Kin-Kin Bakery

Bakery: Kin-Kin Bakery and Bubble Tea
Address: Basement of the Atrium (Yonge & Dundas), Toronto ON
Website: n/a
Style: Chinese
Price: $-$$ 

Ah, finally I have a couple Cake Tours to do! I hit a dry spell last week, but one can't keep me away for very long. ^^ Anyways, I was in the Kensington Market area last weekend and having lunch more towards Eaton Centre; knowing that I'd covered all the bakeries in the neighbourhood, I recalled the Atrium had a Chinese bakery in the basement, so off I went. This location has seen a couple of Chinese bakery reincarnations, and this seems to be latest as well as the longest-lasting. Kin Kin seems to have a first location in Richmond Hill (at least, that's what I get when I Google it -- this location doesn't seem to exist anywhere online) and likewise seems to appeal more to a wider audience than your typical Chinese bakery with banh mi-style meat sandwiches; the usual large selection of meat buns wasn't that impressive, and there really wasn't that many traditional Chinese items. Prices weren't dirt cheap as with most bakeries, with most items at $1.50 and up; however, it was fresh, since one worker was running back and forth with trays of hot buns (though by the looks of it, I'm not sure they actually get the crowds for the amount they bake O.o)

Anyways, more due to a lack of anything more exciting (red bean, at least), I picked out the chocolate bun ($1.39), which was at least something unique. I hadn't really seen it anywhere else; it was similar to a HK-style pineapple bun in that there was the chocolate-y crust on top, with just the plain bun on the inside. It had a nice crunch and it was very fresh, but still ended up tasting like your average Chinese bun.

Besides this, I picked out the classic red bean sesame ball ($1.50). Fairly nice sesame crunch on the outside, soft filling, good taste -- nothing wrong, but at the same time nothing remarkable. Just your typical Chinese bakery fare, and with Chinatown a few blocks away, you can get it cheaper (but certainly not better).

Rating: **1/2