Bakeries – Page 19 – Michael Eats

Cupcake Perfection at Bobbette and Belle

Published on September 24, 2019 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 1121 Queen Street East, Toronto
Website: http://bobbetteandbelle.com/

I’ve already mentioned Bobbette and Belle, a delightful bakery on the east end (they also have a location north of the city).

I quite enjoyed the last cupcake I had here — the cookies and cream — but the pineapple coconut variety I just had blew it out of the water. It was outstanding. It might have been the best cupcake I’ve ever had, and that’s not a proclamation I make lightly.

Holy moly it was so good. I only have the one photo, because I wasn’t planning on blogging about it, but then I ate it and of course I have to blog about it.

The balance between the fluffy buttercream icing and the perfectly moist cake is phenomenal, and the coconut and pineapple flavours work incredibly well together. That’s not to mention the toasted coconut on top, which adds more flavour and a delightful crispiness.

Seriously: it’s ridiculous how delicious this cupcake is.

Perfectly Crispy Cannoli at Holy Cannoli

Published on September 20, 2019 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: Follow them on Instagram to see where they’ll be
Website: https://www.holy-cannoli.com/

There’s nothing sadder than biting into a cannoli only to find that its would-be crispy exterior has been rendered soft and chewy by the ravages of time.

Holy Cannoli, which had a booth at the recent OssFest street festival, avoids this problem quite definitively by filling their cannoli shells to order. This is clearly the way to do it. I don’t know why every bakery doesn’t do it this way.

So of course, the shell was nice and crispy, just as it should be. It’s crispy but not overly crunchy — it’s basically the perfect cannoli shell.

You can choose from either chocolate chip or vanilla filling; I went with the latter, and it was creamy, sweet, and tasty. Nothing about it particularly jumped out as being amazing, but it was a solid cannoli.

Tasty Cookies and Amazing Soft Serve at Soul Chocolate

Published on September 5, 2019 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 583 Gerrard Street East, Toronto
Website: https://www.soulroasters.com/

Soul Chocolate is a delightful chocolate/coffee shop on the east end that has some seriously satisfying chocolate soft serve. Like, ridiculously satisfying.

I also tried the chocolate chunk cookie, and that’s very good too — it has a nice chewy texture, a sweet buttery flavour, and a whole bunch of great quality chocolate chunks. It’s lightly sprinkled with just the right amount of salt to offset its sweetness.

As delicious as the cookie is (and it’s extremely delicious), it’s overshadowed by the phenomenal soft serve.

Seriously: this stuff is pure magic. It’s perfectly rich and creamy, though it’s the intense chocolatey flavour that really makes it stand out. It’s got that bold flavour that you only get from great quality dark chocolate, and it’s amazing.

It actually reminds me of the thick, rich drinking chocolate that they serve at Soma — only it’s ice cream. If you’re thinking that sounds delightful, you are correct. It is delightful. Extremely delightful.

A Tasty Cupcake at Bobbette and Belle

Published on August 30, 2019 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 1121 Queen Street East, Toronto
Website: http://bobbetteandbelle.com/

I kind of hate going to a good bakery, because I want to eat that, and that, and that, and that, but there’s only so much room inside my stomach. It’s kind of like Sophie’s Choice, but at least she only had two children to choose between; there’s like a dozen things here that look delicious.

I wound up going with the Cookies and Cream cupcake at Bobbette and Belle, but there were so many other pastries I could have picked. Everything looked great.

I’d say I chose pretty well. The cupcake features a chocolate base topped with an Oreo-infused frosting. It’s delightful. The cake is nice and moist, with a satisfying chocolatey flavour. And the frosting is sweet (but not overly sweet) and creamy, with a nice balance of cookie chunks. It’s one of the better cupcakes I’ve had in a while.

Middling Taiyaki at Sukoshi Mart

Published on August 26, 2019 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 160 Baldwin Street, Toronto
Website: https://www.sukoshimart.com/

Sukoshi Mart is a little Japanese convenience store in Kensington Market that sells hard-to-find Japanese goods. They also sell freshly-made taiyaki, a waffle-like dessert that’s traditionally filled with either red bean or custard.

I like this place. If you’re looking for Japanese snacks or candy, it’s worth a visit.

The taiyaki, on the other hand? Not so much.

It’s fine. It’s perfectly edible, but the exterior is dense and doughy, and the red bean is overly sweet. It’s also misshapen and haphazard, so it doesn’t even have the (usually) delightful visual component. It’s not the best.