Fankery
Walk past York Street in Newmarket and you can’t miss Cathy Fan’s signature purple bakery. The space which was once a parking ticket booth has been transformed into the vibrant purple hues of Fankery.
The space is small but has all you need—just the essentials for coffee and cake. But it’s not just any coffee and cake. Enter the cosy rice paper-coloured walls and you’ll be greeted with their cute purple La Marzocco coffee machine (and a drinks list of ube matcha dreams). Next to it, a fridge filled with allll the classic Fankery mochi cheesecakes by the slice are presented, like jewels on display in a glass case.
With a book on Monet’s watercolours, soft green hydrangeas and dried blooms dotted around neatly stacked cubes of lilac purple and olive green toned cake boxes, the space feels even cosier as we watch Cathy slice up a signature purple-green ombré crepe cake. The cakes, like the decor, are minimalist and chic—a signature Fankery vibe (and a nod to Cathy’s favourite colours since childhood).
It hasn’t always been about baking for Cathy. Going to university at 16, she graduated in Engineering with Honours and then moved up the corporate ladder into project management. She’s also a qualified personal trainer and was, once upon a time, involved with competitive bodybuilding. During Covid lockdown, Cathy turned to baking after battling health issues. Inspired by her parents’ hard working ethic, what started as a way to create delicious things to satisfy her cravings became the beginnings of Fankery which would evolve into two years working the market circuits (always to impressive queues) and, eventually, her first ever permanent bricks and mortar store right here in Newmarket.
I remember being introduced to Cathy by a mutual friend at the Takutai Square markets and it was there where I had my first transcendental mochi cheesecake experience. The contrast between chewy mochi and soft cheesecake fillings, the creaminess carrying the aromatic flavours—it’d convert even the cheesecake non-believers.
Mochi-filled burnt Basque cheesecakes are Fankery's signature, (Picture a layer of mochi with just the right amount of bite melting away with the creamy cheesecake interior.) The intentionally burnt exterior offsets the sweetness, adding a hint of caramelised sugar. Surprisingly, it’s not too sweet. Flavours range from black sesame, earl grey and ube to limited edition runs like their current rose-scented baklava which is reminiscent of Turkish delight.
Other treats on offer include chiffon cakes with layers of crepe and mochi—a layered textural party for the eyes as well as the tastebuds. Pillowy soft chiffon cake is layered with crepe, then comes the mochi, a brief spring and bounce which makes each bite even more exciting. Classic Asian bakery flavours like ube and pandan give it a grassy-coconut aroma, with a nutty warmth to it. It’s garnished with a refreshing cube of coconut jelly.
If you can’t quite finish a whole slice (but I won’t judge if you do), you can opt for a smaller bite in the form of mochi-filled cookies for that simultaneous chew and crunch, crispy topped polo buns, and shokupan so soft you’ll want to squish it before you devour the whole loaf. Don’t leave without nabbing a mochi-filled tart—and if you see the one topped with a mini crème caramel, drop everything and get it because it’s giving yum cha egg tart vibes, but better.
There are a lot of delicate flavours in Asian baking, yet Cathy is super innovative in making these flavours shine in a modern and exciting way—and the same goes for the drink options. Aside from Red Rabbit coffee, they’ve got a bangin’ strawberry matcha and Fankery specialities like their ube matcha, peanut hojicha and black sesame tangyuan latte (super nostalgic of black sesame and mochi puddings from my childhood). Also must-trys are two new additions a.k.a Fankery coffee— sparkling americano sweetened with a skewer of lychees, and their salted yuzu Mont Blanc for a fragrant citrus kick.
I’m so excited in the potential of this little purple box. To Cathy, Fankery isn’t just a bakery—it’s now a space to celebrate the journey so far and to share it with the wider community. It’s a reflection of the endless support and love from her family who have helped her make it possible day in day out, rain or shine from the market and pop-up days. It’s a purple beacon to inspire those to chase what makes them happy, to freak out and do it anyway—with a Fankery coffee and mochi cheesecake cake in hand.
Words: Vicki Young | Image credit: Patty Lagera (@pattyinplaces / @pattylagera)