dessert – Page 16 – Michael Eats

Quick Bites: Apricot Tree Cafe, Nothing Bundt Cakes, Gouter

Published on July 1, 2024 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Apricot Breakfast from the Apricot Tree Cafe

The Apricot Tree Cafe seems to be quite well regarded, so maybe it’s just not my thing, but I got the Apricot Breakfast (“Smoked salmon, poached eggs, dill sour cream, Apricot Tree salad, toast”) and it mostly left me puzzled. Nothing on the plate was bad — in fact, the smoked salmon was actually quite good, and the eggs were well prepared, with a nice runny yolk. But none of the individual flavours particularly cohered in any meaningful way, so it basically just felt like random stuff on a plate. Also: the toast came unbuttered (with no butter on the side, either!), and get out of here with that.

Classic vanilla bundt cake from Nothing Bundt Cakes

True to their name, Nothing Bundt Cakes sells bundt cakes, bundt cakes, and more bundt cakes. They’re available in various flavours like chocolate, lemon, and red velvet (among many others), and they’re all topped with cream cheese icing. They have full-sized cakes, but their specialty seems to be smaller versions that are about the size of a very big cupcake. I went simple with the classic vanilla, and it was tasty enough. This place is apparently a chain with hundreds of locations, and yeah, that tracks. It basically tastes like if Little Debbie came out with a line of bundt cakes. I have a soft spot for junky treats like that, so I enjoyed it — but at about seven bucks per individual cake, it might be a bit overpriced for what it is.

Blueberry tart from Gouter

I had a raspberry croissant that I really did not care for the last time I visited Gouter; however, I just tried a blueberry tart from their Etobicoke location, and I think maybe they’re better than I gave them credit for, because the tart was quite good. The shortbread crust was buttery and had a nice texture, the custard filling was creamy and not too sweet, and the blueberries and crumble topping were thoroughly tasty.

Delightful Mochi Doughnuts at Marry Me Mochi

Published on June 19, 2024 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 100 City Centre Drive, Mississauga (inside Square One)
Website: https://www.marrymemochi.ca/

Mochi doughnuts are one of those things that were basically impossible to find in the city just a few years ago, and I wouldn’t say they’re everywhere now, but they’re certainly available. It may be basically impossible to live affordably in the GTA, but on the other hand… mochi doughnuts? You win some, you lose some.

Marry Me Mochi features an assortment of permanent flavours, as well as a rotating menu of specials; I went with one of the permanent varieties, creme brulee, which the menu says is their most popular.

The doughnut gets all its flavour from the frosting on top — there’s no custard filling here — but still manages to do a pretty impressive job of replicating the taste of creme brulee. It actually does have a custardy flavour, and while it’s not crispy on top, it is torched, which helps it to land that flavour.

It’s also delightfully restrained in its sweetness. A lot of doughnuts like this are both glazed and then frosted, which makes them a bit of a sugar bomb. The sweetness here is just in the frosting, which lets you taste the doughnut itself and doesn’t overwhelm.

And, of course, it’s a mochi doughnut, so it has that pleasant springiness (but without being overly chewy). It’s a great doughnut.

Tasty Korean Pastries at Hodo Kwaja

Published on June 17, 2024 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 656 Bloor Street West, Toronto
Website: http://hodokwaja.ca/

Hodo Kwaja is a delightful Korean bakery that specializes in walnut cakes, which are bite-sized walnut-shaped cakes that are traditionally filled with sweet red bean paste.

They have three flavours here: red bean with walnuts, mashed potato with walnuts, and mashed potato with almonds. An order of six is delightfully cheap at $3.75, and if you want you can try all three flavours, which is what I did.

They’re all very tasty, though the traditional red bean was my favourite of the three. The mashed potato is interesting; it actually has a similar texture to the red bean, but a milder flavour. All three have a restrained sweetness that works quite well.

As for the pancake-like pastry, it complements the soft filling very well. If you’ve ever tried taiyaki, it’s similar to that, but without the exterior crispiness. It’s a top-notch dessert.

Quick Bites: Union Chicken, Poke Poke, Bake Code

Published on June 16, 2024 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Nashville Lightning Hot sandwich from Union Chicken

I had the Buffalo chicken sandwich from Union back in 2019 and found it to be absolutely delightful; well, I recently tried the Nashville hot chicken sandwich, and yeah, it’s very, very good. It’s got that same addictive combo of exterior crunchiness and interior juiciness, and it’s really tasty, with a nice zippy flavour that cuts through the richness of the chicken. The toasted bread it comes on was a bit dry/boring, and I wish the sandwich were spicier (it’s barely hotter than mild), but overall it’s a superlative fried chicken sandwich.

Poke from Poke Poke

Poke Poke is thoroughly okay. I had the O.G. bowl (“classic salmon, seaweed salad,
avocado, corn, edamame, masago”) on white rice (brown rice, cauliflower rice, greens, and noodles are also choices), and it was perfectly tasty. Nothing about it particularly blew me away (it’s a bit overstuffed with toppings and understuffed with salmon — given that it came up to just over twenty bucks with tax, a more generous helping of fish would have been nice), but I’m not mad I ate it.

Salted Egg Yolk Croissant from Bake Code

I tried the PB&J croissant from Bake Code a few years ago and enjoyed it, though I found the croissant itself to be just okay. I have very similar thoughts about the salted egg yolk croissant, which features a generous amount of tasty, custardy filling, but is otherwise nothing too mind-blowing. I’m also not convinced that a croissant is a better vehicle for this particular filling than a more traditional bun, but I can’t deny that it’s tasty.

A Tasty Cardamom Bun at French Corner Bakery Patisserie

Published on May 22, 2024 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 1224 Dundas Street West, Mississauga
Website: https://www.instagram.com/frenchcornerpatisserie/

French Corner Bakery Patisserie (the word “bakery” is a bit odd there, isn’t it? Patisserie is basically just a French word for bakery, so it’s the French Corner Bakery Bakery) has a whole bunch of very tasty looking pastries.

I was actually planning on ordering the almond croissant, but then I saw the cardamom bun and couldn’t resist. I have a hard time saying no to a good cardamom bun, especially since they’re not exactly super common in the GTA.

And yeah, it’s a good one. The bready pastry is dense without being overly tough, the cardamom flavour is unmistakable, and the level of sweetness is delightfully restrained. It’s has a decent amount of sticky syrup on its exterior (not to mention the pearl sugar on top, which adds a great crunch that contrasts nicely with the toothsome pastry), but is otherwise not particularly sweet.

Clearly, I’m going to have to go back to try the almond croissant (and more!) because they know what they’re doing.