Sweet Bliss

Bakery: Sweet Bliss Baking Company
Address: 1304 Queen St E, Toronto ON
Website: http://www.sweetblissleslieville.com/
Style: Canadian, North American
Price: $$-$$$ 

The next bakery up in the tour of Leslieville, Sweet Bliss is a rather charming bakery and coffee shop with old-school vibes, though (yes, though) without a doubt the focus here is on cupcakes. However I wouldn't go so far as to call it a cupcake shop, considering they have a smaller selection of other baked goods including cinnamon buns (sold out), scones, cookies, and muffin-shaped coffee cakes. Whether it was because things were already gone on a Saturday afternoon or not, nothing really stood out as a must-try. It's so hard to gauge a bakery based on scones and cookies, so the default choice went to the strawberry rhubarb coffee cake, though I did end up enjoying my choice.

Sold in muffin forms, the strawberry rhubarb cake ($3.50) was, well, not the most photogenic baked good. The glaze, a bit of crumble and fruit melting all together on a hot summer day certainly didn't help matters, either. :/ Peeling off the paper, I was greeted with a moist and spongy vanilla coffee cake dotted with large chunks of chewy rhubarb. Slightly too big to handle, these were difficult to pick up without it completely peeling apart from the dough. Also, besides the pinkish top, I had a hard time discerning the strawberry part... where were they? O.o I like plain rhubarb cake, so it didn't bother me, but those who want a bit of sweetness to compliment the sourness of the rhubarb might be a little disappointed. Getting past the mess on top, this was something I enjoyed, mostly because I really like simple, home-style coffee cakes with fruit. Maybe it's something I expect more at home than from a bakery; it may not be worth the price, but it was still a tasty treat.

Rating: **1/2