Blockheads Black sesame shaved ice with red bean, rice cakes, almond jelly, and condensed milk: Finally got to try this LA-based Taiwanese shaved ice chain. The black sesame ice cream had decent flavor but the texture was not as fluffy as I knew it could be given my recent experience at Powder in San Francisco. At Blockheads, they make their rice cakes in house, which are essentially tang yuan (the mochi-like glutinous rice dumplings that often accompany red bean soup). I expected their almond jelly to be almond jello, but it was more like the harder gelatin cubes often used in Asia... (read more) 3.0/5.0
dessert icecream asian losangeles shaved ice rice cakes almond jelly condensed milk 3.0 redbean blacksesame blockheads
Blue Star Donuts Buttermilk Lemon Poppyseed Donut: Portland is pretty serious about donuts. On my latest visit, I saw a much higher percentage of commuters eating donuts for breakfast than I have witnessed in any other city. So when I was about to fly out from PDX and realized there was a Blue Star next to ticketing, I willingly went through security a second time in order to see what all the fuss was about. There were many flavors I was interested in trying, from their strawberry-rhubarb jam-filled pastry to a more traditional donut ring ... (read more) 3.0/5.0
sweets dessert portland bluestardonuts buttermilk lemon poppyseed donut 3.0
Bouchon Bakery Pumpkin Macaron: On my recent visit to Las Vegas, there seem to be Bochon Bakeries at every corner of my hotel. As I previously enjoyed pistachio macarons at their NYC locations, I decided to try their seasonal pumpkin flavor. The autumnal macaron is about the size of my palm and has a vivid orange shell that easily breaks to reveal a chewy, dark brown interior. Texturally, this pastry was very good, but it was unfortunately overly sweet on the whole. 3.0/5.0
dessert pastry lasvegas sweets bouchonbakery pumpkin macaron 3.0
Cheeseboard Sticky Bun: I wouldn't say I have a sweet tooth, but I can enjoy sweet things. I definitely have a preference, though, for lighter desserts. This sticky bun from Cheeseboard falls on the opposite end of the spectrum. Soaked with a buttery glaze and topped with chopped pecans, it's the type of sweet that will actually induce a physical reaction, as your body and teeth rejects what it knows is not good for it. Because the sticky bun is from Cheeseboard, I have some confidence in the quality of the ing... (read more) 2.0/5.0
dessert pecans nuts bread bakery baked sweets cheeseboard sticky bun 2.0
Chicha Matcha Crepe Cake: After a long day, I decided to treat myself with dessert at this Montreal-based Taiwanese cafe that serves savory entrées, desserts, and beverages. They have a variety of flavored crepe cakes, but I went for the matcha, which was about $6 a slice - pretty pricy. I did enjoy it, though - it had many layers of eggy crepe, and the creme was not overly rich. The matcha powder was quite bitter, and the dessert overall was not very sweet. The best part was definitely the mix of chewy crepe and ... (read more) 3.5/5.0
recommended montreal dessert chicha matcha crepe cake 3.5
Chikalicious green apple sorbet: Exceptionally refreshing and remarkably smooth sorbet speckled with bits of green apple. Clean flavor that's perfectly sweetened. A bit pricy for the size, but well worth it. 4.5/5.0
sorbet dessert chickalicious nyc exceptional green apple 4.5