Cheeseboard Chocolate Things: Representative of the ingredient-focus mindset of California cuisine more generally, this lightly sweetened roll is rich and buttery in flavor but also fluffy and light in texture. Good quality chocolate chunks throughout. Very classic and delicious - I can easily imagine it any patisserie in Paris. A great value at just $3. Purchased from the iconic Cheeseboard bakery on Berkeley. 4.0/5.0
recommended bread bakery berkeley brioche cheeseboard chocolate things 4.0
Golden Steamer Pumpkin Bun: Golden Steamer epitomizes what I love about NYC. It’s a hole-in-the-wall, cash-only bao shop right off of Canal St on Mott in Chinatown, with sweet and savory offerings all around $1 each. The sizable buns can easily be a meal on its own, offering an incredible value. This lightly sweetened pumpkin bun has a eggy flavor and starchy, creamy layers of pumpkin paste towards the center. The bread is more dense than their white buns used in their savory baos (reviews forthcoming) but the bread st... (read more) 4.0/5.0
recommended cheap nyc bakery chinese steamed bao goldensteamer pumpkin bun 4.0
Leonelli Focacceria e Pasticceria Hazelnut Cookie with Chocolate-Orange Ganache: Partnering with non-profit Cookies 4 Kids, Leonelli in NYC has created their own set of shortbread sandwich cookies, with 100% of the proceeds going towards raising funds for pediatric cancer research. The michelin-shaped cookies are made by hopeful pastry chef Lindsey Bittner, and they are perfectly executed, with the most excellent shortbread I have had anywhere. The cookie yields almost immediately, with a rich, buttery texture that you have to taste to fully appreciate. Inside, the Va... (read more) 4.0/5.0
recommended nyc bakery chocolate leonellifocacceriaepasticceria cookie chocolate-orange ganache 4.0 hazelnut
Le Cafe De Joël Robuchon Peach Bread with Pistachio Crumble: I actually purchased this bread back in June but realized I never wrote a review. This is from the Le Cafe de Joel Robuchon located on the ground floor of NEWoMan in Shinjuku; it's hard to miss as it's right at the entrance of the shopping mall, with a portrait of Joel Robuchon on the window. The pastries are a bit pricier than normal Japanese bakeries, but the quality is unsurprisingly good. I purchased a seasonal bread that was topped with a remarkable buttery nut crumble both savory an... (read more) 4.0/5.0
recommended robuchon bakery tokyo lecafedejolrobuchon peach bread pistachio crumble 4.0
Le Cafe de Joel Robuchon Mediterranean Fougasse: Purchased at the Joel Robuchon cafe in Shinjuku, this twisted fougasse bread was deliciously savory, combining many flavors that I don't run into often here, including sundried tomatoes, olives, lemon, and anchovies. Those flavors could easily come off as salty but wasn't in this instance: it was impressively well balanced and made me really miss mediterranean food I could easily get in the states like hummus or falafel. The bread itself had a satisfying crust that was just chewy enough. 4.0/5.0
recommended tokyo shinjuku robuchon bakery lecafedejoelrobuchon mediterranean fougasse 4.0