Gjusta Lemon Cake: This slice of lemon cake from Gjusta in LA is thickly sliced and has a decently tart flavor. Texturally, though, it eats a bit dry. In the landscape of lemon desserts, this one falls somewhere in the middle - not bad, but not particularly notable. 3.0/5.0
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Regent Pandan Cake: A half-sphere mini cake, baked-brown on the outside and shamrock-green on the inside. Has a light texture that eats a bit dry. Often paired with coconut, pandan leaves are popular in southeast asian cuisines like Thai and Indonesian; the flavor of this pandan cake fell somewhere in between rich coconut and light lemongrass. Fragrant and not too sweet, but the texture could have been more moist. 3.0/5.0
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Mystic Muffin Apple Cake: Declared as "world famous," with newspaper clippings to support this claim, Mystic Muffin's apple cake is texturally fantastic, with an ultra moist interior and hearty slices of tender baked apple throughout. It's all topped with a sweet spiced crumble, buttery and baked such that it adds just enough tooth. The sweetness of the crumble sets it a bit over the top, but as far as cakes go, this is definitely one of the best I've had. And at less than $3 USD a slice, it's a wonderful affordab... (read more) 4.0/5.0
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Dominique Ansel Bakery Gingerbread Pinecone: I still haven't tried a cronut, but I have tried some of Dominique Ansel's desserts in the past, mostly through special events held at his New York West Village Kitchen location. While some were exceptional, namely a pea and carrot dessert modeled after a baby's first word, others have actually been quite bad (like the pie night a few years ago). There is a relatively short line at his first bakery and restaurant in Los Angeles at The Grove, so I opted for a seasonal treat: the gingerbread... (read more) 4.5/5.0
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Craftsman and Wolves Strawberry Cake: On Valencia in the heart of the Mission is the original location of the Craftsman and Wolves, a pastry shop where each item is backdropped by a matte black countertop, with slide-out trays for individually plated cakes and specialty items. The presentation of the pastries is impeccable, with a commendable level of consistency and care put into every piece. Of course, as with any San Francisco establishment, you pay a premium for quality - the strawberry cake, about 4 inches long, was $8. ... (read more) 4.0/5.0
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JJ Bakery Strawberry Shortcake Mochi: From the Taiwanese sweets shop JJ Bakery in LA, this plump ball of strawberry shortbread is about twice the size of a normal piece of mochi and contains a whole strawberry nested in rich cream and moist cake. The mochi skin is impressively thin and elastic, and as a result, plays a supporting role to the western cake on the inside. Ripe, deep red strawberry is sweet and fresh. Cream is not for the faint of heart (there's a lot of it), so this snack may be best shared among friends. (I at... (read more) 3.5/5.0
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