OMG.
Yup, that is all I have to say about Mango Coco. A new Thai dessert cafe opened in
Sydney. OMG.
Yes, it has all the makings of something I'd love:
desserts galore. Ingredients like
taro and pandan abound. Very trendy smoothie drinks. Asian baked goods. Ridiculous plated desserts. Seriously, looking through the (many page) menu was like a dream come true.
But ... but how often do these sort of places live up? Particularly brand new ones. Why would I expect this place with virtually no reviews to be good?
I took a gamble. It paid off.
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| My last two days in Sydney: as much Mango Coco as I could consume! |
I wish I stopped in sooner. I had only one night and one day left in Sydney, but I pulled off two quick visits. I will be back, and in particular, I will make it to the full sit down restaurant. Please, please, don't close on me before I return Mango Coco!
Setting
Mango Coco is located in Thai town, right next to my familiar haunts (my
Thai hawker dessert cart is literally 2 doors down,
Chat Thai where I often grab desserts has a location around the corner,
Boon Cafe is next door ...), on Pitt St. I discovered it by accident, while en route to my Thai hawker.
Note: I'm unlikely to venture *anywhere* else in Sydney for a Thai dessert in the future. I want more Mango Coco, and I want it now!
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| Thai Desserts. |
At first glance, Mango Coco doesn't look much different than any of the other establishments in the area. After all, Thai dessert carts line the streets, really. And all seem to feature the same types of packaged desserts, likely even sourced from the same place.
Sure, the storefront is more appealing than most, but these goods don't look particularly unique.
And then ... and then you realize the epic creations that wait inside. Mango Coco is like no other on the street (or in Sydney), or anywhere I've been ...
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| Cakes. |
Want to get drawn in further? Display cases full of bright colors of assorted cakes, easily available togo.
The cake lineup has all sorts of ... "monsters". Like the Foithong Monster (available in two sizes, the larger one is called the "mommy"). Pandan and durian make appearances too.
I think the most famous one of the moment is the Miss Durian, which, is supposed to look like a
durian, thorns and all, and yes it has plenty of durian mousse inside.
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| Takeaway Ordering Area. |
Ordering just drinks to take away, or picking up packaged items is easy, and, unlike many shops, there is no question where you are supposed to order. Right here!
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| Seating Area. |
For the main attractions, full on dessert cafe mode, there is a beautiful seating area. Well lit, nicely decorated, and the yellow theme dominates. Consistent look and feel to the entire place. They even make exposed light bulbs look good!
Drinks
The drink lineup at Mango Coco is actually only a fraction of the menu, but it is where I started. You can get drinks to dine-in, or to go, and the setup is actually designed for them to be primarily takeaway.
The drink menu is broken into 6 categories: mango smoothies, coconut smoothies, yogurt smoothies, and Sparkling Drinks, teas, and "Thai Drinks" (you know, lychee butterfly pea smoothies, thai tea frappes, and the like).
I went straight for the decadent looking smoothies. Not that they are made with junk food or anything, but these are not healthy smoothies. These are intense.
The mango smoothies are made with mango puree and fresh mango, and come blended with many different options: coconut sago on top, young coconut or pearls at the base, blended with coconut cream and purple sticky rice, topped with cheese foam, and more. Maybe these are reasonably healthy?
The coconut versions are what caught my eye however, made with coconut cream. I wanted ... most of them. Taro coconut, which looked loaded with taro pase. The coconut sago super mango, with small sago blended with the coconut cream, and tons of mango on top. Um, the coconut creamy pandan. The salted egg coco smoothie (!).
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| Foi Thong Pandan Coconut Smoothie with Taro Balls (+Purple Sticky Rice). $9.80. |
But I went for the most decadent looking one of all: the foi thong pandan coconut smoothie with taro balls. The photo boosted a creamy coconut smoothie, topped with pandan cream, lovely purple taro balls, and a nest of foi thong. And because I'm crazy, I added purple sticky rice as well (note: they don't really support add-ins, unlike most drink shops, they have only a preset menu, no toppings menu, or structure for charging for additions. But they are new, and did it for me).
My drink was very carefully made to order, the purple sticky rice, coconut cream, and ice blended up nicely. And then, beautiful green pandan cream scooped on top, a mound of foi thong added, and taro balls somehow perched on top without them falling in. A pandan leaf finished it off. It really didn't take that long to assemble, but it was clear that care was put into it.
I was extremely impressed with my drink (er, dessert, who are we kidding, this is not a drink!), but I do admit that my addition of purple sticky rice actually wasn't a great decision.
The coconut smoothie was very good - it was creamy, rich, indulgent, refreshing, and quite coconut-y. It was extremely well blended, icy in the right way. I think it did have some pandan in the smoothie too? The sticky rice was good - it was al dente the way I like, and was very well blended. I actually really liked how it got a bit icy as the drink sat a bit, and it was exposed to the icy filling. But ... as I said, I think it detracted. I tasted it, and although I liked the chew, I actually just wanted to taste the pure flavors better, the pandan, the coconut cream, the taro. Because they were good, and the rice kinda muddled it. Definitely my fault on that one. It was still good, don't get me wrong, but I'd leave it off in the future.
The smoothie was good, but the toppings were ... fabulous. The pandan cream was extraordinary. Such strong pandan flavor, such rich cream. I think it might have been coconut based too? The drink came with plenty of it, and, nutrition concerns aside, I was thrilled. It made me immediately want to try the pandan crepes, as they come with a big dollop of it on top.
The taro balls however were the showstopper. Simply the best I've ever had. Soft yet not mushy, pliable in the right way, and lovely taro flavor. These were just incredible. Slightly out of place perched on top here, but I didn't care. I loved them. The taro balls are featured in a number of other desserts on the menu (including the combo mango sticky rice which has just about everything delicious imaginable in it). I must get them in another application, stat!
Finally, the foi thong, which was fine, and slightly savory-ish, a nice compliment to the sweeter ingredients. I did get the smoothie not sweet (50% or 100% were the choices), but it was definitely still quite sweet.
Overall, this was delicious, and made me instantly vow to return the next day, and made me wish I was there with a group to try many, many more things.
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| Taro Coconut Smoothie (+ Pandan Cream). $7.80 + $1. |
I did literally return the next day. I'll admit that I was craving a yogurt drink, and taro in particular, so Mango Coco wasn't really the best choice of venue (they do have some yogurt items, but, it isn't the feature, and I think likely coconut yogurt?), and they have only one item with taro, but ... I dunno, I couldn't get that pandan cream out of my head.
So I got the one taro drink on the menu, the taro coconut smoothie, and, uh, added pandan cream on top. This time I was charged $1 for the addition, and was rewarded with a pretty serious mound of pandan cream.
The pandan cream was just as amazing as the previous day. Such lovely pandan flavor, so fluffy, just, incredible. Move over cheese foam toppings, you have met your match! I do still love savory fluffy cheese foam toppings but ... this was pretty fantastic.
The smoothie though ... well, I guess it wasn't what I was in the mood for. I also didn't realize it wouldn't be more taro forward, and that it wouldn't have any mashed or cubed taro in it. Like I said, I was craving taro ... The smoothie base was just coconut cream and ice blended, like all the coconut smoothies. It was really well made, the ice pulverized, nicely icy, but ... it was very strongly coconut, and that wasn't what I was in the mood for.
The taro layer was on top, and ... I just didn't really taste it at all, even though it was a vibrant purple. I think it was blended with coconut too? I wanted more taro, and more texture.
So, this let me down, but not because it was poorly made. I wanted a taro forward item, with chunks or paste, and didn't really want coconut ... my bad for not just going to get the taro yogurt from Koomi like I was intending ... but that pandan cream was so good I almost didn't care.
Food
And then there is the food lineup, sweet, savory, full meals, epic desserts, packaged grab n go ...
Savory
There is actually a full Thai savory food menu, with traditional Thai offerings (e.g your basic curries, noodle dishes, fried rice) but also fusion dishes, like tom yum spaghetti. I wished they had some appetizers or smaller plates, because I would like to be able to get a small bite of savory before diving into a dessert fest, but alas, they seem to only do main dishes (or a papaya salad I guess).
Breads
The front counter has some assorted bakery items, I'm not sure if they make them themselves or not. None looked particularly exciting, but I almost grabbed a pork floss bun (with chili jam or mayo), or a loaf of pork floss bread, so I'd have something savory. At last minute, I grabbed some sweet buns "for later", or just in case my sweet treat wasn't appealing.
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| Pandan Custard Buns. $3.90. |
Buns come in 4 flavors: pandan custard, Thai tea, butter sugar, or cream. The sugar coated ones did look good, but, clearly, there was only one option: pandan!
Buns come 2 to a container, and, tbh, didn't actually look particularly special. Even
Breadtop and
85* Bakery Cafe look better.
But still, come on, pandan custard was too tempting to pass up. It was easy to know which one was pandan, with the bright green cream spilling out.
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| Pandan Custard Filling. |
I eagerly ripped into one.
The bread was soft, fluffy, slightly sweet. It would be better warm, or toasted (like with the lava toast or toast hot pots), but I really just wanted a vessel for pandan custard, and it served that purpose. I did warm the second bun in my mini-oven, and as I expected, it was even better warm.
The pandan custard was not quite what I think of as a custard, as it was much looser. It was very different from their pandan cream from the drinks, grainier, more concentrated, but also not quite as strongly flavored, if that makes any sense? It was very very sweet. The color was very bright green.
And there was tons of it. The buns were stuffed to the brim. Almost too much given how sweet it was, but when I added some of the more mild pandan cream as well, it tempered it nicely.
This custard I believe is the same that is found inside the pandan crepes.
I enjoyed the buns, and I liked them more than anything from the Asian bakeries around, but if I were getting just one thing, I wouldn't pick them. They were great for a take-home item though.
Plated Desserts
The dessert lineup, for dine-in desserts, is, simply put, epic. Pages and pages and pages of offerings. And it is all illustrated, to make it *that* much harder to pick.
Sooo many lava toasts, including a durian one, with durian ice cream, durian lava, durian sauce, sticky rice, mango pearls, and fresh fruit ... Pages of bingsu, like the Coconut Lod Chong Bingsu, with pandan rice flour droplets, coconut cream, coconut jelly, coconut palm sugar sauce. Churros with dipping sauces. Filled crepes (with mango and sticky rice inside, or durian, pandan custard!).
And then, the
puddings. Coconut pudding, mango pudding, thai tea pudding, but, they are not just puddings. Take the mango one for example. Sure, there is mango pudding, but it comes with coconut ice cream, taro balls, coconut sticky rice, fresh mango, and coconut cream sauce. Or just fresh mango, milk sago, and rich mango sauce if you want the simple version. Or paired with a mango sticky rice crepe and mango sorbet, if you just can't make up your mind, and opt for the Mango Paradise. Same with the coconut pudding. Yes, there is a base of coconut pudding, but also young coconut meat, fresh mango, mango jelly, mango sauce, sago, and coconut creamy sauce.
It is enough to cause even a good decision maker decision paralysis. Oh, wait, there is also
crème brûlée. Coconut and pandan version of course. And it comes with berries, mango pearls, and coconut gelato.
But alas, I never got a chance to dine in for these epic things, mostly because they really aren't designed for a solo person.
Packaged Desserts
Along with the bakery breads and cakes, Mango Coco also has some Thai desserts packaged up near the register. Most looked like exactly the same as found at every other shop on the street, same containers even, and I don't think they make them there.
But they also had one clearly Mango Coco branded item. Placed strategically all along the front counter, clearly designed to be an impulse buy item, and, hey, I succumbed.
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| Mango Sticky Rice To-go. $8. |
"Mango sticky rice is a traditional Thai dessert made with glutinous rice, fresh mango and coconut milk."
While the real dessert menu has a slew of creations with mango and sticky rice in them (seriously, the combo one with mango pudding, coconut ice cream, taro balls, coconut sticky rice, fresh mango, coconut cream sauce ...), they also have pre-packaged simple ones available for grab and go at the counter.
Of course I grabbed one. The packaging was well done: a base was coconut sticky rice, above that was cubes of fresh mango, and the coconut milk was in a separate container. Proportions seemed spot on.
This was definitely very good. Many Thai places around have mango sticky rice, and I often get it as takeaway, and none have ever been this good. The quality of the mango is what sets it apart. So very juicy, so very ripe. Seriously fantastic mango.
The rice was good, coconut milk infused, good chew to it, slightly sticky. I wanted it warm, so I warmed it up myself at the hotel in my portable oven, and it was better than way. The rice was good, but not remarkable.
The coconut milk/cream was pretty standard, I almost wanted it to be salted or something to jazz it up, but, this was just classic coconut milk and completed the traditional style of the dish.
To my (now warm) rice and mango, I added a dollop of pandan cream from my smoothie, and some of the coconut icey slush from my smoothie, and really adored my more fully composed creation. It was almost like one of their own restaurant creations! But even just as it was, room temp, the quality of the mango really made it a tasty enough item as served, and it would be a good choice for a quick grab n go.
Packaged Snacks
And finally, there are a few packaged snacks, not made by Mango Coco (I later realized when I saw the labels said "It's Time for Thai", and listed Newtown as the location). I grabbed a few of these as well.
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| Golden Bird's Nest. $5. |
Another impulse buy on my part. I didn't really know what Golden Bird's Nest was, or why I'd want it exactly, but it looked like a crunchy snack?
Which, it was. Made from threads of sweet potato, sugar, salt, oil. It was super crispy, but very sweet. I wasn't sure when I was supposed to want it. It wasn't really a dessert, but it also wasn't really a snack as it was so sweet.
I could imagine using it as part of a dessert, sprinkling it on things, or even sprinkled on a spicy curry to cool it?
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| Crispy .... Something? |
I also grabbed the other snack item, this one not labelled.
I asked if it was sweet or savory, and was told it was savory. I think she even said it was made from beans or chickpeas.
But it was not savory. It was sweet. Kinda like a waffle cone, studded with black sesame seeds, and coated in sugar. Very sweet, very crispy, and would be fun on an ice cream sundae. But totally not what I was expecting.
