Mammoth Bakery [Mimi's World Tour]

Bakery: Mammoth Bakery
Address: 34 Munhwagwangjang-gil, Junggu-dong, Andong, Gyeongsangbuk-do
Website: n/a
Style: Korean
Price: $$

As strange as it seems, given it is in a smaller city, Mammoth Bakery was probably *the* bakery with the most hype around it during my Korea trip. For one, it's the only bakery mentioned in my Lonely Planet guide, country-wide. It also seemed overwhelmingly crowded at any time of day. I actually had to attempt it three times before I was able to grab something: I came in the evening first and found it completely cleaned out, I came on early Sunday afternoon and found a line literally out the door. Once more in the evening, there were three or four items left, so I settled on one. The next day, upon my departure, I made a return trip and, though still not full in terms of selection, I managed to grab something more desirable amidst all that insanity.

Actually, in honour of so much excitement surrounding a bakery, I tried three items. The first was the mocha bun (2000 won). This was a fairly standard sweet bun with a nice mocha 'crust' on top and fluffy bread underneath. I liked the slightly chewy outside with that hint of coffee, but the bread on the inside was nothing remarkable.

The apple danish (1500 won) was from their series of more European pastries. The dough was less bready and more on the flaky side. Good baked apple filling with some nuts sprinkled on top - but the whole batch was burnt and that blackened top had a definite impact on the taste.

Last but not least, there was the classic rice doughnut (1200 won). Given its size in comparison to everything else, it wasn't really worth it, but they never are. Crunchy and golden brown on the outside, extra chewy on the inside. I felt like it needed some more sweetness. Suffice to say, it wasn't the best I'd had.

It may be the best bakery in Andong (I couldn't exactly find another one), but is Mammoth Bakery worth all that mammoth hype? Nope.

Rating: **1/2