Old Seng Choong (OSC) is a Singaporean heritage-inspired bakery and confectionery brand established in 2016 by pastry chef Daniel Tay. The brand specialises in traditional and contemporary baked goods, confectionery, festive treats, and Singapore-inspired flavours. It was created as a tribute to Tay’s late father and to Seng Choong Confectionery, the family bakery that operated in Singapore from 1965. 1

The central concept of the brand is to reinterpret Singapore’s culinary heritage through modern baking techniques and packaging. Its product range includes cookies, cakes, pastries, festive confectionery, mooncakes, and gift sets, often incorporating flavours associated with Singapore’s multicultural food culture. The company’s stated promise is to “Savour Singapore heritage in every bite.” 2

Seng Choong Confectionery — 1965

The origins of Old Seng Choong trace back to Seng Choong Confectionery, a family bakery associated with Daniel Tay’s parents. Established in 1965, the confectionery became a familiar name in the Marine Parade/Katong area. According to Old Seng Choong, the bakery was known for old-school favourites such as butter cakes, Black Forest cakes, and apple pies. 3

The business held significant importance for the Tay family, as Daniel Tay’s father was a baker and confectioner who worked in the trade for more than 30 years. This environment played a crucial role in inspiring Daniel Tay’s eventual career in baking.

Closure of the original bakery

Seng Choong Confectionery eventually closed in the 1990s. While sources vary slightly on the precise year, with some indicating operations until 1996, the closure of his father’s bakery became a pivotal part of the narrative behind the creation of Old Seng Choong.

Creation of Old Seng Choong — 2016

In 2016, Daniel Tay launched Old Seng Choong as an online business. Rather than simply recreating the original bakery, the new brand was conceived as a means of preserving memories of Singapore’s food culture while adapting them for contemporary consumers.

The name “Old Seng Choong” deliberately references the family’s former confectionery. This makes the brand unique in that its “heritage” positioning is not merely a marketing theme but is directly connected to the founder’s family history and his father’s profession. Tay has described his move toward traditional Singaporean flavours as partly motivated by a desire to promote his own culinary culture. After spending much of his career working with European-style pastries, he became increasingly interested in Singapore’s traditional desserts and flavours. 4

Daniel Tay is the founder and creative force behind Old Seng Choong. A Singaporean pastry chef and entrepreneur, Tay previously founded Bakerzin and subsequently Cat & the Fiddle, a specialist cheesecake business.

Tay’s culinary background combines Asian and European pastry traditions. His early professional training included baking studies in Bangkok, followed by extensive experience in the Singapore food and beverage industry.

His approach to Old Seng Choong is based on the philosophy that heritage food should evolve rather than remain frozen in the past. This is evident in products that take familiar Singaporean flavours and place them into formats such as cookies, cakes, and European-style pastries.

Old Seng Choong describes its mission as:

“Relishing our Taste. Revering our Traditions.”

Its stated promise remains:

“Savour Singapore heritage in every bite.”

The company’s philosophy can be understood through three core ideas:

1. Preservation of Heritage

OSC seeks to preserve flavours, recipes, and food memories associated with Singapore’s past. Rather than positioning heritage food solely as something traditional or old-fashioned, the company attempts to make these flavours accessible through contemporary products and presentation. 5

2. Singaporean Identity

The brand draws inspiration from Singapore’s multicultural food traditions, including Chinese, Malay, Peranakan, and broader Southeast Asian influences. This is reflected in flavour combinations such as pandan coconut, laksa, satay, and gula melaka. Singapore Tourism Board has highlighted OSC’s use of local flavours such as Katong Breakfast and Laksa in its brand materials.

3. Tradition with Innovation

OSC’s philosophy is not simply to reproduce historical recipes. Instead, it combines familiar flavours with modern pastry techniques, formats, and presentation. The company describes this approach as “preserving tradition with a modern twist.” This positioning allows products associated with Singapore’s culinary heritage to function as both everyday snacks and contemporary gifts.

Old Seng Choong’s product portfolio has expanded considerably from its initial online offerings. Current product categories include:

• Cookies
• Cakes and cakery
• Pastries
• Confectionery
• Festive treats
• Mooncakes
• Gift sets
• Corporate gifts
• Special and limited-edition creations

Signature Singapore-Inspired Flavours

A defining characteristic of OSC is its use of flavours that consumers associate with Singapore. Examples include:

• Pandan coconut
• Laksa
• Satay
• Gula melaka
• Katong-inspired flavours
• Black sesame
• Local-style breakfast flavours
• Traditional Chinese pastry flavours

This approach turns the product into more than a conventional bakery item; the flavour itself becomes a reference to Singaporean food culture. For example, the brand has produced Laksa Cookies and Pandan Coconut Cookies, translating savoury or dessert flavours into the cookie format. Paragon describes OSC as taking customers “on a trip down memory lane” through locally inspired flavours.

Festive Products

Festive confectionery is a major component of Old Seng Choong’s business. The company produces seasonal collections for occasions including:

• Chinese New Year
• Mid-Autumn Festival
• Christmas and year-end celebrations
• Baby full-month celebrations
• Corporate gifting

Mooncakes and Chinese New Year products are particularly important as they connect the brand’s heritage positioning with Singapore’s contemporary gifting culture. As of 2026, the brand’s Mid-Autumn collection includes a premium collection called “Six Harmonious Woven,” inspired by the art of weaving.

Old Seng Choong initially operated primarily as an online business. Its first physical retail concept opened at Clarke Quay Central in 2018, marking the transition from an online confectionery brand into a physical retail presence.

The brand subsequently expanded its physical footprint, including a store at The Shoppes at Marina Bay Sands in 2019.

In 2023, OSC introduced a new bake-off concept at Paragon, followed by locations at Changi Airport Terminal 2 and Terminal 4 according to its corporate history. 6

The Paragon concept represents an evolution beyond packaged heritage snacks, allowing the brand to offer freshly baked products prepared as part of the retail experience. Paragon highlights products such as its Crème Brûlée Tarts, Truffle Char Siew Pastry, and Signature Palmier.

One current physical location is:

Old Seng Choong (OSC) – Paragon
★ 4.5 · Bakery · Open
Address: 290 Orchard Rd, #B1-14, Paragon, Singapore 238859

Brand Timeline

Old Seng Choong’s visual identity is closely connected to the idea of Singapore nostalgia. The brand uses packaging and product designs that reference historical Singapore, traditional architecture, local landmarks, and familiar cultural motifs.

This aesthetic was apparent when its first physical store opened in 2018, with contemporary coverage describing the retro-inspired design featuring mosaic tiles, marble, and Chinese lattice elements.

Packaging is an important component of the brand proposition. OSC products are designed not only to be eaten but also to function as souvenirs and gifts representing Singapore. This makes the brand relevant to tourists, corporate gifting, and Singaporeans seeking locally themed presents. Singapore Tourism Board has positioned Old Seng Choong as a local lifestyle brand offering Singapore-inspired food products suitable for visitors and gifting.

Old Seng Choong broadly targets two overlapping groups:

Singapore Consumers

For Singaporeans, the brand’s appeal lies in nostalgia and reinterpretation. Older consumers may recognise familiar flavours and styles of traditional baking, while younger consumers encounter those flavours in contemporary formats.

Tourists and International Visitors

The company explicitly identifies Singapore’s tourists and visitors as a key audience. Its products are well suited to the souvenir and gifting market because they are portable, packaged, and strongly associated with local flavours.

This gives OSC a positioning distinct from a conventional neighbourhood bakery, operating simultaneously as a bakery, heritage food brand, gifting brand, and Singapore souvenir brand.

The strongest differentiator of Old Seng Choong is arguably its combination of personal heritage and national culinary identity. Many brands use “heritage” as a visual or marketing concept, but OSC’s story is personal: the brand was named after the founder’s father’s bakery and was explicitly created as a tribute to him.

At the same time, OSC has expanded the concept from family nostalgia into a broader interpretation of Singaporean food culture. Its products follow a formula:

Singapore heritage → familiar local flavour → modern pastry format → contemporary packaging → giftable product.

This enables OSC to sell products such as cookies and cakes while communicating a story about Singapore.

Old Seng Choong can be viewed as part of a wider movement among Singaporean food brands seeking to preserve and reinterpret local culinary heritage. Rather than presenting heritage food solely in its traditional form, these businesses adapt flavours for contemporary consumers. OSC’s approach is particularly pastry-oriented, placing traditional flavours in cookies, cakes, tarts, pastries, and festive confectionery. This is consistent with Daniel Tay’s stated shift from an earlier focus on European/French pastry toward promoting Singaporean and Asian culinary heritage.

The operating company is Old Seng Choong Pte Ltd, with GST registration number 201540527H, according to the company’s official website.

The brand is part of the wider entrepreneurial and culinary work associated with Daniel Tay. His other food ventures have included Bakerzin and Cat & the Fiddle, while his broader approach has consistently involved adapting established culinary formats for modern consumers.

Old Seng Choong is a Singaporean heritage bakery and confectionery brand founded in 2016 by pastry chef Daniel Tay. Named after Seng Choong Confectionery, the family bakery established by Tay’s parents in 1965, the brand was created as a tribute to his late father and his family’s baking heritage. OSC combines traditional Singaporean flavours and nostalgic recipes with contemporary pastry techniques, packaging, and presentation, producing cookies, cakes, pastries, confectionery, mooncakes, and festive gift products. Its distinctive identity lies in transforming familiar Singaporean flavours—such as pandan coconut, laksa, satay, and gula melaka—into modern baked products, positioning the brand simultaneously as a bakery, heritage-food business, gifting brand, and Singaporean culinary souvenir.

1. About Us – Old Seng Choong
2. Old Seng Choong Singapore | The Shoppes at Marina Bay Sands l Singapore
3. Old Seng Choong official website
4. You can now buy heritage-themed cookies at Old Seng Choong’s first brick-and-mortar store – SG Magazine
5. On modern bakes and our heritage: In conversation with Daniel Tay of Old Seng Choong – SG Magazine
6. Paragon | Old Seng Choong