Nezu No Pan Black Sesame Raisin Bread: I loved the bread I was gifted from this bakery in Nezu so much that I wanted to see all the flavors they had to offer. I bought two more mini-loaves to try. The first was sliced black sesame raisin bread, with a thin crust and chewy stretch interior mixing a healthy amount of black sesame and plump raisins. I really liked the savory taste of the black sesame, but I found the raisins to be overpoweringly sweet – about half the quantity would have been better balanced in my eyes. The quali... (read more) 3.0/5.0
bread tokyo nezu nezunopan black sesame raisin 3.0
Trader Joe's Pumpkin Brioche Twist: This TJs brioche was in the same section as the pastries, so I was expecting it to taste more like a dessert. In reality, it's definitely more of a flavored bread than a cake, with the same buttery texture as regular TJs brioche but with a faint yet distinct spiced pumpkin flavor. Reading the label more carefully, I saw that they do accurately describe it as "slightly sweet" and "lightly spicy." Overall, I found it a bit too mild to be satisfyingly festive. 3.0/5.0
traderjoes bread pumpkin brioche twist 3.0
Disneyland Jalapeno Groot Bread: I know nothing about Guardians of the Galaxy having never seen the movie, and I was a bit sad to hear the classic Tower of Terror ride was rebranded for this movie at Disneyland. Nonetheless, my family decided to try one of the park's newest snack offerings: Groot jalapeno bread. About a foot tall, the bread is served at room temperature and consists of cheddar cheese and jalapeno "hair," neutral bread as the face and eyebrows, and olive eyes. It had obviously been sitting out for several... (read more) 2.5/5.0
losangeles la disneyland jalapeno groot bread 2.5
Utopia Bagels Mini Everything Bagel with Lox Spread: I never once had a decent bagel when I lived in the Bay Area, so I'm relieved to now have an abundance of options back in NYC. One popular bagel shop I had yet to try was Utopia Bagels, located all the way in Whitestone Queens. Arriving at around 11:30am, the queue to order snaked around the entryway, and for a New York institution, the pace was extremely slow; from getting in line to leaving with food in-hand took about 45 minutes. Not being too hungry, I ordered their snackable mini bag... (read more) 2.5/5.0
bagels nyc bread lox creamcheese queens utopiabagels mini everything bagel spread 2.5
Paris Baguette pumpkin and black sesame bread: Thickly cut bread with a hard, bitter crust full of burnt flavor. Bread itself is faintly sweet and very soft, but pumpkin flavor is difficult to discern. Studded with black sesame, which doesn't actually add anything to the taste. 2.0/5.0
bread parisbaguette pumpkin black sesame 2.0