Seasonality is not a word you’d hear much in sunny Singapore. We don’t have the dramatic leaf turns or snow-dusted winters that mark the passage of time elsewhere. Here, the weather feels the same day in, day out—humid, hot, and rain always looming. And yet, quietly and almost invisibly, seasons still shape our plates.
Because we’re a little red dot with no major agriculture of our own, we’ve grown used to looking outward. Our produce comes from all over the world: crisp apples from New Zealand, figs from Turkey, cherries from Washington, mangoes from India, melons from Japan. When it’s summer up north, it’s winter down south—and here in the tropics, we sit right in the middle, enjoying the best of both worlds, all year round. Fresh coconuts? Always within reach. Pineapples too. But just because a fruit is always available doesn’t mean it always tastes the same.
There are moments—sweet, fleeting moments—when a fruit hits its peak. When it’s everything it’s meant to be. Juicy, fragrant, ripe, and full of sun. That’s what “seasonality” really means. Not just when something’s on shelves, but when it’s at its best.
I’ve had the privilege (and the obsession, let’s be real) of chasing these moments around the world.
I once tasted the juiciest Bosc pear on a chilly Autumn day in Perth, Australia. It was one of those moments where you bite in and it becomes an ingrained memory. We’d get bright magenta stalks of rhubarb that are so vivid and crisp it felt like it was humming with bright tartness. And strawberries—don’t even get me started.
I am kind of obsessed with strawberries. I picked them from the greenhouse in Ukiha, Japan at the tail end of winter, tasting more than ten varieties in one afternoon. The sweetest one? The tiny, scarlet-tipped ones that grow close to the base of the plant, quietly soaking in the warmth from the soil.
When I lived in San Francisco, I learned to mark the seasons by what showed up at the farmers’ market. Rhubarb would creep in from the tail end of winter, just when the blood oranges and pears started to wane. Then, like clockwork, came the strawberries—small at first, then bigger and bolder. Their arrival marked the true beginning of Spring.
And peaches—oh, peaches. You can find them from Spain, Turkey, Australia, China, the U.S., Taiwan… but it’s not just about where they come from. It’s when. The Spanish donut peaches in June? Incredible. Yellow peaches from America hit their stride a bit later. White peaches from Taiwan are just gorgeous in August. But white nectarines—when I can smell their floral sweetness from a distance—I will always, always choose those.
So what does this all mean for us here in Singapore?
It means that even though we don’t have four seasons, we can still eat with the seasons. We just have to pay attention. That’s what we try to do with Little Favors’ Seasonal Specials Calendar. It’s our way of honouring the quiet rhythm of ripening fruit. We build our flavours around what’s tasting amazing right now, if not preserve them to serve them in another season. Not just what’s available.
We do want to stress that even though something may be in season now, the fleeting nature of produce means it isn’t always guaranteed. Seasons may follow a pattern, but they’re ultimately guided by nature — unpredictable, changeable, and sometimes uncooperative. So even when a fruit is ‘supposed to be’ in season, it might arrive late, disappear early, or skip a year altogether.
Fruit, nature’s gift to us, at its peak, tells a story—a story of time, place, and a little bit of magic.
And we want to share that magic with you, nature’s magic.
Little Favors’ Seasonal Specials Calendar
SPRING: MARCH TO MAY
Rhubarb
Strawberry
Elderflowers
SUMMER: JUNE to AUGUST
Pink guavas
Peaches – white then yellow
Lychees
Mangoes
Chilies
Fresh berries – blueberries, blackberries, raspberries
Passionfruit
Melons
Cherries! (SUPER SHORT SEASON)
Kiwi (southern hemisphere)
AUTUMN/FALL: SEPTEMBER to NOVEMBER
Pears
Apples
Squash (pumpkin)
Sweet potato
Carrots
Chestnuts
Warm spices
Persimmons
WINTER: DECEMBER TO FEBRUARY
Pomegranates
Carrots
Kiwi (northern hemisphere)
Citrus (yuzu, oranges, mandarins, grapefruit, pomelo, kumquats buddha’s hand etc.)
To flow with what’s available — and to keep learning and evolving as we create these cakes — means that no two versions are ever quite the same. The same flavour might return, but it won’t always come back in the same form. Since 2023, we’ve already gone through three versions of our strawberry cake. So if you see it now, get it now… because who knows if (or how) it’ll make a reappearance.
little favors 