Singapore man gives breathlessly funny blow-by-blow account of his Sunday crusade for croissants

Emojis plaster images of pastries for sale at Petit Pain along with ‘nani’ (‘what’ in Japanese) by Eugene Lin. Photos: Eugene Lin/Facebook
Emojis plaster images of pastries for sale at Petit Pain along with ‘nani’ (‘what’ in Japanese) by Eugene Lin. Photos: Eugene Lin/Facebook

Other than local hawker favorites, Singaporeans have a profound love for cafe food, especially croissants. One foodie has attested to this in a recent online post hilariously detailing his dramatic quest for croissants at a new bakery in Joo Chiat. 

Eugene Lin was initially afraid he would not be able to get his hands on the freshly baked pastries at Petit Pain without reservations since their small batches are known to sell out quickly. 

After riding an “emotional rollercoaster,” it turns out the pastry gods were on Lin’s side — at least this past Sunday. 

“OMG EMOTIONAL ROLLER COASTER! So I was one fella away from my turn and there were only four croissants left on display! WAS SO HAPPY! Then the lady in front of me bought three OMG,” he wrote that day on Foodies Singapore

Lin said he’d arrived to line up at about 10am. 

“So when it was my turn I asked Regina (owner) — need to wait how long if I want four? She says can give now, then took out a fresh tray from the display rack on her right!! OOOOOO FRESHLY BAKED AND INSTANTLY WHAT AN UNEXPECTED TURN OF EVENTS! EH NO JOKE LA, this is the next closest thing to first love when you’re in your 30s!” the croissant-lover added. 

Petit Pain is a locally owned bakery that opened two months ago. Despite being a new outlet, their affordable croissants — just S$3 — have already been dubbed by many local foodies as some of the best in Singapore, selling like, well, hotcakes and attracting long queues. Other items sold at the store include baguettes and pain au chocolat. 

The queue for Petit Pain on Sunday morning. Photo: Eugene Lin/Facebook
The queue for Petit Pain on Sunday morning. Photo: Eugene Lin/Facebook

Online posts also show that it is highly advisable to reserve pastries in advance or risk leaving the store empty-handed.

The bakery, located at 315 Joo Chiat Road, opens at 11am on weekdays, 10am on weekends and closes at 5pm or when their items are sold out, its website says. It is owned by a Singaporean duo, known only as Mark and Regina. 

When Lin arrived at the store on Sunday, there were others already queuing in front of him, and around 20 people standing behind him, he said.

WOAH I’M THE LAST GUY IN QUEUE THAT CAN FIT INTO THE TINY BAKERY! Behind me still have like 20 ppl! OOOO I HOPE THEY STILL HAVE CROISSANT THE BUTTERY SMELL IS KILLING ME!!” Lin wrote in the same post at 10:01 am. 

Lin wasn’t so lucky during his previous visits to the store. In a separate post last week, Lin said the pastries had sold out in under two hours.

“It’s not an exaggeration to say [that] once they open, you [already] see trays of preordered croissants. The most ridiculous one I say was [when it] opened at 10am, 11:30am sold out. So please reserve days in advance, if not, try ur luck to [rush] in and order once it opens 10/11am,” he wrote just as breathlessly on Nov. 17.

In Sunday’s post, Lin apologized to the group administrators for his spam. The group, which has nearly 10,000 members, is a venue for food lovers to share their thoughts on eateries throughout Singapore. 

“To admin: Sorry for again posting [about] this place. Will make sure this is the last time. Next time, I will only post if the quality change or got really new bread!”

Eugene Lin's Facebook post.


Related:

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