Food Picks: Beat the heat with Sakanoue’s kakigori

SINGAPORE – When I am foolhardy enough to go to Japan in summer, I gauge the heat by the number of kakigori I need to have each day to cool down. The record is three. In the span of four hours.

Singapore is entering the hot season. I can do a kakigori count here too. Japanese brand Sakanoue has set up shop at Drips, a 62-seat cafe in Tiong Bahru. It came about because Drips founder Jessica Chen, 47, and her son would queue for its kakigori every day when in Tokyo.

Sakanoue founder Tomoyasu Machiyama, 48, started the brand in 2012 and has a store in Akihabara and another in Kuala Lumpur.

For starters, there are six variations on the menu. What makes the kakigori worth eating is the fluffy texture of the ice, shaved using machines imported from Japan.

The all-important ice comes in clear blocks from Kuramoto Ice. The Japanese brand, founded in 1923 in Kanazawa, opened a Singapore outpost in early 2025. Sauces are made in-house with ingredients imported from Japan.

For looks and taste, the Sakanoue Berry Cute Panda ($18) delivers. The berry drizzle is sweet-tart, to counter the camembert cream espuma and camembert sauce. Texture comes from cookie crumbles. Just to remind you this is dessert, there is also a drizzle of raw honey from Yamanashi prefecture.

The Lemon Mascarpone ($17.50) is my favourite, mostly because of the bright lemon sauce. Digging in, I realise how finely tuned the balance is. The citrus tempers the mascarpone espuma and cheese sauce, and a dusting of cocoa adds a hint of bitterness to counter the sweet meringue cookies. This one is for the grown-ups.

They might also like Blazing Fire Cheese ($19.80), torched at the table with much ceremony. Camembert espuma and cheese sauce, a little of that raw honey and toasty nuts make this a salty-sweet treat.

Exclusive to Singapore is Signature Blackforest ($19.80), to complement Drips’ Signature Blackforest Cake ($12.80 a slice). It is a riot of brandied cherries, cream cheese, sour cherry, chocolate and tea caramel sauces, with cinnamon crumble cookies supplying crunch. I suggest pouring the accompanying brandy liqueur over each spoonful, so it is not lost in the mountain of ice.

These well-constructed desserts layer fillings and sauces, so the diner gets spoonfuls of goodies anywhere he or she digs. Nothing is more disappointing than to find just ice in the core of the kakigori.

Where: 01-05, 82 Tiong Poh Road
MRT: Tiong Bahru
Open: 10am to 10pm (weekdays), 9am to 10pm (weekends), kakigori available from 1 to 9pm daily
Info: @dripsbakerycafe (Instagram)