I've been going here for years but never knew the English name was Sweet Temptations. I always eat at the Canton restaurant next door then swing over for dessert. So my review today will be about my favorite desserts, the others I've tried and the recommended dessert based on customers in the lobby.
My favorite is Che Banh Lot (green pandan noodle jelly) the Jellies have to be soft, fresh of pandan aroma, and the coconut can't be overly sweet. I've had other places where it leaves a gritty after taste or is simply too hard and breaks vs being chewy. Ofcourse the trick to this is ordering with ice on the side, or ice on top only if you're going to eat immediately because once it gets cold, it hardens. However I have not experienced that hardness here. I also add mung bean in my dessert and this needs to be silky in texture when eaten and still have a paste texture. I personally dislike having grit in my mung bean that tasted like dried curd or raw beans that some places may have when it's not cooked long enough, or they use low quality beans that are stale or too dried taking longer to get the texture. So they pass on these two aspects.
The second popular dessert is Che Thai (Thai style desserts with all the fruit and jelly mix) this location used more condensed milk to sweeten it. So far from individual ingredient perspective, I would rate it on a higher quality. For example you can buy 3 different kinds of jack fruit cans from the market and a fresh jackfruit. The fresh jackfruit will always taste better, but there is a brand of can jackfruit that will be closest to a fresh one in quality. While some other brands make their canned fruits very stale and mushy. So the can and brand choice they use for this desserts is better in quality than other places. I am also assuming their steep price of $5 per dessert takes this quality into account.
Today while I was here, a lady recommended the banana sticky rice and mung bean sticky rice wrap. According to her, they are made fresh with quality sticky rice from scratch. This I have no tried, but considering her detailed description, it is worth mentioning. Finally I ask the owner for the specialty of the savory dishes they had posted.
According to the owner, the beef Kho does not have MSG in it and the stew is brewed the night before to ensure all the seasoning, aroma, and flavors seep into the beef when served the next day. I personally have not tried this, but I assume their recipe may be good enough to include it in their menu. Imagine a late night hot bowl of stew with a baguette to satisfy your nightly cravings or simply after some drinking, this could be very warm for your tummy for breakfast.
Another important note to make is that the place is clean, has a lot of choices, the owner seems quite nice and willing to assist food photos without any grief. read more