Tatler+
Known for its artisanal ice creams, owner Cheryl Cheong has expanded the business to include personalised event services such as birthday parties and weddings too
Kindred Folk was borne out of chef-owner Cheryl Cheong’s love for sweets. “I’ve always had a sweet tooth and have loved desserts since I was young,” she recalls, adding that her mum, Dolly Cheong, often baked simple muffins and cookies for the family when she was a child.
She inherited this passion for baking, digging up her mum’s recipe books and whipping up simple brownies, cookies as well as cupcakes, which she started selling online and through bake sales by the age of 15. “It gave me great joy to see people enjoy the food I made. To have people ask me if they could pay me to bake was also a confidence booster,” she lets on. That was when she realised that this was what she wanted to do for a living.
Established in 2017, the cosy café at King Albert Park is the culmination of the self-taught chef’s dreams and hard work. While she learned from experimenting in the kitchen as well as watching cooking and baking shows, she has come up with her own menu of pasta dishes, tea snacks and finger foods.
As for her signature artisanal ice creams, she started dabbling in it two years before opening the café and found it enjoyable. Plus, she affirms that they’re as decadent as other types of dessert but not as filling.
That's why she enrolled in a short ice cream and gelato course to “learn the science behind creating ice cream recipes” and hasn’t stopped creating imaginative flavours that appear on her menu. Currently, she has 18 varieties on display but adds one or two more options if there are special occasions like Christmas and Chinese New Year.
