Diplomat Bakery

Bakery: Diplomat Bakery 
Address: 6168 London Rd, Richmond BC
Website: http://www.diplomatbakery.com/
Style: European 
Price: $$ 

Taking a wrong turn while on the way to Steveston led us to this brand-new development along the waterfront in Richmond. I mean, the air smelled of road tar and the sidewalks looked like they were laid yesterday (though this bakery has been in their "new" location for more than a year, so the area is actually not that new...). There was a strangely desolate feeling on a Sunday afternoon, so much so that I assumed Diplomat was closed. Nope, it was open! And so I went...

Diplomat falls into what I call the pan-European bakery. There's no one specific style it conforms to, and instead takes some of the most famous classics from all countries and a few original creations thrown in for fun and presents in a wide display of cake (both whole and sliced) and baked goods. Well, in theory, at least. The desolate feeling persisted on the inside as well and there was a lot of empty space where I assumed cake and pastries should be. Some savoury items, a few varieties of croissants and muffins -- it was one of these places where I had a hard time deciding what I should take.

Fortunately, there was the Almond Copenhagen ($2.75) and redemption had been found. This was a flaky, exceptionally buttery slice of dough; rather two pieces of dough, with a flat part and the spiral part on top separated by a rich almond mass. A bit too rich for this kind of dough, but nonetheless, it was a tasty, albeit unexpected, treat.

Rating: ***