Dona Manis Cake Shop: An Old School Bakery in Singapore Popular for Banana Pies and Chocolate Tarts

This article is part of the Singapore Food Trip 2024 series. Check out the installments in this series: Maxwell Food Centre (Hawker Centre) | Hill Street Tai Hwa Pork Noodle (MICHELIN-Starred Bak Chor Mee Hawker) | Mr and Mrs Mohgan Super Crispy Roti Prata | Song Fa Bak Kut Teh (Teochew-Style Pork Rib Soup) | Tian Tian Hainanese Chicken Rice

In the midst of modern pastry shops popping left and right, it’s refreshing to see old school bakeries stand their ground. In Singapore, Dona Manis Cake Shop is one.

Located in Katong Shopping Centre, Dona Manis Cake Shop is a bakery popular for their Banana Pie, Chocolate Tart, and other pastries. It was founded in 1992 by the late Tan Tieow Thong and Soh Tho Lang a.k.a. “Auntie Peng”.

After our trip to Singapore, I learned that Auntie Peng, the main baker of Dona Manis, left to set up her own store—Auntie Peng Banana Pie—next door! If I only knew about this during my visit, I would’ve tried both! (To learn about this feud, check out Channel News Asia’s story on it here).

Anyway, we went to try their legendary Banana Pie. Its filling has a nice banana flavor and isn’t too sweet, and it’s literally covered with crushed almonds which give texture to the pie. The crust is buttery and super crumbly.

Do you want to know how super crumbly it is? I picked it up to take photos of it. But just before I tapped my smartphone’s camera button, it started crumbling down and off to the floor! Fortunately, a staff of Dona Manis saw my misfortune and replaced my slice of pie for free. How kind of them!

Banana Pie (SGD3.50/slice; SGD10/3 slices; SGD33/pie)

Another bestseller is their Chocolate Tart. Its chocolate filling is rich and smooth, and the crust is crumbly. It also served chilled.

Both the Banana Pie and the Chocolate Tarts are good. But if I can only buy one item from Dona Manis, I’d rather go for the latter!

My wife tried the Buttercream Horn. But she said that it leaves more to be desired.

I’ve been wanting to visit Dona Manis Cake Shop since I watch about it in YouTube, and I’m happy to have tried it finally. Their Banana Pie and Chocolate Tarts are really good. Next time I’m in the area, I might drop by and try other items (and also try Auntie Peng). I highly recommend Dona Manis to you!

Address: #B1-93 Katong Shopping Centre, 865 Mountbatten Rd., Singapore | Operating Hours: Tuesday-Sunday, 10AM-5PM | Contact No.: +65 6440-7688 | Facebook | Instagram