A new Chinatown bakery might encourage you to break your New Year’s resolutions.
At The Little One, which opened last month at 150 E. Broadway, husband-and-wife bakers Eddie Zheng and Olivia Leung put their spin on Japanese desserts.
The Chinatown natives attended the Institute of Culinary Education together, with Zheng, 25, going on to work at wd~50, The Elm, Café Clover and La Sirena, while Leung, 26, has worked with Dominique Ansel and at South Korean bakery Tous Les Jours.
The Little One was inspired by their travels through Asia.
“What we really liked about Asia is that they have a lot of different types of ingredients that we could play with,” Zheng said. “There’s not many people in New York that are introduced to it yet, other than going to a fine-dining restaurant.”
The couple was particularly inspired by the dedication to and quality of the desserts that they saw in Japan.
“We brought back some Japanese influences — the base of Japanese desserts — and put in our own culinary experiences,” Zheng said of the menu at The Little One. “We still keep the roots of the Japanese desserts.”
The Little One currently specializes in three types of sweets: dorayaki, monaka ice cream sandwiches and shaved ice.
The 18-seat spot also serves cold brew hojicha, spiced apple ginger tea, matcha lattes and malted hot chocolate.
Once the space gets an oven, the couple plans to add more items to the menu, like tarts and cakes.
Zheng walked us through The Little One’s menu:
