Overview
Are the 2020s the golden age of dessert? It sure feels that way, with all the options of artisan ice cream, fruity matcha lattes, oh-so-thick cookies and hyper-realistic creative cakes. For Melbourne, there's one name in that last category that is making a name for itself as one of the best cake shops in town.
Le Yeahllow has quickly climbed the ladder since opening into a post-COVID world desperate for a sugary escape from the dreary reality of life with a specialty fusion of flavour and design that results in cakes that look and taste one of a kind both instore and when delivered to your home. Concrete Playground sat down with the brand's founder, Samsky Yeung, to find out the story behind the snacks.
How Did Le Yeahllow Come to Be?
"So, the first shop used to be a Zumbo Patisserie. I worked in a cafe background, and most of my shops were in shopping centres, but then in the Melbourne lockdown, everything closed. One day, I was in South Yarra at Zumbo, and it was gone. It looked very empty and sad, but everything was still there, the kitchen and cool room were still there.
It was COVID, and we were all bored at home, so I asked the guys if they wanted to do anything here. We decided to make the new shop yellow to give it some life and energy, and the name came from there to just make it a bit different.
Cafes have a culture where you come in, get your smashed avocado, and leave. You can make food at home, but cafes have an experience. But [in lockdown], we couldn't deliver that experience, not in the same way. So we wanted to make something people could send to each other to check in when they couldn't see each other in real life. So we made this."
Le Yeahllow Describes Itself as "Elegantly Playful", What Does That Mean for You?
"If you want a chocolate cake or a tiramisu cake, I'm pretty sure any cake shop could do that. But if you want a mandarin chocolate cake, that's Le Yeahllow. When a cake is more than just a sponge and cream, when the cake has a reason, it becomes a design, it becomes elegant.
But at the end of the day, a cake is something for everyone, it shouldn't be that expensive. It's not like you're buying Louis Vuitton, it's also playful. So we put it together, it's elegantly playful and I hope that's something everyone can enjoy."
Do Any Specific Global Cuisines Influence Your Products?
"A lot of people find us, and they think we're Japanese, but I'm from Hong Kong. What we make is fusion; we usually cook with French techniques, but a lot of our products, like the Yuzu Hatchimitsu or Hanami, use Japanese ingredients — like yuzu and cherry blossom.
But one of my favourites is Le Mandarin. For Chinese people like myself, we see the mandarin, and we think it brings us luck, but the flavour profile of the cake is very English or Scottish, with mandarin, chocolate and ginger. So it's a fusion of all sorts.
We use a lot of local ingredients, too: fruit from local farms, natives like Davidson plum, and a lot of chocolate. We use Japanese flavours, but you don't find much chocolate or nuts in Japanese or Asian bakeries. That's why we define ourselves as a cake shop; we don't limit ourselves, and we can serve something for everyone."
Which Cake Do You Think Summarises the Brand Best?
"That's a difficult question, but I do have an answer. My favourite is Le Mandarin, it's very elegant, very cool, very delicious. But imagine a kid taking a bite of that. Not every kid likes ginger, so it might not be the most popular. It's very important to have something everyone can like. It has to look good, it has to taste good, taste like Le Yeahllow, and I think that's our Mango Chiffon Cheesecake."
Was There a Flavour That Never Left the Kitchen That You Wish You Could Revive?
"Yes, it was last year: Chef Steven and I had sampled chocolate from our supplier Valrhona. It tasted like sweet corn and caramel, a really elegant product. It was in November, which is a busy period of preparing for Christmas, and the supplier gave us three days to come up with a flavour to hero that sweet corn flavour.
So we went to the market, bought lots of different sweet corn, and did a blind tasting. A lot of people liked the chocolate, but with only three days and all the Christmas preparation…we tried, but we just couldn't launch it."
Tell Us About the Rest of Your Talented Team, Who Makes What Happen?
"It started with Chef Steven and me. We'd worked together at a cafe. Then lockdown hit, and nobody worked, so we called the [cafe] team and said, "Hey, if anybody needs work, you can help us make cakes, help with packaging, or help with delivery." That's how we started the business.
Now it's me, then Chef Steven who looks after the cakes, the creativity, our general manager Vi runs the front of house and marketing, and trains all the staff — they don't have KPIs, we just teach them how to help people find the cake that's best for them."
What's Next for Le Yeahllow?
"So we have our new CBD store, that's our third outlet, which is very exciting. That's coming in at an unexpected angle, because it used to be a Black Star Pastry, but they closed all their Melbourne stores. It's very close to our original store, but it's very exciting for the brand.
And for that new store we've created a new product, Barre De Chocolat, which looks like a chocolate bar but it's actually a cake. That comes in four flavours: Original Milk, Chocolate Yeahllow, White Raspberry and Pistachio Luxe, I'm really excited about those."
Do You Think You'll Ever Expand Out of Melbourne?
"I was just in Sydney, but I'm comfortable in Melbourne. I like the city. If you're really into money, work in finance, I don't need to be expanding, I don't need 100 stores. I'm happy with what I'm doing. If I can make a little money, too, that's good."
For more information on Le Yeahllow, or to order a cake of your own, head in store or check out the website.