Bingsoo Hotspot 2: LAB Bakery Café, Strathfield

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Keen about Red Bean? 😏

Are you all about the OG life? Do you like trying all the OG food from different cultures? Or maybe you love beans, sweet bean to be exact (there are way too many food with savoury beans out there 😐)

You will officially be introduced to the Korean OG Bingoo flavour! Keep reading to find out more. 

 

Bingsoo Hotspot 2 🍧:
LAB Bakery Café, Strathfield 

It was a winter afternoon in 2018. There was an amazing blue hue to the sky and floating white clouds. The weather called for a spontaneous trip to grab some Bingsoo with a friend of mine. So, we went forward with it! 😁

We visited a popular modern café in Strathfield that we had our eyes on for a while, which was LAB Bakery Café. 

Location and Ambience 

LAB Bakery Café is situated on The Boulevarde, a few minutes’ walk away from Strathfield train station. The café stands out with its modern interior and welcoming presence. The café was bright with a trendy LED light quote on their wall that encouraged customers to take pictures of/with. The LAB Bakery Café was nicely lit up which created a warm ambience. They have seating areas near the entrance and at the back of the café. Whereas there was a self-service bakery section and the ordering counter in the middle of the café . 

 

This café was seemingly very popular because it had a variety of bakery products, cakes, drinks and Bingsoo! 😍 It may have a large customer traffic due to the proximity of the café to the train station. Thus, it was almost always packed every time I had walked past the café. My friend and I had visited on a Monday around early noon, so we were able to find a seat for two. We decided on trying the original flavour, since we always opted for Matcha and what better way than to try it at an iconic Korean café? 😌 I believe the flavours of Bingsoo that the café serves includes Red Bean, Mango, Strawberry, Oreo and Tiramisu.

 

How to Order, Setup of the Café and Price

The setup of LAB Bakery Café is similar to many cafés in Strathfield. The customers were required to pay after ordering and received a table number stand. I had ordered the Red Bean Bingsoo (Patbingsoo) or what I would call the ‘OG Bingsoo’. It was $14 for the regular size, which I believe was the size that we ordered 😅. 

 

Red Bean Bingsoo topped with red beans, vanilla ice-cream,
mini mochi pieces, condensed milk and
injeolmi (soybean) powder 😋

Bingsoo Presentation 

I loved how the Red Bean Bingsoo was placed in a stainless-steel bowl. It appealed to me because it had a sense of authenticity and seeing the frost created by the cold Bingsoo outside the bowl was oddly satisfying 😌. The bowl was filled with fine desiccated milk Bingsoo (as mentioned in my previous 'What is Bingsoo?' post. It was loaded (yes, loaded!) with red beans, topped with a scoop of vanilla ice-cream and mini mochi pieces. The finishing point of this Bingsoo was the sprinkle of injeolmi (soybean) powder and a drizzle of condensed milk. 

 

Bingsoo Taste

I was excited to try the Red Bean Bingsoo at the café. It looked so original and authentic with its presentation. I rather enjoyed the first bite. The flavour of the milk Bingsoo was immaculately enhanced by the sweetness of the condensed milk and the vanilla ice-cream. Whereas, the injeolmi (soybean powder) provided a subtle savoury flavour to the Bingsoo. The mochi had a nice chewy texture to it that contrasted the softness of the other ingredients.

 

I had the second bite (I promise, I won’t go through every bite 😂) with the red beans and I actually preferred this type of red beans on the Bingsoo. It was in its whole bean form and sweetened 👌. However, the milk Bingsoo melted way too fast. My friend and I were halfway through and the milk Bingsoo had already melted ☹️ 

 

Although I really did prefer this type of red beans on the Bingsoo, I underestimated the meaning of ‘Red Bean Bingsoo’ to a certain extent 😅. I assumed there would be a generous scoop of red beans on the Bingsoo, but it was loaded with it 🙁. My friend who is an adventurous eater was a little bit fazed about the amount of red beans provided on the Bingsoo. The red beans covered half of the bowl and seemed never ending, as it continued to sink down in the puddle of melted Bingsoo 😦. 

 

This is all based on my personal opinion, so if you are a huge fan of red beans, I would recommend the ‘Red Bean Bingsoo’. Otherwise, next time if I were to visit the café again, I would opt for a different flavour of Bingsoo 😅. 

 

Bingsoo Rating 

This Bingsoo rating will be out of 5 stars based on my personal preferences and experience 😏. I will outline the common attributes and quality that I look for in Bingsoo and rate it.

Bingsoo Flavour: ⭐️⭐️⭐️ /5
The milk Bingsoo is good with the addition of the condensed milk and injeolmi (soybean) powder because it added depth to the flavour. However, without the sweetness from the condensed milk and vanilla ice-cream, the milk Bingsoo itself would have tasted quite bland. 

 

Bingsoo Presentation: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ /5
I was really impressed by the presentation of the Bingsoo in the stainless-steel bowl because it looked authentic. I was also amazed by the colour foundation of the Bingsoo and how each ingredient stood out individually.

Bingsoo Ingredients: ⭐️⭐️.5 /5
I would have appreciated it if the amount of milk Bingsoo was slightly increased, as it was quite a limited amount to share between two people. I loved the drizzle of condensed milk and it would have been great if there was a little bit more of that too. Sorry! But the red beans were a tad too overpowering for me and may have affected my experience and rating😣.

Bingsoo Melting Point: ⭐️⭐️.25 /5
The milk Bingsoo melted a bit too fast for my liking😭.

LAB Bakery Café :
Address: 4 The Boulevarde, Strathfield NSW 2135

Opening Hours: 7am - 10pm (Opening hours are subject to change on the weekends - Please double check before visiting).

- Bingsoo Enthusiast - 😊