Archive for the 'Bakery' Category

The Best Apple Fritter Ever at Diaz’s Bakery – Ojai

Published by Gastronomer on January 26, 2012 in Bakery, Breakfast / Brunch, Central Coast and Dessert. 5 Comments

Get thee to Diaz’s Bakery for freshly made apple fritters the next time you’re in Ojai. My friend Melina introduced me to this monstrosity a few weeks ago, and it’s been making regular appearances in my doughnut-flavored daydreams.

Each Frisbee-sized fritter is coated from top to bottom in a classic sugary glaze. The innards are soft, simple, and dotted with cinnamon-sprinkled apples. The whole thing is truly spectacular, but the best bites are along the cratered edges, where the icing has turned the deep-fried nubs into candy. It’s the perimeter that disappears first on my fritter.

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The Pie Hole – Los Angeles (Downtown)

Published by Gastronomer on November 22, 2011 in Bakery, Dessert, Downtown, Los Angeles and Restaurant Review. 12 Comments

My sweets-obsessed friend Nastassia and I have been dying to try The Pie Hole ever since it opened for business a little over a month ago. After several weeks of pining and planning, our schedules finally meshed perfectly this past Friday. It was time to have our pie and eat it too.

Rebecca Grasley and Matthew Heffner, a mother and son team, are the passionate pie slingers behind the cafe. All of the pies served here are made using Ms. Grasley’s recipes. She’s been baking for over fifty years and has won the best pie award at the New Jersey State Fair seven years in a row.

The recipes are executed by head pastry chef Adrianna Sullivan, who has worked in of some of the city’s best restaurants including Providence, Nickel Diner, and M.B. Post.

Nastassia and I arrived at the restaurant just before noon and headed straight for the pie counter. We each ordered a sweet one and a savory one. I was hoping for a slice of the chocolate peanut butter pie that Elina Shatkin wrote about in The Weekly, but alas, it was unavailable on this visit. Shucks.

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Old Sasoon Bakery – Pasadena

Published by Gastronomer on May 23, 2011 in Armenian, Bakery, Los Angeles, Pasadena, Restaurant Review and Syrian. 12 Comments

Old Sasoon Bakery has been high on my list of local places to check out ever since reading Tasting Table’s delectable report back in 2009. When The Astronomer had a speaking engagement at a high school located several buildings down from the shop, I took the opportunity to finally visit the famed Syrian bakery. I’d never realized it before, but Old Sasoon is located just a mile and half from my home—we’re practically neighbors! Shame on me for not coming in sooner.

According to my friend Josh, the bakery was opened by Haroutioun Geragosian in 1986. It is named after a village in Armenia that his grandparents left after World War II. Today, the shop is run by Haroutioun’s son Joesph and several other family members.

The first thing I noticed when I walked into the store was how good the place smelled. Freshly baked goods perfumed the air both inside and outside the shop. The ambiance was laid back and efficient, just the way I like it.

All of the baked goods are displayed behind a classic bakery case. After scanning the various levels, The Astronomer and I picked out way too much food for two people. We couldn’t help ourselves because everything sounded so interesting and was priced quite reasonably.

To start, I picked out three beorags (savory hand pies) that the woman behind the counter offered to lightly toast in the oven. The one filled with basturma ($2.50) was balanced nicely by the creamy cheese and fluffy bread. I love the unique flavor of Armenian cured beef.

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Huckleberry Cafe & Bakery – Los Angeles (Santa Monica)

Published by Gastronomer on May 10, 2011 in Bakery, Breakfast / Brunch, Los Angeles, Restaurant Review and Santa Monica. 7 Comments

The first time I stepped into Huckleberry Cafe & Bakery, I turned my heels and walked out after thirty seconds. I had just moved to Los Angeles from Vietnam a few months prior and was unaccustomed to seeing baked goods priced at such a premium. Fist-sized plum crostatas were going for $7, while itty bitty cupcakes came in at $2. This serious case of sticker shock, not to mention the distance between my home and Santa Monica, kept me away from this adorable establishment for nearly two years.

A few Saturdays ago, I finally returned to Huckleberry for brunch along with The Astronomer, Laurie, and Bex. This time around, all of the prices appeared quite normal to me, signalling that I had finally gotten over my dong complex. Thank goodness.

The brunch time protocol entailed waiting in an intimidatingly long line, placing our orders, and being seated swiftly by a dining room attendant. Not too long after we were seated at a table, the food arrived.

Bex’s duck hash with sunny side up eggs ($12.50) came highly recommended by friends and trusty news sources, but it turned out to be the lone flop of the day. The scraggly pieces of duck were under-seasoned and dry, while the eggs were overdone and not runny enough for our liking. Fortunately, there was a bottle of Tapatio on hand to give the hash a much needed boost. Still, the dish was rather disappointing this morning.

Laurie arrived a little later and ordered the Brussels sprout hash (not pictured). It wasn’t as sexy as the duck hash on paper, but its flavors were more cohesive and balanced.

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Tartine Bakery & Cafe – San Francisco

Published by Gastronomer on March 3, 2011 in Bakery, Breakfast / Brunch, Restaurant Review and San Francisco. 23 Comments

From the perspective of a casual visitor, it seems that the pitter-patter of rainfall whets the appetite of Nor Cal food lovers. In spite of inclement weather, hungry hoards were lined up outside Homeroom in Oakland, and once again at Tartine Bakery & Cafe in San Francisco. I’m one of those wussy So Cal-types known to cancel dinner reservations whenever a storm approaches, so I was especially impressed to witness such sheer determination.

When The Astronomer and I arrived on the Tartine scene, we were greeted by a line fifteen deep snaking out the bakery’s door and into the rain. Seeing these dedicated folks waiting so patiently got us even more excited to sample the breads and pastries of Elisabeth Prueitt and Chad Robertson. The husband and wife duo opened Tartine in 2002 after graduating from the CIA and training extensively in France. In 2008, the couple was awarded with Outstanding Pastry Chefs honors by the James Beard Foundation.

Joining us for lunch were my cousins Timmy, Michael, and Andrew, and Timmy’s girlfriend Jessica. Our friend A.J. rounded out our party of seven. Since our group was humongous by Tartine standards, we congregated along the bar overlooking the sidewalk. A comfy table was definitely not in the cards.

Nearly everyone in our group ordered one savory and one sweet item from the concise menu. I went with a slice of quiche ($4.75) made with crème fraiche and Niman Ranch smoked ham. The texture of the egg had a gentle quality about it, while the crust was sturdy and buttery. Had it been served hot out of the oven (and with hot sauce on the side), I would’ve been more enamored.

The Astronomer’s croque monsieur ($9.75), on the other hand, was warmed in the oven just before serving and arrived perfectly toasty. The open-face sandwich was layered with béchamel, gruyere, thyme, pepper, and Niman Ranch ham. While the toppings were all superb, it was the bread base, which was baked in a wood-fired oven, that really stood out. That, and the spicy pickled carrot served on the side.

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