Thomas Haas

Bakery: Thomas Haas
Address: 2539 West Broadway, Vancouver BC
Website: http://thomashaas.com
Style: French, European 
Price: $$-$$$ 

Despite encountering quite a few busy bakeries on my BC tour, Thomas Haas certainly beat the record for the longest line and wait time -- and I was fortunate that I didn't show up when the line went out the door! Of course, that also made plans of eating there out of the question. It was December and the patio seating was overflowing, but a busy bakery renews my faith in humanity and reassures me that I'm not the only one out there who values yummy baking. :P

Thomas Haas is without a doubt the fancy patisserie on the block, and stepping inside, you get that Old World feel that is not that prevalent on these shores. Judging by their website, their focus is first and foremost on chocolate -- and in store, they have rows upon rows of it. Then come lovely cakes that can only be called works of art, and I can only imagine how they taste! Then come the individual items, which, unfortunately, were pretty much cleaned out upon finally reaching the counter. There were three types of baked goods to choose from (croissant, the fresh fruit danish, and the orange brioche -- the last quark danish was snatched up before my eyes) and a limited number of pretty individual cake slices. Even with the empty shelves and limited selection, it was a sight to behold. *-* However, while the chocolates and baked goods were labelled and priced, I didn't like that the cake slices had no prices (I later spotted a price list on top of the counter next to the cash) and had no names or explanations, which slowed things down and made it difficult to figure out what was what, especially since you were served before actually reaching the cakes, so even pointing was impossible.

In the end, I thought a baked good safer for takeout anyways and went with the fresh fruit danish ($3.50), mostly because I preferred the flaky French dough over the soft, yeasty dough of the brioche. ^^; The cylindrical shape was a little difficult to break into and made it that the majority of what you were eating was dough, and I'm not quite sure if two blueberries and a raspberries warrants the 'fresh fruit' label, but nonetheless, the dough had great texture and taste. A more than promising start before tackling those amazing cakes... o_o

Rating: ***