Die Güte [Mimi's World Tour]

Bakery: Die Güte 
Address: Namba walk 1 avenue, 2 Chome-2, Nanba, Chuo ward, Osaka
Website: http://a-1bakery.co.jp/
Style: Japanese
Price: $$

Unfortunately, like a great many Japanese bakeries, especially those in larger cities and in downtown areas, Die Güte is part of another one of those bakery empires; this case, A1 Bakery that encompasses A1 bakery, Güte (and all subsidiaries) and Miyabi bakeries. It is a little frustrating, truth be told, but a bakery is a bakery. Wandering through the underground maze of shopping malls including Namba Walk, it's nonetheless one of the more enticing spots with a large selection of sweet and savoury goods spread out almost haphazardly on tables here and there, leading to a bit of confusion with tray wielding customers navigating from one area of the bakery to the other, with a faux brick oven backdrop. Whether it helps with the logistics or not, many - though not all - items are repeated.

One definite exception is the table of seasonal favourites that was, at the time, located in the corner past the cash. It being strawberry season (and the onset of sakura season), many were either coated or stuffed with pink.

 One of the more appealing treats was the strawberry pretzel. (183 yen) Beneath the thin, all-over pink glaze and dash of some sort of dark pink garnish (it was slightly sour and actually had more flavour than the coating itself), the dough was soft, a bit chewy with a little flakiness on the outside; add that nice crunch thanks to just the right amount of glaze. Personally, I would have liked the dough itself to have more flavour, but it was a unique treat and a tasty one at that. A pretty good stop while navigating the Namba area.

Rating: ***