Chase the blues away with whimsical Aqua S sea salt soft serves
Aussie dessert brand to launch S'pore store
Blue is rarely seen in food, but the colour looks set to make a splash at a new eatery here.
Sydney-based dessert brand Aqua S, known for its whimsical pastel-hued sea salt soft serves, will be opening its first store in Singapore later this month at Orchard Xchange.
It was founded in 2015 by former accountant Jennifer Lam, who was born and raised in Hong Kong but moved to Australia in 2008.
She incorporated Tiffany Blue - the light medium robin egg blue associated with US jewellery company Tiffany & Co - into her desserts as she believes it is "every girl's favourite colour". The hue is achieved using artificial food colouring.
Ms Lam, who was in town last week for a media launch and tasting event in partnership with tourism board Destination New South Wales, told The New Paper: "There is no other pastel-coloured food in the market, so it is important to have an eye-catching colour. All of Aqua S' products are pastel-coloured and so is our brand, (in order to) differentiate ourselves from the competitors."
The 29-year-old kick-started her food venture after tasting a sea salt soft serve during a trip to Okinawa, Japan, in 2014.
She said: "It was white and nothing fancy, (but) it was an interesting concept... how the saltiness balanced out the sweetness perfectly.
"I decided at that moment to create something as innovative and creative."
NEW FLAVOURS
To cater to the Singapore market, Ms Lam has added flavours lychee, durian and Thai tea to the menu.
Apart from its striking hues, the soft serves at Aqua S (from $5.30) come with a kaleidoscope of elaborate, Instagram-worthy toppings such as its signature fairy floss, popping candy, caramel popcorn and flame-grilled marshmallows.
Aqua S now boasts 11 stores worldwide, including Melbourne in Australia, Auckland in New Zealand, Houston in the US, and Shanghai and Xiamen in China.
Within the next year, it is expected to expand its franchise to Malaysia and the Philippines, with outlets in Kuala Lumpur and Manila, and open one more in the US, in New York.
Customers can expect flashy-looking treats, which Ms Lam believes will be a selling point for those who "love taking pretty pictures for Instagram and Facebook".
She said: "Everything you see and taste from Aqua S will trigger the customer to think of their happy childhood memories. We have fairy floss as our toppings, and you usually see it at carnivals, as well as popping candy, which you would (usually) have fun with as a child.
"I also added grilled marshmallows because I am from Hong Kong and we always include that in our barbecues."
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