Hong Kong’s best rainbow desserts

Kala Toast has been drawing big crowds since opening, attracting even tourists from Japan, Korea and Taiwan who travelled all this way just for a taste of its signature rainbow cheese toast ($69). You’ll be greeted what looks like ordinary toast served on a rainbow tray. But once you pull it apart, you’ll see all the colours of the rainbow on the strings of cheese. Imported from Europe, the cheese doesn’t contain any artificial food colourings or additives. The hues actually come from tomato, lavender, basil and more, which you can taste as you rip into the toast. 

Popular Seoul-based sweets spot Le Bread Lab is best known for its assortment of cutesy cakes and sweets. Aside from its signature strawberry omelette – a small, folded cake topped with cream, strawberry and icing sugar – Le Bread Lab’s rainbow series is a huge crowd-pleaser. Have a go at the eye-catching, four-inch rainbow mini cake ($198) and rainbow white cake ($428), a six-layered rainbow sponge cake covered in whipped cream. Camera eats first! 

There’s no shortage of bubble tea shops in Hong Kong. While black boba is common in most bubble tea, rainbow-coloured boba is certainly a rare sight. Taiwanese hand-shaken tea specialist Tintszchashi is the first in Hong Kong to roll them out, offering fans a whimsical beverage to enjoy this summer. Order the Childhood Memory ($38), a transparent milk tea – another new fad in the beverage scene – filled with colourful boba.

If you’re a fan of Taiwanese taro, you're almost morally obligated to sample 227 Desserts Tavern's excellent, colourful taro balls. Located in Prince Edward, the dessert joint boasts some old-school décor inspired by ancient Chinese taverns and offers a dizzying selection of sweet soups. The rainbow grass jelly mix ($40) consists of six different colours and flavours of taro balls, including purple and yellow sweet potato, black sesame and green tea, grass jelly and coconut milk syrup – it’s incredibly refreshing and pretty to look at, too.

Satisfying your sweet tooth and Instagram addiction in one fell swoop, this Yuen Long ice cream parlour offers a range of delicious and seriously photogenic pastel-coloured soft serve ice cream, as well as edible decorations in the shape of, for example, Sailor Moon and mermaid tails. The rainbow ice cream ($38) is not to be missed. It’s made up of four homemade creations: sea salt vanilla, honey jasmine frozen yoghurt, rose lychee frozen yoghurt and plain yoghurt. Each flavour has its own distinctive colour, and when you put it all together, it makes for a dreamy cone. Only available during weekends.

Bonnie Gokson, of Sevva fame, has never been one to shy away from extravagance. His first standalone pâtisserie, Ms B’s Cakery, offers some seriously gorgeous, haute desserts. Among its extensive cake selections is this vanilla chiffon cake ($480) with pastel rainbow tones made up of cherries and jelly mousse. Covered with fresh cream and topped with colourful popcorn, this cake could be the centrepiece you're dreaming of for your next celebration.