Xiao Fu Snack Store (小福饼家) is a popular Johor Bahru-based brand specialising in traditional handmade Chinese pastries, dried delicacies, and festive treats. Famous for its freshly baked goods and nostalgic snacks, it is highly regarded for both everyday snacking and authentic Malaysian gifting.
Xiao Fu has expanded rapidly across Johor, with its flagship store located at Jalan Tan Hiok Nee (directly opposite Hiap Joo Bakery). Other prominent branches include a shop in Taman Century and kiosks in shopping malls like Sutera Mall, AEON Mall Bukit Indah, KSL City Mall, and also AEON Mall Kulai.
The Chicken Siew Bao (脆皮鸡肉烧包) — pork-filling version available too — has a golden shine on the crust that seems unlikely the result of using a simple egg wash but more from honey / caramel with a sticky feel. Topped with white sesame seeds, the crispy layered crust is filled with tender shreds of chicken meat that is low in sweetness. The ratio of crust to filling is just nice too giving the pastry a well-balance crispy and tender texture.
Xiao Fu has both sweet and savoury tau sar peah (mung bean biscuits), differentiated by the red markings on the flaky layered crusts. The Sweet Tau Sar Peah (甜豆沙饼) gives off a nice aroma from the mung bean paste filling that is not too dry and mild-sweet. The Savoury Tau Sar Peah (咸豆沙饼) has a subtle savoury flavour in the mung bean paste. The filling seems slightly drier than that of the Sweet Tau Sar Peah due to the natural property of salt.
Xiao Fu’s Wife Cake (老婆饼) is pretty thick and has a soft layered crust topped with white sesame seeds. The candied winter melon paste filling contains coarse winter melon bits that gives the chewy pastry additional crunchy texture. Instead of being just a sweet pastry, the wife cake carries a hint of savouriness that makes it sweet-savoury and a great satisfaction when munching on the thick pastry.
The Husband Cake (老公饼), on the other hand, is topped with black sesame seeds on similar soft layered crust. The pastry is filled with red bean paste and mung bean paste. Similarly, munching on the thick, mild-sweet pastry will produce that slight hint of savouriness in the mouth. There are coarse winter melon bits too in the red bean paste that give the husband biscuit similar crunchy texture.
Xiao Fu has two types of pastries that look very similar — both are thinner than the Wife Cake / Husband Cake and with perforated lines but one with white sesame seeds and other with black sesame seeds — but contain different fillings. They have flaky layered crusts and break easily.
The Big Chicken Floss Cake (大鸡松饼), with white sesame seeds, is filled with chicken floss that gives the pastry a sweet-savoury flavour. The Sweet-Savoury Tau Sar Peah (甜咸豆沙饼), with black sesame seeds, contains savoury mung bean paste and sweet red bean paste, giving the pastry a different kind of sweet-savoury flavour. Both offers different taste experiences from the others.
To give the pastries, including the soft-crust Wife Cake and Husband Cake, some crispiness in their crusts, especially after several hours from time of purchase, heat them up without re-baking them, then wait for them to cool down before eating — well, this is common knowledge and applies to all traditional Chinese pastries.
Xiao Fu offers another option for traditional pastries with different taste profiles and textures from other traditional bakeries. Try them and pick your favourites.
Social Media:
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Address (Main):
67, Jalan Tan Hiok Nee, Bandar Johor Bahru, 80000 Johor Bahru, Johor, Malaysia
Opening Hours:
7:30am to 5pm | Daily
How to Get There:
Take a walk or “Plan B”. Read JB Bus: To Tan Hiok Nee Heritage Walk.
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