he’s been keeping ’em guessing, has zumbo. adriano zumbo cafe chocolat was originally scheduled to open on 11 october, then 18 october, and then 21 october, and then… well i wasn’t actually keeping track — really! — but it seemed like it was on the verge of finally opening two days from now. no, now. no, now!

so, tomorrow, apparently. when i popped by the space last friday, a smiley girl was polishing the the glass-topped counter to beyond shiny, and it all smelt like varnish and cleaning products. hanging above the counter were three enormous liquorice humbugs masquerading as ceiling lamps. tops.

back at the main store, i ticked a couple more cakes off the list: the one named “you name it…” had mango mascarpone creme topped with lychee jelly surrounded by caramel mousse punctuated with pieces of minty chocolate. huh.

the kid, initially excited by the thought of mango cake, ate the threads of white chocolate off the top, and then quickly lost interest when she encountered the moussey layer. “is it too alcoholic?” i asked. “is it too wanky?” chimed another voice at the table.

well, it wasn’t alcoholic. and no, not wanky either, although i did prefer the components eaten separately rather than all together (and the fresh, fruity bits over the others).

which totally wasn’t the case with the tuk tuk nothing. two rounds of coconut dacquoise sandwiching coconut pandan mousse and caramelised exotic fruit compote. “what are the fruit?” i’d asked the counterboy earlier, but he couldn’t tell. turns out it was pineapple, and mango i think, sticky sweet and delicious. the edges of this big wheel were encased in white chocolate and toasted coconut, and the mouthful of crack and crunch and crumbly and creamy was blissful indeed.

we came to these cakes after a big meatfest dinner up the street, which meant half a tuk tuk nothing left over for another day. it suited me just fine; i would eat this again and again.

although i suppose the next cake i get had better be the tanzanie — five forms of chocolate (and a vanilla brulee) in one slice.