Category Archive for ‘Bakery’ at gas•tron•o•my

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BabyCakes

Published

Gastronomer

on June 6, 2007

in Bakery, Dessert, New York City, Restaurant Review and Vegan

. 9 Comments

May 27, 2007
Cuisine: Desserts, Bakery

248 Broome St, New York 10002
Btwn Orchard & Ludlow St

Phone: 212-677-5047
Website: w ww.babycakesnyc.com

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Chocolate Spelt Cupcake with Rich Chocolate Frosting ($2.95)

Vanilla Spelt Cupcake with Zesty Lemon Frosting ($2.95)

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The cupcake craze taking over New York City and Los Angeles has yet to hit Philadelphia so I included a handful of bakeries specializing in cupcakes on the food tour. BabyCakes was the first one we hit up since it was located near our shelter in the Lower East Side.

Babycakes differentiates itself from the sea of competitors by offering vegan cupcakes. Erin McKenna, BabyCakes’ founder, virtuously touts on the bakery’s website:

In a city dominated by cupcakes overflowing with sugar, flour and butter cream, it’s easy for those with delicate tummies to feel left out. BabyCakes offers all natural, organic and delicious alternatives free from the common allergens: wheat, gluten, dairy, casein and eggs. Rest assured, all sweeteners have been chosen responsibly and used sparingly. White sugar will never be found in our bakery, nor will we ever use toxic chemical sweeteners. Instead, most products are sweetened with agave nectar—a natural syrup from a cactus which is low on the glycemic index and often a safe alternative to most non-insulin dependent diabetics. Occasionally, unprocessed and unrefined sugar is used in certain goods, although sparingly.

Curious to try sweets made without the usual suspects, The Astronomer and I picked up two cupcakes to-go. He chose lemon, while I went with chocolate. We dropped off the cupcakes in my brother’s apartment then headed off to dinner. Hours later when we returned to enjoy our treats, the frosting had unfortunately melted due to warm temperatures both inside the apartment and the cupcakes’ plastic container.

While I must admit that the frosting-less cupcakes looked a little pitiful, they still tasted great. Both cupcakes were sweet and moist—the lemon one was tart and the chocolate one was very chocolaty. When it comes to cupcakes, I totally appreciate one-dimensional flavors. The texture and taste achieved without butter or eggs by the clever bakers at BabyCakes is very impressive.

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Metropolitan Bakery

Published

Gastronomer

on March 27, 2007

in Bakery, Bread, Philadelphia and Restaurant Review

. 5 Comments

March 3, 2007
Cuisine: Bakery

Rittenhouse Square
262 S. 19th Street

Phone: 215-545-6655
Website: http://www.metropolitanbakery.com/

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Revisited: March 25, 2007

Chocolate Cherry Roll - dark and rich chewy loaf made with sundried sour cherries and imported bittersweet chocolate ($1.25)

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I decided to give the Metropolitan Bakery another go after a mediocre foccacia experience. At the suggestion of a few readers, I tried their signature Chocolate Cherry Bread. Although I wanted to love the bread very much, it just didn’t suit me well. The tart cherries combined with the sweet chocolate was too extreme for my tastebuds. On a positive note, the bread was moist and the chocolate and cherries were plentiful.

With so many bakeries around, I may be ready to give up on the Metropolitan Bakery.

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March 3, 2007

Rosemary Foccacia ($1.50)

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I know I’m not from Boston, but the only way to properly describe The Astronomer’s metabolism is “wicked.” He consumes roughly 4000 calories daily and weighs a mere 140 pounds. Impressive? I think so. In order to maintain his body weight, The Astronomer must constantly snack. We stopped by the Metropolitan Bakery while strolling in Rittenhouse Square to pick up some calories for the bottomless pit.

After perusing the gorgeous baked goods, The Astronomer settled on the Rosemary Foccacia. The foccacia was not shaped like traditional foccacia–it was round and bulbous rather than flat and square. Also, the outter texture was much tougher than standard faccaia. The bread reminded me of the pizza crust from Pizza Hut (in sort of a sort good way) and not the least bit rosemary flavored. The foccacia tasted decent enough, but not at all what we were reasonably expecting.

Beard Papa’s

Published

Gastronomer

on March 22, 2007

in Bakery, Dessert, Restaurant Review and San Francisco

. 2 Comments

March 15, 2007
Cuisine: Desserts & Bakeries

865 Market Street (Store FE16)
San Francisco, CA 94103

Phone: 415-512 6776
Website: http://www.muginohousa.com/

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Caramel Cream Puff ($1.95)

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Gawd, Beard Papa’s is so good. On a recent trip to San Francisco, The Astronomer and I stopped by the newest addition to the Westfield San Francisco Centre to check out Bloomingdales and the most wonderful food court in America: The Food Emporium. Although every vendor looked delectable, we only grabbed a quick bite at Beard Papa’s because we were due for dinner soon. The prices at this location were about 20 cents higher than in New York City, which I found pretty surprising. I normally order the Éclair Cream Puff, but decided to try the Caramel daily special.

The pastry shell was crisp as I bit into it and soft within. The custard tasted just like caramel and was not overly sweet. I love how the abundant amount of custard piped into the puff causes it to ooze. Truly, the perfect cream puff. When will Papa come to Philly and San Diego? Hopefully soon.

K.C.’s Pastries

Published

Gastronomer

on March 20, 2007

in Bakery, Chinese, Philadelphia and Restaurant Review

. 1 Comment

March 3, 2007
Cuisine: Chinese Bakery

145 N. 11th St.
Philadelphia, PA

Phone: 215-351-1177
Website: none

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Curry Beef Puff ($1)

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When I’m short on dried mushrooms, oyster sauce, or mock meet, I head to the “Asia Supermarket” in Chinatown to refresh my supplies. While I’m buying groceries, The Astronomer always picks up a treat at K.C.’s Pastries next door. The “corn fritter” has always been his favorite, but on our visit they were fresh out. In a savory mood, The Astronomer chose the Curry Beef Puff.

The puff was almost identical in composition to Vietnamese Bánh Pâté Chaud, but with a curry twist. The pastry shell was buttery and flaky and the beef was slightly spicy, but not plentiful. I’ve tried a number of baked goods at K.C.’s over the years and they’ve always hit the spot whether sweet, savory, or somewhere in between.

Naked Chocolate Cafe

Published

Gastronomer

on February 14, 2007

in Bakery, Dessert, Philadelphia and Restaurant Review

. 0 Comments

February 10, 2007
Cuisine: Desserts & Bakeries, Coffeehouses

1317 Walnut St, Philadelphia 19107
At S 13th St

Phone: 215-735-7310
Webiste: www.nakedchocolatecafe.com

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Vanilla Cupcake with Vanilla Frosting ($2)

Sipping Chocolate - The Ultimate Naked Chocolate Experience. Our Chocolatier’s selection of single origin varietal chocolates ($4.50)

Classic Hot Chocolate - Our blend of milk and dark chocolates ($5)

Bittersweet Hot Chocolate - A deep chocolate experience ($5)

Vanilla Cupcake with Chocolate Frosting ($2)

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After our savory meal at Penang, my friends and I headed over to Naked Chocolate Café to indulge our sweet tooth. The café was at maximum capacity when we arrived, but some clever hovering yielded a mighty fine table. Nice job, Tara and Molly.

I ordered a vanilla cupcake with vanilla frosting because I had eaten chocolate cake the previous evening and was experiencing palette fatigue. The frosting was excellent, but the cake was a smidge dry. I suspect that my cupcake was baked early in the day and thus lost its moistness by evening. What a shame.

Tara also ordered a cupcake. Hers was vanilla cake with chocolate frosting. The cake was moister than mine, but still not ideal. The frosting was above-average and the sprinkles were plain adorable. Additionally, Tara ordered the classic hot chocolate in the “indulgent” size. The one sip I had was awesome; the hot chocolate was rich, sweet, and of course, ultra-chocolaty.

Molly and Melina both ordered hot chocolates as well. Molly had the bittersweet hot chocolate in the indulgent size. The bittersweet was far thicker than the classic hot chocolate; the texture was almost pudding-like. The flavor was intense and I liked it a great deal.

Melina ordered the sipping chocolate at the recommendation of her history professor. Melina speculated that her “drink” was actually a melted down chocolate bar; she is probably correct. Regardless, she enjoyed her liquefied chocolate bar very much.