[Muslim-friendly] Bray-ce yourself for some lovely pastries here! Last Saturday, we checked out Bray Bakery in Menara See Hoy Chan, off Jalan Tun Razak.
There is an interesting story behind the formation of Bray, which we won’t go into detail – but you can read about it here and here.
Instead, we’ll just focus on the lovely pastries made by chef-baker Jonathan Leon Lim and his team.
[Dec 2022: Bray Bakery is one of our Top Nine Cafes of 2022. Click here to read the article]
Bray Bakery in Menara See Hoy Chan
We really like the space here at Bray – with the coffee bar as the centerpiece of the bakery.
However, there is also a nice counter spot that provides a first-row view into the inner workings of the kitchen.
We really enjoyed the seats as they allowed us to check out how the pastries are made and admire the camaraderie amid the team.
Bray Bakery – sourdough, pastries, and more
Bray offers a great selection of baked goods such as sourdough loaves (with varieties such as Multi-grain Honey Porridge and Yudane Sourdough Sesame Brioche Loaf), as well as croissants, tarts, and curry puffs.
Bray also offers homemade spread, and “sourdonuts” made in collaboration with Basket Break Bakehouse (BBB).
Those looking for a fuller meal will be pleased to find a working kitchen here – offering all-day breakfast such as Eggs Ben and PB & J French Toast, as well as main meals such as Seafood Stew & Saffron, Fried Masala Chicken Toast, and Barley Risotto.
Beautiful croissant
As we had just finished a full meal elsewhere, we arrived here to sample their pastries and coffee for a “late brunch affair”.
The Signature Croissant (RM8.50) comes highly recommended – and we could understand why.
Bray’s offering is probably one of the better ones in KL. The pastry was superbly done with plenty of folds to yield layers that are super flaky and crispy.
It was also fragrant with enough buttery goodness to eat on its own.
Pain Au Chocolat
The flaky layers were also prominent in Bray’s Pain Au Chocolat (RM14).
A cut into the pastry results in an eargasmic crackle of layers breaking (hence, we advise to just bite straight into the pastry to avoid a mess) to reveal a honey-comb interior and a generous amount of chocolate. The chocolate should please dark chocolate lovers, but we did prefer it to be sweeter.
XLB in a croissant?
We like that Bray offers more than the traditional French pastries, with innovative creations such as the Dumpling Croissant (RM12) – a take on Chinese Xiao Long Bao.
We were surprised by how good this was! The filling really tasted like the original xiao long bao with plenty of shrimp flavour. We could even taste the hints of ginger and vinegar in the pastry encased in lovely croissant dough.
Crolini – a collaboration between Bray and BBB
Max also enjoyed the Passionfruit & Mango Sago Crolini (RM16) – a bombolini-croissant hybrid made in collaboration with Basket Break Bakehouse.
Max thought that the mango and passionfruit blended well to provide some tanginess and sweetness, with lovely pops of texture from the sago.
Summary
Overall, top marks for the pastries and service!
The place was also pleasant as it was not too crowded – with plenty of space in between tables to enjoy a comfortable meal.
RECOMMENDED!
We will return to try their other pastries and offerings from the kitchen.
Bray Bakery
Address: Bray Bakery, #G-02, Menara See Hoy Chan, 374, 50400 Kuala Lumpur
Hours: 8am-5pm Daily
Website: https://www.braybakery.com/
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