Dessert | tea & pastry in the Emerald City

I took a trip to Seattle last week, so you can imagine how many wonderful adventures I had while I was gone (which also means I have hundreds of photographs to sort through :P). This will be first of five feature posts (plus a Wanderlust summary of what I did over the duration of my trip once I finish posting everything else) -- i.e., the coffee shops, teahouses, bakeries, and ice creameries I explored over the three-day stay.

{1} First stop after lunch at HoneyHole Sandwiches was to Molly Moon's Homemade Ice Cream in Capitol Hill. Molly Moon's combines milk and cream from hormone-free dairy cows at family-owned Edaleen Dairy Farm with local, seasonal, as well as organic fruits and spices (as much as possible) "to make combinations that are both familiar and surprising." Molly Moon's tries its best to source everything it can from local farmers, including sugar from Idaho, lavender from Sequim, honey from the Olympics, and more than 90% of all ingredients. For things that don't grow well in the Pacific Northwest (namely chocolate, vanilla, coffee, and tea), it "works with local companies like Theo Chocolate and Stumptown coffee to buy organic, fair-trade ingredients we can feel good about."


{2} The smorgasbord of flavors at Molly Moon's includes Always flavors (i.e., its classics) as well as a limited selection of seasonal ones. {6,7} The waffle cones here are freshly made with special waffle irons. Among the ice creams sampled that afternoon:

• {5} A waffle cone with Earl Grey ice cream, which is made using organic and fair-trade tea steeped overnight in the shop's sweet cream. Absolutely heavenly -- just like the perfect milky black tea. Definitely want to dive into making this from the eponymous cookbook -- it's just too delicious to resist!
• {3} Molly's Sundae with melted chocolate and salted caramel ice cream, hot fudge, candied hazelnuts, whipped cream, and a cherry on top. The melted chocolate is made using locally-made organic, fair-trade Theo chocolate and is "extra fudgy" while the salted caramel is very salty and "caramelly" (incidentally Molly Moon's bestseller). Certainly a solid sundae that is perfect for sharing (it's pretty sizely), though the salted caramel was a lot saltier than I anticipated.

The next morning, before heading to the Space Needle for an early time, {1} I stopped at Crumble & Flake Patisserie (also in Capitol Hill). {2,3} It is "a tiny bakery making pastries in small batches with care and attention" as well as one that closes at 3 PM daily (or until it sells out). I now know why!


So getting there roughly an hour after opening on a Thursday, there was still a decent selection of pastries from which to choose. I ended up with a lime mojito macaron, a black cherry-dark chocolate macaron, a plain croissant, and a blueberry-lemon scone. The cookie of the macarons were of the ideal consistency (just enough airiness and meringue), and the buttercream/ganache was light yet flavorful. The scone was really refreshing -- the inclusion of lemon zest really goes a long way. And the croissant was pretty solid -- really crispy, buttery, and flaky. If this isn't a great way to start a morning, I'm not sure what is!

{1} Later that afternoon, I ventured up to Phinney Ridge, a neighborhood in the northern part of Seattle, to have some pie at A La Mode Pies. Chef Chris Porter, owner of A La Mode Pies, was inspired to open his own pie shop as an ode to his love for pie that began in during his childhood days, when his mother would pack store-bought frosted fruit pie in his sack lunch during special occasions. His mother taught him that "patience, technique,a nd invention in the kitchen is often rewarded with wide eyes and happy taste buds." So his vision for A La Mode Pies is "not just to recreate his mother's recipes, but to reinvent them using imagination and high-quality ingredients" as it creates pies and tarts that "look as good as they taste -- no sprinkls, frosting, or grocery store gimmicks."


To my happy surprise, A La Mode Pies offers two flavors from Bluebird Microcreamery, which had been on my Seattle wishlist for this trip but we couldn't fit it in. Yay for two birds with one stone! Here were the varieties sampled:

• {2}Marionberry and hazelnut pie -- a blend of sweet marionberries (considered the "cabernet of blackberries") with a flaky crust that is marbled with the sharp, toasted flavor of hazelnuts -- was served a la mode with snickerdoodle ice cream. The marionberries were a lot more tart than I was anticipating, and I was surprised to find out that the hazelnuts were in the crust, not in the filling itself. Nevertheless, this sliver was quite lovely, especially balanced out with the warming spiced snickerdoodle ice cream.
• {3}Mexican chocolate mousse pie -- spiced with cinnamon and a hint of cayenne pepper, filled inside a chocolate graham cracker crust, and topped with freshly whipped cream -- was also served a la mode with snickerdoodle ice cream. I was told that this was the bestselling pie at A La Mode, and I can certainly understand why. The rich chocolate mousse as light as air with a touch of heat from the cayenne in the toasty graham cracker crust. It was even better with the creamy ice cream. A sliver of pie here is worth the trip up to Phinney Ridge, for sure!

On the way back towards downtown Seattle, I inadvertently passed under the George Washington Memorial Bridge where the Fremont Troll lives and {1} stopped by at Milstead & Co. for some iced chai (though now in retrospect, I wish it was an espresso beverage! :P). With a high ceiling, Milstead is housed in a loft-like space with an open and airy atmosphere that plays off the cold slates and the warm woods of the furniture, floors, and walls.

{1} The next morning, I took a stroll over to Remedy Teas in Capitol Hill for some morning tea and {5} to check out its offering of over 150 organic teas, specializing in signature artisan blends that are sourced from across the globe.


{2,6} The teahouse's space was very calming, with an earthy level of zen to it. {3} The menu offered three tea preparations -- a tea pot, a cup to-go, or a cup of any tea iced. {4} I tried the peach oolong in a teapot, for which the counter girl gave me a nifty Bodum teapot steeper with a double-wall insulated glass; a set timer counting down to when the ideal steep is done; and a stainless dish for resting the used tea steeper. Love the precision and the enthusiasm that Remedy Teas has for its hot tea preparation! {7} I also tried the iced matcha green tea lemonade, which was refreshing and a little tart-and-sweet from the lemonade.

Later that afternoon, I ventured to Bainbridge Island on the Seattle State Ferry, which had gorgeous views of the Emerald City and of the islands across the Puget Sound. {2} While I was over there, I made sure to stop at Mora Iced Creamery, a little ice cream shop tucked away within the downtown shops run by Argentinian expats who have developed more than 70 flavors since the shop's opening in 2006. Mora, which means "blackberry" in Italian and Spanish, pays homage to the Island's beloved wild blackberry. Making its ice creams in small batches using fresh milk, real eggs, and cane sugar, the shop does not taking any shortcuts or using any powdered mixes, but instead has "developed its own recipes, carefully testing them repeatedly to make certain that one ingredient doesn't overwhelm another as well as ensuring a texture that is smooth and creamy." {5} It churns Old World flavors like gianduja, marron glace (i.e., candied chestnut), and dulce de leche as well as new-school favorites and seasonal specialties throughout the year.


{1} Food & Wine named Bainbridge Island as one of America's Best Ice Cream Cities, citing Mora Iced Creamery as a must-visit, which explains the crazy long line spewing out its front door when we arrived early that afternoon. The line moved pretty quickly, and before I knew it, I was enjoying {3} a sugar cone with a scoop of mint with shaved chocolate fudge and {4} a sugar cone with a scoop of lemon sorbet (made using hand-squeezed lemons). Both were really light and refreshing on the warm summer day -- you could really discern the use of the freshest ingredients, especially with the mint -- it wasn't that artificial peppermint/spearmint flavor you'd typically find in candy, gum, etc., but rather extracted from fresh spearmint leaves. The thin shavings of chocolate fudge were a fun contrast compared to the chocolate chips you'd typically find in similar ice creams.

Findings: Seattle and Bainbridge Island undoubtedly have some amazing confections and hot beverages to offer. I had a generous sampling of ice creams, pastries, pies, and teas, and I am happy to report that not one disappointed! So if you find yourself in Seattle, be sure not to miss out on its original ice cream flavors (Molly Moon's Homemade Ice Cream, Bluebird Microcreamery, and Mora Iced Creamery), small-batched pastries (Crumble & Flake Patisserie), homemade pies just like how Mom used to make 'em (A La Mode Pies), or its coffee/tea scene (Milstead & Co. and Remedy Teas are great places to start)!

Price point: $3 for single scoop of ice cream at Molly Moon's Homemade Ice Cream, $5 for a lil' sundae; $2.50-$3.50 for each pastry at Crumble & Flake Patisserie; $5 per pie slice at A La Mode Pies; $4 for each beverage at Milstead & Co.; $4 for each tea at Remedy Teas; $3 for each scoop at Mora Iced Creamery.

--August 21-23, 2013

Molly Moon's Homemade Ice Cream (Capitol Hill)
 917 East Pine Street
Seattle, WA 98122
http://www.mollymoonicecream.com

Crumble & Flake Patisserie
1500 East Olive Way
Seattle, WA 98122
http://www.crumbleandflake.com

A La Mode Pies
5821 Phinney Avenue North
Seattle, WA 98103
http://www.alamodeseattle.com

Milstead & Co.
770 North 34th Street
Seattle, WA 98103
http://www.milsteadandco.com

Remedy Teas
345 15th Avenue East
Seattle, WA 98112
http://www.remedyteas.com

Mora Iced Creamery (Bainbridge Island)
139 Madrone Lane
Bainbridge Island, WA 98110
http://www.moraicecream.com

Dessert | Dominique Ansel Bakery

If there are two things that truly characterize a New Yorker, they would entail an enthusiastic pride for the food in this city as well as some strange, high tolerance for waiting in lines. So it would be no surprise that these said New Yorkers would make crazy early beelines for something like the Cronut, an ingenious creation by Chef Dominique Ansel that is a resulting hybrid of part croissant and part doughnut (thus, Cro-nut). Making its debut barely two weeks ago, the Cronut can be found at Dominique Ansel Bakery (DA Bakery) over in SoHo, where it has been selling out daily before noon.

Derek had gone there the day before we did, and he gave us some insight on the line. He arrived around 7:30-7:45, where he stood in line behind twenty or so people. He got really lucky -- Derek was able to buy one of the last ones (!), as DA Bakery  makes roughly 200 daily. That meant Cronuts were sold out before 8:30 that morning.


With that being said, Marcus and I had to devise a full-proof strategy to ensure we'd score some Cronuts. The bakery opens at 8 AM daily (except at 9 AM on Sundays), so we aimed to be up before 6 AM, leaving our apartment shortly after to get to the bakery around 7-7:15 AM. If there's one thing that can get me out of bed so freaking early in the morning, it's a damn good pastry. We really hoped the recent developing hype was a genuine indicator that they were really just that good.

That morning, we got very lucky, too -- given the good subway karma we got on our ride down to SoHo, we made really good time and got to the bakery a little before 7 AM, where we found only one person in line already. However insane it was, getting there an hour before made us a comfortable second in line. Phew!


This was what the line looked like at 7:45 AM. Around 7:50ish, the line started going around the block on Sullivan Street. It wasn't until 7:30 AM when the line started to grow exponentially. I even had a man, who clearly appeared to be out of town (we noted his wheeled suitcase), stop me on the street, asking me what the line was for. After telling them they were for Cronuts, a pastry that is half croissant and half doughnut, the man appeared to be confused: "Right, but what's the line for?" My response: "Pastries..." His response: "Wait, this line is for pastries?!" Needless to say, his wife just urged him to keep on walking. Hahaha! :P

Growing up near the north of Paris, Chef Ansel began his formal culinary training at 16 years old, an aspiration inspired by his father, Dominique Ansel, Sr. His career began at Fauchon, the "legendary French pastry institution" in Paris. Here, he spent seven years "traveling the world to open shops in places ranging from Egypt to Russia to Kuwait." Chef Ansel put his name on the map in New York City during his six-year tenure as executive pastry chef for Restaurant Daniel, Chef Daniel Boulud's flagship restaurant. After his time at Daniel, he opened his own bakery (i.e., Dominique Ansel Bakery) in November of 2011. In 2013, he was nominated for a James Beard Award for Outstanding Pastry Chef.


Once the doors opened at 8 AM, we were instructed to queue up at the register, following the line back towards the rear of the restaurant where the garden/greenhouse is located.


There they were, in their gloriously fried and buttered beauty. The inaugural flavor were rose Cronuts -- deep-fried layers of croissant dough filled with vanilla ganache then dusted with rose sugar and topped with a rose glaze and candied rose petals. Chef Ansel has said to expect a flavor change in the next couple weeks -- rumors are that the next flavor will be lemon maple in June and dulce de leche in July.


Trays of Cronuts ready to be sold and wrapped up for the patrons who patiently waited in line that morning. Just as a heads up, the policy now limits six Cronuts per patron.


The counter at DA Bakery. Derek actually told me that now one of the pastry chefs here is responsible just for making Cronuts. Crazy!


I felt bad maxing out on six Cronuts each so I just bought six, giving one to Marcus and bringing the rest to share with my colleagues. I'm part of a "Dessert of the Month Club" at my office with a dozen or so colleagues, so I thought this might be a unique treat to bring in for all the members to try. I am now everyone's new best friend -- they all fell in love with the Cronut, so much that they asked me where they could get more! :P Once I told them about the wait time in line, and how early I got there, they appreciated the gesture even more. I may even have some fellow Cronut cronies (yup, I went there LOL) that'll be willing to wait in line the next time I queue up at DA Bakery for some Cronuts!


For me, the Cronut was unlike anything I'd ever had. They were so unbelievably good that you couldn't even think that a pastry could be this good. Jen, one of my colleagues, said a Cronut is like a medley, one comprised of four different desserts -- obviously a croissant (its dough) and a doughnut (it being deep-fried and its shape) but also a zeppole (its consistency and its dusted sugar) and a Napoleon (and its layered creme ganache) -- singing a beautiful melody all at once. I couldn't have put it better myself. The dusted rose sugar and the rose glaze added a little tartness and subtle floral flavor to the lightly doughy and creamy interior of the Cronut. The best part was when we cut right into it -- you could hear the loose, scrumptious crackle and tell how freshly fried it was that morning. You could taste the buttery layers upon each bite, oozing with a delightful helping of cream. At that very moment, you'll know that the madness that brought you in line to the entrance of this bakery was utterly justified and worth every crazy second of it.

Findings: Given the sheer creativity behind this dessert, the Cronut undoubtedly lives up to its hype. It really is all those shades of awesome, amazing, spectacular, fantastic, and magnificent. It's one of those desserts that would be of legends, and you somehow finally stumble upon it and have the fortune of being able to have a bite of it. Imagine all of the pastries that you hold dear to your heart, all melded together in a culinary synecdoche so precisely perfected by Chef Dominique Ansel in his kickass bakery. Yes, it might seem totally irrational to wait in line for an hour just to guarantee the snaggage of some Cronuts, but believe you me, once you finally try one, you will understand the madness, hype, and mania of it all. I'm looking forward to seeing how the upcoming flavors will taste in this new medium of pastry, which means I see lots of queuing up in my future this summer! :P

Tips for first timers: (1) get there early (an hour before opening time should be sufficient) to guarantee your spot in line, (2) bring something to do while you wait in line, and (3) don't lose hope -- remember, the early bird catches the worm!

Price point: $5 for each Cronut.

--May 23, 2013

Dominique Ansel Bakery
189 Spring Street
New York, NY 10012
http://www.dominiqueansel.com

Dessert | coffee & pastries in Chucktown

In between all of the eating we did in Charleston (nicknamed Chucktown), we found solace in some more consumption by snacking on some crazy good pastries as well as sipping on well-crafted hot beverages. When traveling with Alice and Jimmy, a solid coffee joint will always be on the itinerary. So after a delightful lunch at Butcher & Bee our first day in town, we thought a nice afternoon pick-me-up was in order before our grand feast at McCrady's. Although we were disappointed to find out that Hope and Union Coffee Co. unexpectedly closed in October last year, we found another hopeful spot -- {1} Black Tap Coffee on Beaufain, right in the reach of a local school, College of Charleston.

Having been opened a little over a year ago, Black Tap Coffee has clean, minimalist interiors -- {2,6} white walls with dark mahogany tables, benches, stools, chairs. Most of the furniture was designed by local woodworker Stephen Wain. In fact, the main table was made from wood rescued from a house fire on Rutledge Street. {4} Cucumber water comes complimentary to patrons, while {4} the menu is silkscreened on a sheet of burlap featuring singular descriptions of brew styles, many of which is new to me, a complete bean novice (I only count them during my day job :P). {5} Love the layout of the coffee counter here -- zen combination of black, white ceramic, and glass.

The wall art, including {1} this spiffy neighborhood map of Charleston, and subtle textures from the simple greenery, made for a very relaxing and calm environment to read, enjoy a hot drink, etc. In fact, we loved this place so much that we made a second trip on Monday before we left. 

{3,5} It was fun to watch the barista at the counter make Jimmy's {2} pour-over coffee, {4} Alice's gorgeous cortado with a simple latté heart, and {9} an on-tap cold brew coffee. {8} Additionally, I had one of the best steeped chai lattés ever here. It was brewed from legit chai tea leaves, not artificially from a drink mix, concentrate or what have you. {6,9} The assortment of pastries here are pretty damn good, too (note almond croissant and chocolate chip cookies were awesome) -- funnily enough, they're all from WildFlour Pastry (see rest of review below). I recently found out that the baristas at Black Tap Coffee were trained at Counter Culture Coffee, so they really know their stuff. So great to find a niche coffeehouse like Black Tap in the heart of Charleston. We kept saying it wouldn't be surprising to find a spot like this in Williamsburg here in Brooklyn.

The following morning on Sunday, we set forth to {2} WildFlour Pastry for {1} its (in)famous pecan sticky buns which are only available on Sundays from 8 AM to 1 PM. A graduate from the Culinary Institute of America in Baking and Pastry back in 2004, Chef Lauren Mitterer owns and heads the operations at WildFlour. Her past experience includes interning at Tavern on the Green and externing at Larkspur in Vail, Colorado. After graduating, she moved to Charleston to accept a position as executive pastry chef at Red Drum Gastropub. Five years later, she left to open WildFlour, in pursuit of "her dream of creating {3,7} "deconstructed yet elegant versions of comfort desserts, satisfying that unique craving of sweet and salty."

{6} Along with the usual hot beverages running the gamut at most bakeries and cafés, the bakery also offers a few varieties of quiche and other baked goods. {4} We had no idea how massive the buns were going to be so we got one pecan sticky bun and one cinnamon bun so we could sample and share without ruining our appetites for lunch. The sticky buns were as awesome as everyone hyped them to be (sweet and salty!), and even with the generous glob of icing, the cinnamon buns were great (a little softer than the sticky buns) as well!

The same afternoon, we were looking for another fix of caffeine so {5} we found Kudu Coffee and Craft Beer to be worthy of a drop-in. The local coffeehouse is named after the African antelope that has a grayish/brownish coat with white vertical stripes and long, spiraled horns, as it features many strong African blend of beans. Kudu serves Counter Culture coffee and espresso, and it also turns out the baristas here make pretty badass latté art.

For Alice and Jimmy's cortados, there was {3} a singular and {8} a double heart. I guess the noticed us snapping away at our coffees, the barista was kind enough to make us two more -- {1} a classic tulip and {3} a beautiful foamy swan.

Findings: One thing's for sure -- Charleston is not without an exciting caffeine community nor a delicious pastry scene. It appears this town takes its taste and technique for a solid cup of joe quite seriously. So if you're in search for a non-chain, neighborhood spot to enjoy your daily brew au lait, then Black Tap Coffee and Kudu Coffee & Craft Beer are must-visits. As far as pastries are concerned, you'd be crazy to be in Charleston on a Sunday and not stop into WildFlour Pastry for a hunk of its awesome sticky and cinnamon buns. But if you're at Black Tap, you can enjoy both well-crafted coffee and WildFlour's pastries. 

Price point: $3.25-4.50 for each hot beverage at Black Tap Coffee, $2.5-3 for each pastry; $3 for each bun at WildFlour Pastry; $3.20-4.35 for each hot beverage at Kudu Coffee & Craft Beer (please note we received two complimentary lattés from the barista). 

--January 5-7, 2013

Black Tap Coffee

70 Beaufain Street

Charleston, SC 29401

http://www.blacktapcoffee.com

WildFlour Pastry

73 Spring Street

Charleston, SC 29403

http://www.wildflourpastrycharleston.com

Kudu Coffee & Craft Beer

4 Vanderhorst Street

Charleston, SC 29403

http://www.kuducharleston.com

Dessert | La Churreria

Marcus and I had a fun date night this past Friday, beginning with hot dogs at one of our favorite spots, Asiadog. The end of our night brought us to La Churreria, only three blocks away.

Jesús "Lolo" Manso, owner of tapas/paella favorite Soccarat, opened La Churreria this past December with hopes "to bring another piece of Spain to New York." The churro machine is even from Mr. Manso's hometown of Valladolid. In Spanish, the suffix, -eria, is added at the end of a noun to mean "(noun) shop" -- thus, churro + -eria = La Churreria.

Churros are eseentially treats made from Spanish dough that are fried with a crispy exterior and a soft interior and lightly dusted with sugar. They are typically eaten by themselves or dipped in hot, melted chocolate. The churros here are "recien hechos todo el día" -- freshly made every day.

Inside La Churreria. The Tallavera tile design (same as it appears on the storefront) on the wall on the right is intended to be reminiscent of Spain.

Since we were pleasantly full from our hot dogs, we decided just to share the "Churros for 1" which comes with six churros. These fried, curly treats came straight from the fryer all hot and crispy with a generous dusting of sugar. Heavenly perfection was sitting right here on this very plate. The churros were the perfect size for taking in small bites and savoring each and every one of them.

Served alongside the "Churros for 1" was an espresso cup (small-sized) of hot dipping chocolate. With a nice, liquidy consistency, the chocolate was dark and bittersweet. With every dip into the chocolate, it would coat the surface of the churro's end as the excess chocolate oozed off when it was taken back to be eaten. Once the churro hit our palates, the warmth from our mouths and the hot chocolate melted the fried dough into an intensly ambrosial bite. If anything, these classic churros are alone worth the trek down to SoHo!

We also tried the churros rellenos (i.e., stuffed churros) with dulce de leche, but these fell short of our expectations. They arrived to our table cold (not even lukewarm!), but we didn't realize this until we took a bite into it. Unwarm churros are not friendly at all on the palate. I think if these were piping hot or even lukewarm, we would have delighted in these as much as the regular churros. It was definitely our fault for not speaking up to the waitress, but by that point, we were already so full from the churros we had eaten.

Findings: If you love churros, you should bring a few of your friends with you to La Churreria and just nom on some churros, dipping them into hot chocolate sauce at your leisure for some awesome dessert action. Just be wary that the service isn't the greatest -- it's more like a café-style spot that is really small, as you can see from my photographs -- so just expect really good churros and decent service. To be fair though, our waitress was pretty speedy in getting our churros to us. Also, if you get the churros rellenos, make sure they were served hot/warm before you bite into them so that you get the right experience. I'm sure any piping hot churros stuffed with any warm, sweet sauce like dulce de leche and chocolate will taste as delicious as it sounds.

Price point: $6 for Churros for 1 (6 churros and small-sized dipping chocolate), $3.50 for each churros relleno.

--April 27, 2012

La Churreria

284 Mulberry Street

New York, NY 10012

http://www.lachurrerianyc.com

Dessert | sweet bites in Boston

During our brief getaway to Beantown, I made two intentional stops to sate my sweet tooth.

The first was to Emack & Bolio's on Newbury Street, whose tagline is "Ice Cream for the Connoisseur."

The enterprise actually began back in 1975 inside a basement located in the Coolidge Corner section of Brookline, Massachusetts as a place for musicians to hang out after their gigs and to enjoy some homemade ice cream. Started by a group of "hippie lawyers" who had been working pro bono for the homeless, for gay civil rights, for anti-war demonstrators, as well as representing all these famous rock 'n' rollers who were being signed by major record labels. Additionally, two homeless gentlemen that the lawyers did this pro bono work for asked that the shop be named after them, thus Emack & Bolio's was born. The psychedelic and cosmic theme running throughout is redolent of the time of the ice cream shop's founding.

The menu offers a wide array of ice creams, sorbets, yogurts, and soft serve ice creams/yogurts. Along with these items, Emack & Bolio's also claim fame to making the best smoothies.

As much as I wanted to get some ice cream (some of those flavors look so good), I decided to play it safe with passionfruit sorbet, as my tendency for being lactose intolerant keeps me away from those milky treats. I liked that it was a bit tart and that its texture wasn't too icy.

Marcus decided to try the the Citrus Cooler smoothie with orange juice, lemon sorbet, raspberries, and sparkling water. He enjoyed this quite a bit as the smoothie was well blended, as the combination of citrus and berry offered a refreshing respite. It was nice to see a smoothie made from fresh ingredients.

On the day of my departure, I sneaked in a trek to the North End of Boston for a visit to the touristy Italian pastry shop, Mike's Pastry.

Recommended to me by Christine, Mike's Pastry is filled with Italian confections and sweets.

Its most popular items are its wide varieties of gigantic cannolis.

Since Marcus had to get to his conference early, I had to conquer the cannolis at Mike's Pastry solo. After much contemplation, I chose the amaretto cannoli and pistachio cannoli. They were both really nutty in their own way filled to the shells' brim with classic mascarpone cream. The amaretto cannoli was a lot sweeter than the pistachio, probably because the mascarpone was infused with amaretto liquer and the pastry shell was drizzled with hardened dark chocolate. The pistachio cannoli, however, had the perfect balance of sweetness and nuttiness from the crushed pistachios. The mascarpone filling here, as with the amaretto cannoli, was infused with pistachios (most likely with an oil or paste). While I enjoyed both cannolis very much, I think I preferred the pistachio over the amaretto due to level of sweetness. Unfortunately, though, I was only able to eat half of each before I hit a sugar coma and a point where my stomach could no longer tolerate the large globs of mascarpone, no matter how delicious each bite was.

Findings: It was great to be able to try a couple "signature" Beantown dessert shops during my brief trip there. I wish I could have stayed longer to try a few others (Christina's Homemade Ice Cream among one of them), but there's always next time! Emack & Bolio's was fun, and I wish I could've tried more flavors. That's when going in a larger group comes in handy -- you can mooch off of each other's treats to get a fuller experience! Mike's Pastry was lovely as well -- I've never seen such huge cannolis in my life! I liked that the bakery had an astounding variety of cannolis (as well as other Italian pastries) with original flavors. Only thing is I wish they offered smaller ones (i.e., bite size) and just a regular plain, old cannoli because sometimes the cannoli fix I need is just a small bite of basic pastry and mascarpone and I'm good to go. Either way, these two spots are great dessert spots to hit up whenever you happen to be in the Beantown area.

Price point: $3.50-5.50 for each treat at Emack & Bolio's, $3.50 for each cannoli from Mike's Pastry.

--April 6, 2012

Emack & Bolio's

290 Newbury Street

Boston, MA 02115

http://www.emackandbolios.com

Mike's Pastry

300 Hanover Street

Boston, MA 02113

http://www.mikespastry.com

Lunch | Flour Bakery & Café

I made a little 24-hour trip to Beantown at the end of last week. Marcus and I had been planning to make a trip up to Boston sometime this year, so when Marcus had a three-day conference to attend, it was the golden opportunity. Instead of making two separate trips (a four to five hour bus ride is a long way!), I thought it'd be easiest if we went up a day earlier together so we could have time to check the city and squeeze in some quality Boston eats while we were there. Our first stop upon arriving was to Flour Bakery & Café over in the South End.

After watching the episode of Throwdown! with Bobby Flay featuring the bakery's sticky buns together, Marcus and I both agreed that we needed to go there whenever we visit Boston. I had been to Flour three years ago (I had seen the episode before watching it again with Marcus), and I really enjoyed it, so I definitely wanted to go back. We also attended a book signing together last year where we got to meet Chef Chang and learn more about Flour and its recipe. Since then, we've really come to admire her personality as a celebrity chef as well as her mission at Flour.

We decided to go to Flour Bakery & Café over on the South End. I really love the bakery's logo -- it is so creative and fitting!

View of the counter at Flour from the seating area.

The menu wall over at Flour. The handwriting is so playful as are the illustrations.

Also love this little mantra set atop the entrance into the bakery's kitchen -- "Make life sweeter . . . eat dessert first!" Along with this, there is a daily weather report as well as a weekly quotation written regularly.

Offering of daily specials at Flour, including a daily tartine, soup, quiche, stuffed bread, and pizza!

Assortment of sweets and desserts on display at the counter.

And last, but not least, the (in)famous sticky-sticky buns that kicked Chef Bobby Flay's butt in the episode of Throwdown!

For lunch, I decided to have the grilled roast chicken sandwich with brie, arugula, roasted red peppers, and caramelized onions. I think what I liked most about this sandwich was the bread. With any grilled sandwich or panini, the bread that holds its contents all in place is very important. Without fresh bread and a nice toasted crunch, a sandwich is hardly a sandwich at all. At best, it is then just layers of meaningless meat, vegetables, and condiments. Now, the country bread used here at Flour was the perfect combination of toastedness and freshness. Each bite had a distinctly loose collapsing crunch while all of the sandwich's contents kept in place without the need of those cocktail toothpicks with the colored cellophane frills on the end. The roasted chicken was super moist, allowing for the creamy, melted brie to soak right in with the color medley of veggies.

Marcus had the egg sandwich served on foccacia roll with cheddar, tomato, arugula, dijonnaise, and choice of ham/bacon (Marcus chose the applewood bacon). What Marcus really liked about this egg sandwich was that it was more of a "sandwich" than the breakfast sandwiches he's had at various places (fast food joints, diners, etc.). What does this mean exactly? Well, Marcus found that the egg sandwich at Flour had the perfect balance of carbohydrates, egg, meat, cheese, and accoutrement, as each part did not steal the spotlight from another. These other sandwiches to which Marcus refers are typically egg-heavy, which overshadowed the flavors of other ingredients at hand with egg. With that being said, it was nice to finally see an egg sandwich done well. The artisan foccacia roll was a nice deviation from the usual biscuit, English muffin, and bagel.

For dessert, Marcus and I shared a sticky-sticky bun with dark, sticky caramel and toasted pecans. Essentially, this sticky-sticky bun is like a slice of pecan pie in pastry roll form. The topping was savory and sweet, and the pecans gave it a good nutty crunch. The roll part was also done really well -- soft and buttery. It definitely lived up to the hype and how I remembered it from my first visit. I would recommend sharing this with a few people so that you can get a taste without filling up on just this. That is, unless all you are eating is the sticky-sticky bun, then you're set! :P

Being the cookie fiend that he is, Marcus couldn't resist ordering two cookies, one traditional and one unique: a peanut butter cookie (creamy peanut butter and chopped nuts) and a cornmeal lime cookie. While it was a little too much for me, peanut butter fanatics (like Marcus) will love the peanut butter cookie as it is not only baked with peanut butter throughout, but also contains chopped peanuts! The cornmeal lime cookie was certainly different from any cookies I've had before. Sure I've had ones made from cornmeal, but never one that had fresh lime zest baked right in! To me, it tasted (in the best way possible) like Fruit Loops cereal -- similar to the taste sensation I had with the kaffir lime ice cream Marcus and I had at Kin Shop a couple years ago. The cookie itself was very fragile and crumbly, which is definitely attributable to the cornmeal, but the citrus glaze makes up for that. Apparently, the cornmeal lime cookie just made a recent reappearance at Flour, so we caught it just in time!

Findings: I think Flour Bakery & Café is great. I love everything about it -- from its interior (the chalkboard wall menu, the illustrations, the colors, etc.) to its assortment of café-style offerings (sandwiches, soups, salads, etc.) to its desserts that bring you back to the sweets that invaded your childhood tenfold. Everything we had was absolutely delicious and very well made/assembled/baked, so much so that I ate there again the next day for lunch before heading back to Manhattan. It is also awesome to know that Chef Chang began her career not in the culinary and pastry arts but in studying Mathematics and Economics at Harvard.

Our visit to Chef Joanne Chang's bakery was relaxing, comfortable, and just plain fun, which embodies everything the bakery's byline stands for: "Make life sweeter . . . eat dessert first!" Only difference was we saved dessert until the end. You know what they say -- always save the best for last! :P

Price point: $6.50-7.95 for each sandwich, $1.75-2.95 for each dessert.

--April 5, 2012

Flour Bakery & Café

1595 Washington Street

Boston, MA 02118

http://www.flourbakery.com

List | The Blog-Shy of 2011

Just like I did for 2010, I wanted to create a post detailing some of the dishes I had during 2011 but failed to blog about it in Four Tines and a Napkin. These were the most memorable to mind, as there were times I felt I was definitely eating faster than I could write (though I must say that I did much better of managing this in 2011 than I had in 2010 -- 102 posts versus 81 posts, respectively)! As I know I will say this every year, one of my resolutions for 2012 is to make sure I don't fall too far behind on blogging and updating Four Tines. Busy season in the bean counting world has already commenced, so I will do my best to keep up! In the mean time, here are the ones that "got away" --- the ones that were shy (I call it "blog-shy" -- kinda like "camera-shy") of making the cut.

{1} crepes from Viva La Crepe -- typically ham, mushroom, and Gruyère cheese or sugar and butter / {2} Eat Drink Art Design exhibit at the Museum of Arts and Design / {3} Park Avenue Winter seared scallop "sandwich" -- an open-faced sandwich consisting of toasted bread topped with slices of seared scallops, crispy hash of potatoes and bacon, and cream sauce / {4} flash-fried mushrooms with truffle oil at Il Tre Merli Bistro / {5} honey-rhum glazed pot roast of pork with sautéed shanghai bok choy, fried plantains, and enoki mushrooms at Asia de Cuba during Restaurant Week: Summer 2011 / {6} souvlaki pita -- charcoal grilled chicken wrapped in a warm pita with fresh tomato, red onion, two french fries, and tzatziki sauce -- from Soulvaki GR at the 2011 Vendy Awards on Governors Island (winner of People's Taste category) / {7} Rib of the Tiger taco -- bulgogi with Korilla sauce, shredded Monterey Jack cheese, tomato salsa, and lettuce -- from Korilla BBQ at the 2011 Vendy Awards on Govenors Island (Rookie of the Year category winner) / {8} Asian pear gelato from Capo Giro in Philadelphia / {9} Philly cheesesteak wit' onions, mushrooms, and American cheese from Pat's King of Steaks / {10} duck confit pasta with cranberries and pine nuts at SD26 / {11} The Frenchie burger at DBGB Kitchen & Bar -- 6-ounce beef patty with confit pork belly, arugula, tomato-onion compote, and Morbier cheese on a peppered brioche bun, served with cornichon, mustard, and fries / {12} truffle egg toast with shaved bottarga / {13} three-course prix fixe lunch at JoJo -- for the main course, slow-baked salmon with truffled mashed potatoes, brussel sprouts, and a truffle vinaigrette / {14} shot taken from Mia Chef Gelateria gelato-making class (aka, "Mia Academy"), while making Snickers gelato / {15} classica pizza with marinara sauce, fresh tomatoes, fresh mozzarella, and fresh basil, topped with truffle oil from Posto

{1} Nova Scotia lox and cream cheese on a pumpernickel bagel at Zucker's / {2} bacon-wrapped dates and olives stuffed with almonds from Alta / {3} book signing with food writer, David Lebovitz, at BabyCakes / {4} miniature ice cream cones from Burger & Barrel / {5} Creekstone Farms filet mignon with asparagus, butter-whipped potatoes, and crispy fried onions at Emeril's Chop House / {6} speakeasy-style cocktails at Milk & Honey

--circa 2011

Viva La Crepe (Nolita)

51 Spring Street

New York, NY 10012

http://www.vivelacrepe.fr/index.html

Museum of Arts & Design

Eat Drink Art Design

2 Columbus Circle

New York, NY 10019

on exhibit from September 21, 2010 thru February 13, 2011

http://www.madmusem.org

Park Avenue (Winter)

100 East 63rd Street

New York, NY 10021

http://www.parkavenyc.com

http://www.parkavenyc.com/winter

Il Tre Merli Bistro

183 West 10th Street

New York, NY 10014

http://www.itremerlibistrony.com

Asia de Cuba (now closed)

Morgans Hotel

237 Madison Avenue

New York, NY 10016

http://www.morganshotel.com/en-us/#/explore/?id=/morgans-new-york-asia-de-cuba/

Soulvaki GR

116 Stanton Street

New York, NY 10002

http://www.souvlakigr.com

for daily locations of food truck, follow Soulvaki GR on Twitter

Korilla BBQ

http://www.korillabbq.com

for daily locations, check website and follow Korilla on Twitter

Vendy Awards

http://streetvendor.org/vendys

check Facebook page for updates

Capo Giro (13th Street)

119 South 13th Street

Philadelphia, PA 19107

http://capogirogelato.com

Pat's King of Steaks

1237 East Passyunk Avenue

Philadelphia, PA 19147

http://www.patskingofsteaks.com

SD26

19 East 26th Street

New York, NY 10010

http://www.sd26ny.com

DBGB Kitchen & Bar

299 Bowery

New York, NY 10003

http://www.danielnyc.com/dbgb.html

'inoteca liquori

323 Third Avenue

New York, NY 10010

http://www.inotecanyc.com/liquori/home.php

JoJo

160 East 64th Street

New York, NY 10065

http://www.jean-georges.com

Mia Academy

Mia Chef Gelateria

379 Third Avenue

New York, NY 10016

http://www.gelatomia.com/#!mia-academy

Posto

310 Second Avenue

New York, NY 10003

http://www.postothincrust.com

Zucker's

146 Chambers Street

New York, NY 10007

http://www.zuckersbagels.com

Alta

64 West 10th Street

New York, NY 10011

http://www.altarestaurant.com

The Sweet Life in Paris: Delicious Adventures in the World's Most Glorious - and Perplexing City

David Lebovitz

http://www.davidlebovitz.com

available here on Amazon

BabyCakes

248 Broome Street

New York, NY 10002

http://babycakesnyc.com

Burger & Barrel

25 West Houston Street

New York, NY 10012

http://www.burgerandbarrel.com

Emeril's Chop House

Sands Casino Resort

77 Sands Boulevard

Bethlehem, PA 18015

http://www.emerils.com/restaurant/17/Emerils-Chop-House

Milk & Honey New York

134 Eldridge Street

New York, NY 10002

http://www.mlkhny.com/newyork

List | 2011, best bakeries for dessert

Here's a rundown of my favorite dessert spots of 2011, somewhat by category:

Best Overall Cupcakes

If you're looking for some moist, delectable cupcakes (and aren't from California, Chicago, DC, Texas, or Arizona, haha), please go to Sprinkles Cupcakes and treat yourself to one of the following:


The chai cupcake (only offered on Fridays) with spiced buttercream is probably my favorite, followed by the classic standard offerings of dark chocolate with dark chocolate sprinkles (you need to get it with these sprinkles, I insist) and red velvet (that cream cheese frosting is amazing).

Best French Macarons
If French macarons are more your style, and you're wanting the "real deal" all the way from Paris, then you're in luck. Europe-based Ladurée opened shop for the first time in the U. S. (more specifically, New York City) back in 2011, where they fly in the treasured and delicate macarons directly from its bakery in Paris. How crazy is that? That je ne sais quoi about Parisian air appears to hold true (at least to me, haha) for the texture of these particular macarons. Never could I have imagined to have tasted anything so fluffy and light, yet utterly delicious. Here are our (i.e., for Marcus and me) all-time favorite flavors from the mint-green (and multi-faceted pastel) shop:


Ladurée has a vanilla (vanille) macaron that will knock your socks off -- it is by far the truest tasting vanilla-flavored macaron that Marcus and I have had in our macaron madness of tastings. The lemon (citron) is tart and refreshing, but just enough so that it's not overly sour. The caramel (caramel à la fleur de sel) is stellar, and the chocolate (chocolat) has a creamy, bittersweet ganache at its center. Last but not least, the pistachio (pistache) is, simply put, poetic and dreamy, with its pleasant playfulness dancing on your palate with each and every bite.

While Ladurée is the place to go for more "classically driven" (both in regards to texture and flavor) French macarons (the everpresent line out the shop's French doors is a testament to this), La Maison du Macaron holds a special place in our hearts. Our first visit to a macaron shop (i.e., one that offers macarons) together as a couple was to this very spot (formerly known to us as Madeleine Patisserie). It was also, coincidentally enough, my first time (as well as Marcus's) ever having these delicious meringue delights -- who knew it would add to an obsessive mission of ours to find the best ones in New York City!

What we like most about La Maison du Macaron is the rotating list of flavors -- and not just a rotating smorgasbord, either. There are some flavors that are offered quite frequently (i.e., raspberry, pistachio, cassis, vanilla, chocolate, etc.), of course, but there are seasonal flavors, particularly the very innovative ones, that always keep us coming back for more. While we appreciate the classic French flavors, we like having a little twist in our occasional macaron intake. Here are the flavors to look out for (that we've already tried):


Pepsi-lime still remains Marcus's overall favorite. As we've only seen it (and had it) once at La Maison, it is almost as if it disappeared into the abyss as an urban myth. We swear it existed at some point, hoping that it'll make a gallant return to the patisserie's daily jewel box of macarons. Just to catalog: Cointreau, pink champagne, lychee rose, pistachio-lemon, Nutella, mango, kir royale, raspberry, and rum-cola.

Most Creative Gelateria

Now if you're jonesing for some gelato, I know the exact place you should visit: Mia Chef Gelateria over in Kips Bay. Like La Maison du Macaron with its eccentrically-flavored macarons, Mia Chef does the same with gelato.


Offering classics like pistachio, stracciatella, Dutch chocolaate, etc., Mia Chef balances these out with some unconventional flavors (almost twists on traditional gelato ones) with the popular Cinnamon Toast Crunch and Captain Crunch as well as fig & tequila (the gelateria's take on rum raisin), strawberry margarita, and Ferrero Rocher (a twist on Nutella and hazelnut).

Best Moderately Priced Gourmet Bakery
For some fun, pretty affordable gourmet treats, DessertTruck Works is your best bet.


Among the various desserts offered by DT Works, our favorites are its assortment of French macarons (specifically, salted caramel and praline), the warm molten chocolate cake, and the yeast-risen doughnuts with Nutella filling. In conjunction with these awesome desserts, DT Works offers baking workshops for French macarons and chocolate soufflés, which Marcus and I found to be enjoyable, informative, and easy to follow -- highly recommend to sign up for these workshops if you're hoping to learn how to attempt at creating these from scratch!

Best Innovative Dessert Combination
Now title for best innovative dessert combination goes to popbar in the West Village, for combining popsicles and gelato in a scrumptious dessert.


Pistachio Premium is a wonderful choice -- especially for the freshly crushed pistachios and chocolate -- among its treasure trove of colorful offerings. Not only do you get the wonderful creaminess from the gelato, but also the frozen goodness from a popsicle.


HONORABLE MENTIONS:

Beard Papa

Big Gay Ice Cream Shop

Choco Bolo (formerly The Best Chocolate Cake in the World)

Doughnut Plant

Wafels + Dinges

--circa 2011

Sprinkles Cupcakes (New York City)
780 Lexington Avenue
New York, NY 10065
http://www.sprinkles.com

Ladurée (New York City)
864 Madison Avenue
New York, NY 10021
http://www.laduree.com

La Maison du Macaron (formerly Madeleine Patisserie)
132 West 23rd Street
New York, NY 10011
http://www.nymacaron.com

Mia Chef Gelateria
379 Third Avenue
New York, NY 10016
http://www.gelatomia.com

DessertTruck Works
6 Clinton Street
New York, NY 10002
http://www.dt-works.net

popbar
5 Carmine Street
New York, NY 10014
http://www.pop-bar.com