1 / 1
Tatler Dining's two-time Best Pastry Chef awardee tells us about the philosophy behind her new project
After successful stints at Amber, Nobu, and most recently, Andō, pastry chef Joanna Yuen is ready for her next adventure. After nearly two years of planning, Yuen is set to open Otera, her solo venture this month. She shares her philosophy and candid adventures leading up to the soft opening of her cake boutique, including breaking boundaries on flavours and reaching a phase of peace and zen as she presents her second act.
What is Otera? And how did it come about?
Otera, in Japanese, means ‘one temple’. It is more figurative and symbolic than physical. Otera is the closest meaning of what I want to do with my life after leaving my post as a restaurant pastry chef. It is a state of mind in which I can focus on improving and reflecting on myself and improving on what I do. It is a harmony to be reached, a zen phase if you will.
The original concept started in early 2022. After months of finalising and conceptualising something so intangible, I found this space in a commercial building in North Point which I think is perfect. A space where I can build a kitchen to create my cakes and also build my plan on creating a dessert omakase which will come in late 2023.
Above Soy caramel flan
Above Banana whiskey flan with candied walnuts
Soy caramel flan
1 / 2
What can we expect from Otera?
The ethos of Otera is the feeling of harmony, a sensation that gives customers a sense of peace, recognised by balanced flavours which, in this case, is savoury and sweet. Like salt in chocolate, or miso in caramel, a touch of salt often elevates sweets to add more depth. The same goes for sugar in savoury dishes.
The main product is my flan cake, and there’s a little history to this. I first created a flan dessert when I was at Nobu. It was a soft pudding served alongside strawberry cheesecake. At Andō, we also put flan on the dessert menu, with orange and whiskey for a touch of surprise with the fresh citrus. Over the years, I have learnt many ways to perfect the flan, which can be deceptively simple but tricky to perfect. The flan cake comes in two flavours: soy caramel and banana whiskey.
The soy caramel flan is the main signature. It is a soy sauce-flavoured flan, created with the barrel-aged soy sauce from local legend Kowloon Soy Co. Ltd, set atop a soy sauce-flavoured mousse, chiffon cake, torched meringue, and a soft Japanese soufflé pancake base. While the banana whiskey flan is a fruitier version replacing soy sauce with whiskey, banana mousse and sliced banana. The savoury element comes from a homemade walnut praline mixed with meringue. The cake emphasises textures: the soft-set pudding, creamy mousse, and soft chiffon cake, all within a single bite.
1 / 1
How does creativity come into play when you create your flan cakes?
There is little to be created with originality in the world of food. I think that if you take something that already exists, and you make an effort to build on it to impress, inspire, and improve it to fit the market, that is an upgrade, and the same applies to life in general. I feel that creativity is rewarded when you hear great feedback. Positive or otherwise, feedback isn’t meant to be judgmental. It is a reflection on your efforts, and whether there is room to grow from how you departed from the original and how much more you can grow.
Otera is essentially about how I take this feedback, internalise it and reflect on how to do it better, I feel relief and calmness when I figure out a solution, that feeling is what Otera is all about. It almost feels like a spa, and in this case, the cake is the spa treatment
From the world of advertising to a self-taught pastry chef, how has your journey shaped who you are today?
I started my pastry journey later than a lot of the younger pastry chefs today. I started in the advertising field, but my passion for pastry took over when I decided to apply to work in pastry. I was lucky to get a chance to work with chef Benjamin Brial, the former executive sous chef at Landmark Mandarin Oriental. I started with endless physical labour, learning the basics and eventually, I became a pastry commis. I slowly built up my skill set from pastry to bread to desserts. When I reached Nobu, I got my chance to create a Western-style wagashi for a VIP event. That was what started my journey of putting wagashi on a restaurant's dessert menu, which also became a signature dessert at Andō during my time there.
Rising up the ranks take time, lots of hard work and a bit of luck. I’m flattered to be taught by restaurant industry leaders such as Richard Ekkebus, Nobu-san and most recently, Agustin Balbi. I've come to understand that no detail is too little or too much to make a creation work. In my case, a few flakes of salt, or a few more drops of soy sauce into the flan can make or break the flan, and in life, lessons and feedback are your friends to help guide you.
1 / 1
Besides flan cakes, what else can we look forward to at Otera?
The cakes are just one part of Otera, as I plan on creating a bi-monthly dessert omakase menu, available through online booking to be served in this space. The menu is at its conceptual stage, but it is tailored to serve umami desserts, highlighting ingredients we often overlook in Western desserts. The exclusivity allows me to be open and creative about what ingredients I use, experiment with, and put on the regularly changing menu.
Our studio waiting area is set up with a tall wooden structure, with a white noren curtain draping in the front. It creates ambient surroundings that mirror that of a Japanese temple. The structure is designed by Alex Tang, a local designer friend who also helped me design the origami-inspired cake box. We have tried to create a sense of calmness and tranquillity in our concept.
I think the concept of Otera may be abstract, but harmony is the same expression as a smile. It is universal, and everyone should feel the same. To me, Otera is about experiencing peace on a plate, and I feel that the balance of umami and sweetness is something that we have already experienced before, hopefully, the cake elevates it for you a bit better.
Topics
