Pastry Chef Quits Job To Care For Sick Mum, Now Sells Shiok Waffles At Chinatown Kiosk Take A Brè

Stepping away from professional kitchens as pastry sous chef

Not long ago, Shu Fen had a comfortable career as a pastry chef in fancier air-conditioned kitchens, working her way up to pastry sous chef. She spent nine years at Dimbulah Coffee before moving on to the now-defunct popular American brunch cafe Clinton Street Baking Company (where she used to make its signature pancakes) and later Maison Chisaka, a private French-Japanese pâtisserie. Her next career move was meant to take her further up the corporate ladder. Instead, a family tragedy changed everything.

Her mother had a nervous breakdown and fell ill after her dad passed away — Shu Fen had to quit her job to take care of her.

Stayed at home to take care of mum for a year

In 2023, Shu Fen’s father died after living with the effects of a stroke for six years. Throughout that period, her mother had been his sole caregiver.

His passing left a devastating impact on her mother both mentally and physically. “After my father passed away, my mum could not stay at home alone. She would have panic attacks,” Shu Fen, who is the youngest of three children, tells 8days.sg.

The family quickly realised someone needed to stay with her mother almost all the time. Since Shu Fen was earning less than her elder sister, they made the practical decision that she would be the one to leave her full-time job.

“I quit my pastry chef job and stayed home to take care of her for a year,” Shu Fen adds. She lives with her mother, elder sister and elder brother, a helper and a pet dog in a five-room HDB flat near her shop. 

In her free time, Shu Fen fulfilled the occasional cake order from friends and small events. Baking never really left her life, but returning to restaurant kitchens no longer felt possible, she says. Not when her mum is now also physically weaker.

She believes years of her mother caring for her late father, including physically supporting him after his stroke, aggravated an existing slipped disc injury. After he died, her mum became increasingly sedentary, spending much of her time at home watching television. “She wasn’t moving much, her legs ended up weakening and now she can’t walk on her own,” shares Shu Fen tearfully.

Why sell waffles?

Thankfully, after about a year, her mum’s mental health improved and a helper now looks after her while the family is at work.

After their mother’s condition stabilised, Shu Fen and her sister thought of starting a business together. But cafe rents were too high. Then, they stumbled upon a Facebook listing for this Chinatown kiosk. They decided to take the plunge to become entrepreneurs, especially since the stall was close to home and allowed Shu Fen to return quickly if her mother needed her.

The sisters decided to sell waffles because "the young and old love it, and you can eat it while walking".

Her baking makes people happy

Long before she became a pastry chef, Shu Fen already knew she enjoyed baking for people. The spark came during secondary school when she wanted to buy a birthday present for a friend. “I thought buying a present was too normal,” she recalls. While shopping at a supermarket, she spotted a boxed cake mix and decided to bake on a whim instead. “When I gave her the cake, she was so happy. The feeling was so good.”

She pursued a Higher Nitec in Pastry & Baking at ITE College West before beginning her career in cafes.

Despite working her way up to sous pastry chef, she tells 8days.sg that being in management never appealed to her. “You need to manage people,” she says with a laugh. “I don’t know how to scold people when they do something wrong”.

Their shop’s moniker, Take A Bre, came from an everyday observation. While walking around Chinatown, she kept hearing people tell one another to “take a break” from the heat. Her sister later ran the phrase through ChatGPT, and funnily enough, AI shortened it to a quirkier and catchier name that they settled on for their biz.

Carefully developed recipe

Unlike many takeaway waffle stalls that rely on ready-made mixes, Shu Fen spent months developing her own batter.

The inspiration came from an unexpected place: at a hotpot restaurant in Malaysia. Shi Fen had ordered a waffle for dessert and was struck by how crisp it was. “In Singapore, most [heartland bakery-style] waffles are soft,” she says. “After I ate the crispy one, I couldn’t go back [to the softer ones].”

Each waffle cooled with a fan to crisp up its exterior

Together with her sister, she began testing recipes repeatedly until they found the texture they wanted: crispy on the outside with a light, chewy interior. The waffles are cooled briefly by being placed up close to a fan after coming off the iron, allowing its exterior to firm up quickly.

“My last drawn salary was one year ago”

The kiosk is no-frills. Most of the equipment was bought second-hand, while the counter came from IKEA.

Rent comes up to about $3,000 a month, and around $3,400 after utilities. On most days, Take A Bre records about $150 in sales and sometimes less than $100, meaning there are months when the biz does not break even.

Nearly closed shop due to poor sales

“Sometimes we also lose money,” adds Shu Fen matter-of-factly. Her elder sister, who helps out at the kiosk on Sundays on her days off (she declines to disclose her full-time job), occasionally dips into her savings to cover the shortfall. “When it rains, the streets are empty and we will have no sales.”

Shufen shares that she doesn’t take a salary, but uses whatever little profits there are from the biz for her daily expenses, like taking the bus and hawker centre meals.

"My last official drawn salary was one year ago [at my former job]," she says. She contemplated closing the kiosk since the future looked bleak.

Sudden surge in sales after being promoted by Chinatown Biz Association

Things took a turn for the better when the Chinatown Business Association recently featured Take A Bre in two promotional videos online. Before the publicity, Shu Fen says there were days when she “couldn’t even sell one” of her now-popular kunafa waffles. Today, daily sales have inched up — she even earned $500 once. The turnaround convinced her to give the biz another shot.

Would she go back to working in more glamorous cafes and patisseries? "Actually, I really enjoy what I am doing now," she tells 8days.sg. "Because I can immediately see people's expressions as they eat my waffles — especially when it brings a smile to their faces," she muses.

Take A Bre’s menu features 18 types of waffles, and also Hong Kong-style egglets, including a decadent Ferrero Rocher one with ice cream. The latter wasn’t available when 8days.sg popped by, but here’s what we tried:

Kaya & Butter, $3.50 (8 DAYS Pick!)

Shu Fen’s simplest waffle is also one of her best. She’s tight-lipped about her batter mix, only revealing she uses a blend of different flours. It’s cooked until deeply golden before undergoing a brief blast of wind from the fan to cool down. The result? A brittle shell that shatters lightly, giving way to an airy, chewy centre and a lemak coconutty fragrance. It’s a yummy cross between a crispier cafe-style waffle and doughier heartland bakery one.

The kaya isn’t house-made, but it’s a good-quality supplier-bought version with a fragrant pandan aroma. Sandwiched within are two small slabs of butter (from New Zealand brand Anchor) that adds a welcome creamy saltiness to the waffle. Like kaya toast with a fun twist.

Pistachio Kunafa, $5 (8 DAYS Pick!)

Although Shu Fen doesn’t make her own pistachio cream, this is pleasantly nutty and thankfully not tooth-achingly sweet. The crisp kataifi (shredded dough) added a solid crunch that makes this waffle a crowd-pleaser.

Nutella, $3.50 (8 DAYS Pick!)

One of Take A Bre's bestsellers. Shu Fen says some customers even ask to see the Nutella tub before ordering, just to make sure they're getting the real deal. The rich chocolate-hazelnut spread melts into the warm, crisp waffle, making this a safe but satisfying choice.

Chicken Floss & Mayo, $5

Think old-school chicken burgers slathered with mayo, minus the fillet but with a generous blanket of chicken floss instead. The sweet-savoury combination is comforting and familiar. Pretty tasty.

Truffle, $5

Earthy truffle paste lends this waffle a pronounced perfume and savoury profile. It was a little too overwhelming for our palate.

Take A Bre is at Unit 11 Trengganu St, S058950 Open daily 12.30pm-9.30pm. More info via Instagram.

Photos: Kelvin Chia