After flourishing as a home-based business and growing into a brick-and-mortar eatery, Café Lilac by Whisking Bakes is calling it a day after five years of operation. Taking to Instagram, its owner Chanel – who first started experimenting on her now-famous orh nee tarts after losing her flight attendant job during the Covid-19 period – cites burnout as one of the many factors leading to this eventual closure.
“The past five years have been filled with amazing memories, proud achievements and more growth than I could ever have imagined…But to be honest, running this all alone has been exhausting. I haven’t felt excitement or passion in a while and I feel ready to take a step back to focus on new dreams,” Chanel shares online.
Fans of Café Lilac’s taro burnt cheesecake ($8.50), taro pork floss toast set ($9.90), matcha taro latte ($7.50) and other yammilicious treats have until May 2026 for their final visits, as that’s when the café’s lease expires.
“It isn’t an easy decision as this has been a huge part of my life and identity, but I want to be brave and follow my heart,” the post continues.
There’s one sliver of hope in all of this: the owner is open to letting someone passionate take over the business. So, if she does manage to find the right person to carry on the café’s legacy, Café Lilac and all its crowd favourites will live to see another day. Interested contenders can get in touch via Instagram DMs.
For now, you can still drop by Café Lilac at Crawford Lane – and spend your CDC Vouchers while at it. Do also stay tuned for Café Lilac's final round of seasonal launches including taro snowskin mooncakes (ongoing), taro Christmas goodies, and the beloved Chinese New Year tarts that first put it on Singapore’s dessert map.
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