By Cam Lucadou-Wells
There’s a revolution in desserts that is not so sweet.
Popping up in Springvale is an exclusively Asian dessert house Dessert Story – which depends less on the heavy dairy and sugar flavours.
Look at the menu and you find different types of beans, Hong Kong-inspired herbal jellies, black rice, tofu, taro, sweet potato, green tea and coconut cream.
One of its most popular dishes is the Taiwanese snow ice – an imposing tower of frozen coconut milk.
It has optional coatings in popping jelly spheres with mango squares, green tea or chocolate.
However it is a lighter proposition than its Western dairy ice-cream equivalents such as banana splits.
Its flavours are subtle but the coolness is refreshing on a warm day.
Owner of the Springvale Road franchise is former real-estate agent and solar-hot-water-system importer Aaron Slen.
The versatile businessman believes his Asian dessert venture is tapping into a growing trend in Springvale.
“It’s changing around here. There’s more Chinese food outlets coming into Springvale.
“At the moment we’re the only one to offer exclusively Asian desserts in this area.”
Mr Slen has hopes of expanding next door and adding a bar to the mix.
In the past two years he’s opened Peking duck restaurants in Clayton and Preston as well as Dessert Story in Springvale.
Around the corner, his brother Donald has been running a grocery for the past 20 years.
Both brothers grew up working in their father’s grocery overseas.
