Mr. Bucket Chocolaterie: Artisanal Chocolates in Singapore with Unique Asian Flavours
Inspired by Roald Dahl’s whimsical children’s book, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Mr. Bucket Chocolaterie at Upper Thomson interprets the story through its unique chocolate creations. Picking off from the end of the book, founder Jerome Penafort says that Charlie takes over the chocolate factory from Willy Wonka and opens Mr. Bucket where he offers an array of artisanal chocolates in Singapore; from bon bons and chocolate bars to iced and hot drinking chocolate and chocolate liqueur.
The idea of Mr. Bucket struck Jerome when he visited a cacao farm in the Philippines in July 2019 and another in Panchor, Malacca, Malaysia. He saw the need to shine a spotlight on Asian chocolate, which people often assume don’t match up to its South American and African counterparts.
Using only cacao sustainably sourced within Asia, Mr. Bucket showcases Asian chocolates in very creative ways, especially with their uniqle flavour combinations and incorporation of local favourites such as Mala, Soy Sauce, Singapore Sling, Salted Egg Yolk.
If you are not the adventurous type, there are also classic flavours such as Sea Salt Caramel, Matcha, and Coffee Hazelnut. In fact, the variety is pretty amazing and you are sure to find something that indulges your fancy.
The neighbourhood retail store offers over 25 flavours of chocolate bon bons and treats on display. More excitingly, Mr. Bucket’s kitchen is in full view so you can watch the Oompa Loompas at work! Yes, you can watch the skilful chocolatiers going through the process of tempering the chocolate, air-brushing the artful designs, and hand wrapping each chocolate bar individually. No bon bon is alike as each artisanal chocolate treat is made in-house.
Local Collaborations
Mr. Bucket also works together with local brands to create uniquely Singaporean flavoured bons bons. The one that started it all was the first collaboration with gourmet snack company The Golden Duck with which they created the Speckled! Salted Egg Yolk chocolate bon bon made using 72% dark chocolate from Sungai Ruan, Malaysia.
My personal favourite is the Double Soy Sauce Caramel chocolate bon bon made using 64% dark chocolate from Panchor, Malaysia. This is in conjunction with the famous Kwong Woh Hing soy sauce, sometimes hailed as the best soy sauce in the world! Oozing from the centre is the rich umami flavour of both dark and light soy sauce incorporated into a caramel and paired with a malty dark chocolate; each bite is a perfect balance of sweet and savoury. Also, a special mention has to be made of the beautiful calligraphy-like design on the chocolate bon bon shell.
Another unexpected pairing which I couldn’t get enough of was the Mala Mild Spicy - not for the faint hearted. A delicious combination of velvety white and dark chocolate with hints of aromatic mala spice. What a treat for the senses! This special spice mix is sourced from local mala eatery, HaoZhangJi in Tradehub 21.
Other collaborations include the use of Clipper Tea’s earl grey tea, a chocolate liqueur with Compendium spirits, and even a body butter made from cacao butter with local skincare brand Oasis:skin!
If you have a soft spot for our unofficial local cocktail, try the Tropical: Singapore Sling chocolate bon bons, made in collaboration with local marmalde maker Straits Preserves. This boozy bon bon incorporates Singapore Sling marmalade, juicy bits of maraschino cherries and fruity pineapple Cointreau milk chocolate ganache.
Another local collaboration has been with micro-distillery The Brass Lion Distillery with whom they have created three chocolate bon bon flavours Spirited: White Pea made with Butterfly Pea Gin with hints of Lavender and an Earl Grey finish; Spirited: Dark Pahit, a citrusy treat made with Pahit Gin featuring decadent warm spiced dark chocolate and lemon caramel; and Spirited: Milk Juniper, a fruity and earthy Juniper forward chocolate made with Singapore Dry Gin and paired with notes of blackcurrant.
Even the wooden chocolate trays used to display the chocolate bon bons have been made using the cut-offs from local Angsana trees used by local woodworkers Roger & Sons for their furniture.
Customise your order with build-a-box where you can choose 6 flavours for S$19 or 12 flavours for S$32.
The Artisanal Chocolates
What else can you get besides chocolate bon bons? Three types of chocolate bars - 45%, 64% and 80%. The chocolate bars have intentionally been made really thin so the flavour is released quickly in your mouth and you taste the nuances of each bean-to-bar chocolate. For dark chocolate fans, the Single Origin – 80% Anaimalai Dark made from cacao sourced from Anaimalai Hills estate in Tamil Nadu, India, is a real treat.
There’s also Drinking Chocolate Kit to make your own hot chocolate. Their Signature Hot Cocoa is so deliciously thick and creamy, in my opinion, it’s good enough to be used as a fondue!
Mr. Bucket will also soon be launching their festive chocolates box for Christmas. This will include a reinterpretation of the classic Black Forest cake using kirsch-soaked Guinette cherries and a luscious milk chocolate kirsch ganache in a brittle dark chocolate shell.
Another flavour on the seasonal box will be the vegan Mullled Wine chocolate bon bon with a red ruby and gold lustred chocolate shell that looks and tastes just like Christmas. The bon bon starts with Cabernet Sauvignon infused with cinnamon, cloves, star anise and orange peel. This concoction is then reduced to create a jam-like pâte de fruit in the centre of a mulled wine dark chocolate ganache.
Design Elements
Interestingly enough, a lot of thought has been put into the details of the retail store. Bon bon design elements have been incorporated throughout the store; you can see the shape in their hanging lights above the display, on their floors, in the rounded end of their table, in their cupboards in the kitchen, and more.
With your orders, you can also choose a box with a colour of your choice - cream, orange, sand, or mustard. These make a great gifts!
The Chocolate Making Process
For those of you interested, the chocolate making process starts with tempering, a crucial step that involves getting the melted chocolate to the right temperature. By warming the chocolate to 45°C to 50°C, the existing chocolate crystals are broken down. The crystals are then reformed at temperatures of 30°C to 35°C to achieve the ideal consistency that will result in the perfect snap when you bite into the final chocolate product.
When tempering is done, the melted chocolate is poured into chocolate bon bon mould trays which are then placed on a vibrating shelf for 30 seconds to remove all air bubbles in the chocolate. The melted chocolate is poured away, leaving a thin layer of chocolate lining every individual bon bon mould. The trays are chilled for 30 minutes, after which the chocolate bon bon shells are created.
Each bon bon shell is filled with a selection of Mr. Bucket’s house-made ganache, caramels, or sweet fillings. Visit the store to find out more!
Address: 23 Sin Ming Road, Singapore 570023
double soy sauce caramel
mala mild spicy
salted egg yolk
mulled wine
signature hot cacao