Taiwan Bake Culture's star opening in Brunei

What’s even more out of the ordinary were the owners of the store – the nation’s very own international celebrity Wu Chun, Asia’s Got Talent Judge Vanness Wu and Taiwanese singer and actor Calvin Chen – who, with the exception of another owner President of Taiwanese Bakery Association Yves Chiu Shih Feng, launched the bakery by breaking baguettes outside the store.

Joining them in officiating  Bake Culture were  Legislative Council member Yang Berhormat Pehin Kapitan Lela Diraja Dato Paduka Awang Goh King Chin and the guest of honour, Deputy Minister of Ministry Culture, Youth and Sports Datin Paduka Hjh Adina Othman. The opening was witnessed by invited guests, members of the media and fans of the artistes, who  flew in the nation from as far as China.

The launch was followed by a cutting of the cake and a tour of the bakery shop, which makes 150 varieties of bread, pastries and cakes that take inspiration from different countries around the world.

Bake Culture Marketing Manager  Jonathon Bong shared with The Brunei Times that the shop does not only  offer breads and cakes.

“We want to bake a healthy culture by sharing with people the  rich bread history   around the world and of course, we only use  quality ingredients.”

Among the ingredients used at the store is a France-based flour.

Meanwhile, Datin Hjh Adina  said  that one of the most  interesting  highlights of the store is that it connects bakery with art. It offers more than something to eat as it requires creativity and it’s not easy to bake a nice product.

As for Wu Chun, it’s for his love of  bread and discoveries during his travels that inspired him to open the store.

“I’ve wanted to open a bakery since  seven years ago. Every time I visit a  country, I take a picture of a bun. I want to bring the  best bakery to Brunei and give the citizens   the chance to try world-class bakery. We also  hope that they will enjoy the products and the environment,” he said.

The store is divided into three storeys: the ground floor where the baked goods are sold and  a lounge area on the first floor. The top floor, on the other hand, is  a kitchen dedicated to the store’s award-winning pastry chef from Taiwan.

When asked about future plans- Wu chun calmly explained that is better to keep the pace slow.

“We want take it one step a time. We don’t want to rush as we want to assure that the quality of the product is consistent, only then we might consider opening new branches.”

After the launch, fans  were given a chance to meet and greet their favourite artistes, where the three took turns to hand out a bagful of Bake Culture goodies and their autographs on postcards.