Koi Dessert Bar: How one family made their dreams a reality

March 27, 20181 min read

Tucked away in a side street in Sydney’s hip inner city suburb, Chippendale, is a one-of-a-kind restaurant, known as Koi Dessert Bar.

Run by the Poernomo brothers, Reynold, Ronald and Arnold, and their mum, Koi is a fine-dining restaurant specialising in experimental desserts, that go beyond traditional French techniques and styles.

It only takes one glimpse of the colorful creations in their display to see that Koi is not like any other patisserie. In fact, it’s not a patisserie at all. The brothers describe their cooking style as modern and creative, with south east Asian influences.

Using only high quality, seasonal ingredients and fresh Australian produce, each dessert boasts layers of complexity and unexpected flavours. Clearly, their craft is an artform.

“We want to drive and create a trend of our own. We don’t follow trends,” explains Reynold.

It all began when their mum, Ike, starting making macarons from scratch in their garage at home and was soon supplying her sweets to local cafes. She was obsessed with glazed cakes, mousses and botanics.

Even though all three brothers tried different careers, in the end, the kitchen pulled them back into hospitality.

“We grew up with an obsession with food. It’s the heart of the family,” said Reynold.

Koi has now expanded into Ryde, where guests can sample signature creations and watch Koi’s desserts being handmade. You can also visit the Dessert Kitchen for a behind-the-scenes cooking class, and learn the family secrets in a modern state-of-the-art facility.

Despite the challenges of running a small business and the pressure to be constantly innovating, the Poernomo family all share the same passion and the same dream.

Part of our My Passion Project series, Koi is like many Australian businesses, born from a passion to create, innovate and succeed.

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