks were a bit expensive for what you get.
There is limited seating which consists of just one huge communal table and one high top table. This isn’t a good place for groups, but a perfect place to hang out and read if the place is not busy and you can find a place to sit.

Love the looks of this place :) and once you see their cakes and cupcakes, you would fall in love with this place. Open kitchen for you to look at how all the sweet delights are prepared. They are shelves of kitchen items and cookbooks for sale too.
No wifi, as I see this as a trend now a days… Either their are being cheap about it or maybe they use to greater-​good excuse that people are suppose to socialise more rather than having their head bend down and stuck to their phones. Either way, they have a very limited sitting area — one large square table to share, one Long side seat with cushions and a Long table Infront. Ok if you are just there to get a cuppa coffee and read your papers or just enjoy a cup cake or pastry, for bigger groups of people, maybe not.
They use wooden forks and styrofoam plates (not a big fan of their plates — very Unenvironmentally friendly…) and paper cups.
Still, beautiful place to be at. I see people doing take away of their cupcakes in very large numbers. I would say that the cupcakes are pretty but fairly much on the normal side of things. Have yet to try their delicious looking cakes and pastries.
Saw a poster recently to say that they do breakfast/​brunch now. Look forward to going back :)

As a pastry lover kind of guy, I do always find my way into local bakeries, patisseries and cafes wherever I go and this time it not an exception here in Singapore. Plain vanilla just attracted us from far, with it’s pretty Scandinavian-​European kind of concept. I love their so well done cake display as well as how beautifully made their pastries are. Prices are pretty average for this kind of place but slightly pricy for our expectations (we spent around 25 € in coffee and cakes for two) it is definitely worth a visit while in this area of the city though. We had a red velvet cupcake (good one btw), lemon tart, flourless chocolate cake, ice latte and ginger lemonade (quite refreshing one). I would definitely come back !. As mentioned before I particularly loved the whole concept.

This place has a great setting. It was what first attracted us into stepping in. Then comes the aroma of freshly baked goods. Mmmm… A bakery cum café, the place is decorated in a way that allure you to instagram every single corner. They have seats in front of the bakery; even a swing if you prefer.
Step further in, you’re brought to the food display! Loved the look of everything! Even the glimpse of cake pans and baking tools in their huge cupboard was instagram-​worthy. Haha! Kudos to whoever the interior designer was.
They sell, tarts, cakes, brownies and etc. Even cookie and cake mixes in jars. How wonderful! But what captivated us the most were the cupcakes on display. Me being the salted caramel lover ordered 2 of those, vanilla and hazelnut chocolate ones.
Prices for the cupcakes were alright, standard. But the drinks! Blimey! $ 7 for a cup of lemonade? Eh?! And oh! You might as well know that they don’t offer you any paper bag to stuff your cake boxes. They’ll just tie them up with a string to act as a handle. Quite the hassle if you’re already holding many things in hand.

This is my go-​to place when I want to spend some time alone, reading a book. The space is so pretty! I mean, ok, I thought gentrification in Tiong Bahru is bad but it’s not all that bad. I love the storefront with the large square communal table where people just sit there going on about their own business. It’s not air-​conditioned but usually there is a nice breeze. It’s good for people watching on weekends since a tonne of visitors come to Tiong Bahru and Yong Siak street is their no. 1 destination. Besides, what’s better than sitting there being immersed in the smell of warm butter?
I have bought their cupcakes and they are pretty good. A whole range of flavors to choose from and not too sweet. Besides cup cakes, they also sell cakes but I have yet to try, they all look too big for one person. There are also other peculiar home goods on offer here, as well as cook books, which I don’t think are a whole lot practical or necessary but nevertheless interesting to look at.
This is a place that leaves a memory on your senses. As I am writing I can recall the warm breeze brushing on my skin and the aroma of sugar and butter.

There is nothing plain about Plain Vanilla. Delicious baked items as well as a small assortment of home goods and a nice covered patio makes for a nice break from the midday heat and humidity.

Bought a dozen cupcakes to go.
They are definitely pretty but to be honest they are very plain tasting.
The red velvet was okay, the cream cheese wasn’t too sweet, the cake itself was moist.
The dark chocolate cupcake had crunchy little bits in there, so it was a very interesting bite. It is also not very sweet, or gerlat tasting which was good since I had this right after dinner.
The cinnamon cupcake frosting tasted very doughy and again very moist.
The cupcakes are reasonably big and you definitely cut them up to share

Great ambiance and decent coffee however we were not at all impressed with the pastries /​cakes we ordered. Blueberry cake was overloaded with sugar it was all you can taste. Too bad the food wasn’t better because it is a nice venue to hang out for awhile

I ordered the Dark Chocolate Ganache and a Raspberry Pink Lemonade for a meal closer. Loved the lemonade. The cupcake was fine. Not a fan of the crispy texture but the cupcake could use a little moistness. I would want to try the Red Velvet next time.

Tiong Bahru has fast become one of my favourite little precincts in Singapore and Plain Vanilla’s cupcake shop definitely tops my list of places to dwindle away your afternoon in.
The charming entrance greets you warmly with an army of vintage aqua bikes, an open communal dining space and a glass tankard of lemon scented water (they understand the effects of humidity!) The shop itself is lined with daily specials, old favourites and row upon row of Plain Vanilla’s famous cupcakes — to me, these are definitely the best cupcakes in Singapore!
They have a great texture and deviate away from being outlandishly sweet; I love that every flavour says what it means and means what it says. Must-​trys are the Earl Grey and Cinnamon! The cupcakes start from $ 3.50 each and I usually grab a box of 6; just like the Sound of Music, they’re adorably tied up with string! (A useful handle for when you’re commuting with cupcakes!)
I love the ritual of hopping a few doors down to Books Actually to grab some reading material and then settling myself into a quiet corner at PV Bakery. Although the seating is limited and they don’t do coffees (yet!), it’s none the less a beautiful space to wind down in. Be sure to check out their mini concept store for little trinkets and gifts before you leave!

If you ever had a Kinfolk Fantasy, PV Bakery is going to be more than you’ve ever imagined. Picture wooden tables filled with flowers, a store front overflowing with natural light, turquoise bicycles with baskets out in the front, water jugs filled with citrus and cucumber… I could go on and on and on about how perfect everything is but lets cut to the chase.
These are one of the best, if not the best cupcakes in Singapore. Love Vanessa, love the quality of her bakes, and most importantly, love how rustic this store looks!

A great treat to the neighbourhood. I’ve followed Vanessa from Holland V to Tiong Bahru and even to some of her pop-​ups. She has been consistently fabulous at her baking.
She keeps things simple and in this day and age, it’s the most welcoming approach to bakeries. While her HV store is small and cosy, this is welcoming and enticing. I love the wide space and benches. The counter space allows us to stand in front and ponder. Her selection as always, spoils us like an only child in the family. I am always drawn to a salted caramel or special of the day.
A new old favourite is earl grey lavender cuppie. An old because I always had it in USA but never in Singapore. Thank you for bringing it here.
Have yet to attend her events. Plain Vanilla has a line up of events through out the month so pop over to their facebook for more details.

New outpost in the new hip town, and just like before, they’ve kept things simple — a super-​wide counter/​display, and now a coffee machine, and a couple of benches. I love the open look to this spot, and you really get to feel the space as you walk in. You don’t need that much more when all you want is to eat a cupcake, right?
The flavours are stellar as always, and I’m a big fan of the dark chocolate cupcake with Varlrona chocolate nibs, maybe because I think it’s the manliest cupcake there — dark chocolate, and brown, muted colours — but then again, it’s just so dang delicious. And those nibs add that crunch and a touch of that bittersweet raw chocolate finish… I think I’m saying too much.
In fact, every one I’ve tried is tasty as heck, and with well-​made classic flavour pairings like cinnamon brown sugar, strawberry white chocolate and milk chocolate banana, it’s hard not to like everything you eat.
This new store in Tiong Bahru is on the same street as the massively hip bookstore BooksActually, and also picturebook mecca Woods in the Books, not to mention earlybirds 40 Hands, you’ll have your weekend needs covered just wandering down this stretch.