Janice Wong is a chocolatier and chocolate maker based in Singapore, known for creating immersive, interactive dessert experiences. She’s especially famous for her edible art installations, walls covered in colourful bonbons and chocolate pieces that you can literally pluck off and eat. These installations are very well known in Australia, so visiting her café to try her chocolates was very high on our priority list on a recent trip to Singapore. More recent, she has also begun producing chocolate from cocoa beans grown in Singapore. She has overseen the planting of cacao trees in gardens across the city, including in schools. This bean-to-bar project is part of her brand, Pure.
She has several cafes around Singapore, but we chose the most impressive the café at the top of the Supertree Observatory in Gardens by the Bay.
At around 50 metres high, the Supertree Observatory sits atop one of the iconic Supertrees, structures that re not only visually striking but also have strong environmental credentials. Each tree is covered with thousands of real plants that help collect rainwater for irrigation. Some incorporate solar panels, while others use wind turbines. Every evening, at 7:45pm and again at 8:45pm, the Supertrees come alive with the Garden Rhapsody light and music show, a must-see experience in Singapore.
To visit the observatory, you’ll need a ticket (around S$14 for non-residents), and it’s open from 9am to 9pm. Depending on the time of day, there can be a queue for the elevator. At the top, there’s both an indoor observatory and an open air rooftop terrace offering 360-degree views of the area.
None of the other visitors today were here for the café. They must not know! We chose a seed next to the window with views of the Supertrees and ordered a selection of her chocolates, a few bonbons, a couple of small cakes, and of course, the hot chocolate. She also now makes her own gelato. Everything was enjoyable, made even better by the setting.
The hot chocolate uses a house mix that is also sold in store to take home. It is made from cocoa powder, milk powder, icing sugar, and dark chocolate. It was nice, thought it would be interesting to see options featuring different cacao origins, especially beans grown in Singapore. Perhaps something for the future. But honestly, you can’t get much better than this view paired with Janice Wong chocolates. Don’t rush it. Plan to linger as long as your schedule will allow you. No one will rush you.
Janice Wong, 18 Marina Gardens Dr, #03-01 Supertree Observatory, Singapore
Open daily from 9am to 9pm. @janicewongsg
