Birds of Paradise Gelato Boutique - Michelin Guide Ice Cream in East Coast

We usually think of full fledged mains when it comes to Michelin recommendations but Birds of Paradise is here to prove you wrong. Birds of Paradise Gelato Boutique is an artisanal gelato parlour that prides itself for using real, natural ingredients. While most ice cream places have a lingering smell of baked waffles, the source of that roasted and nutty smell coming from every BOP outlet is…the cones! Birds of Paradise have long been known for its freshly made cones, with a tinge of thyme that balances the sweetness of the cone waffle. Paired with their gelato, it is no wonder that there is a long snaking queue at their Katong outlet even without any seating area.

The design of each boutique is consistent, with all of them using a bold splash of pastel colours. It has become one of those mandatory instagram shots even before you dig into the dessert – the cone and gelato against the backdrop of their pretty parlours.

Even their ice cream flavours are pretty to look at! You can choose from 18 different flavours, with timeless classics being White Chrysanthemum, Pistachio, Strawberry Basil, Earl Grey and Lemongrass and more. As you can probably tell by now, these are not your usual gelato flavours being offered at typical gelato chains.

We went for their best sellers – White Chrysanthemum on a cone ($6) and a cup of Roasted Sesame ($5).

Roasted Sesame was like frozen tang yuan in a nutshell. It was really interesting because the milk somehow reminded me of the chewy skin of a tangyuan, and the sesame was just like the sesame filling commonly found in tangyuans. But the roasted aftertaste was apparent in each bite – aromatic, earthy and nutty as they claim. The sesame taste was quite light, and it didn’t get too overpowering even after we finished an entire scoop. I have a preference for refreshing flavours that are less intense but this passes off quite well as a post-lunch dessert.

To balance the Roasted Sesame, I deliberately picked White Chrysanthemum, a refreshing tea that I expect to be lighter and less creamy. However, I still found it a little too sweet and quite heavy on the milk. It was much like the Pokka Chrysanthemum we are all too familiar with. The floral notes however, were brought out strongly and the cacao nibs provided crunchiness with every bite. I took as much cone as I could to balance the sweetness and it was quite a perfect pairing as the slight savoury taste was a good complement to the gelato.

I am a huge fan of their cones and have come here repeatedly even though they have no seating area. They even have broken cone chips for sale so I can imagine that I am not the only fan around. The flavours can be quite a hit or miss sometimes depending on how adventurous you are but a good choice for dessert after the many famous foods in the area. Imagine a scoop of this mouth-watering gelato after the fiery 328 Katong Laksa!