Cronut King Leaves Hong Kong

Ansel at the Harbour City store in Dec 2019

Another eatery is shutting down in Hong Kong after four years in business. Called Dang Wen Li, it is the Chinese name for star pastry chef Dominique Ansel, best known for his creation of the cronut, a cross between a donut and croissant.

However, unlike his bakery in New York City where a new flavour is unveiled each month, Dang Wen Li only had the cronut available once a year in Hong Kong.

The classic pastries and HK-inspired cakes

Ansel came for the opening of the first location in Harbour City in December 2019, a fun small cafe that was very Instagram-friendly and was easy to get to from the Star Ferry in Tsim Sha Tsui. Most memorable was the hot chocolate with the marshmallow flower that "blossomed" as soon as it was placed in the hot drink.

The dessert creations were linked very closely to Hong Kong, with a cake that was shaped like the lemon tea juice box, but is actually Earl Grey bergamot cake, a "pineapple bun" that was actually a coconut pineapple passionfruit cake, and a raspberry mousse Japanese cheesecake that looks like a package of haw flakes.

In explaining the Hong Kong-inspired cakes, Ansel said he wanted to create "pastries that are inspired by the cultures and traditions of Hong Kong". 

However, they seemed quite gimmicky and I wondered how long they would last. In the beginning there were long lines at the store and the one at IFC that quickly opened soon after. And then a lot of money was poured into the flagship store on Queen's Road Central with its high ceiling and lots of seating.

Guava mousse cake for Christmas 2020

To entice people to stay longer, the newest location offered savoury dishes, including sandwiches and even a char siu egg croissant, and borscht soup. But people really came for the desserts.

One Christmas I ordered a guava mousse cake that had gorgeous red swirls much like a massive peppermint candy. Sadly it was only offered for one year. 

The gimmicky products continued to grow, and would include pecan and apple pies for Thanksgiving, and even a rectangular loaf of bread that was made with layers like a croissant and seasoned with sea salt. 

Meanwhile the viennoiserie (traditional pastries) did quite well, from croissants to pain au chocolat.

After I left Hong Kong, there are only two locations now -- the one in Central and another in Pacific Place in Admiralty.

Dang Wen Li is encouraging anyone holding its vouchers to use them before it closes at the end of January. It's too bad the bakery didn't even last for Chinese New Year and Valentine's Day... it's the cruel reality of business that it's got to cut its losses.

One wonders how the local partner, Upper East Holdings is doing. It also brought Sugarfina, Lady M and Tiffany Cafe to Hong Kong.