Pasaj

Bakery: Pasaj

Address: 1100 Queen St E, Toronto ON

Website: http://www.pasajtoronto.com/

Style: Turkish 

Price: $$$$

 

I recently posted a review for a Turkish bakery and, being in the mood for more Turkish, did a little research and found out about to this cafe famous for its breakfast/brunch. Though not quite a bakery, they have a small selection of Turkish/Middle Eastern pastries and other sweets. A very pricey selection, that is. It's always puzzled me... does this part of Toronto have ridiculously high rent for retail or something? Because it has to be the most expensive destination for food in the city. I am not kidding. Is it just me? I mean, it's not like the neighbourhood is that prestigious or something... 

I read that the signature item is their "famous" Istanbul eclairs. I was dubious of the whole "famous" part, but there are actually websites listing where you can get the best eclairs in Istanbul... who knew? These are smaller than expected and, in my opinion, overpowered by the chocolate topping. Not that much cream could actually fit inside, so it lost the whole concept of an eclair. Equally tiny was the piece of baklava. For its size it had a nice amount of nutty filling and the ratio was quite good, but it was too wet and soggy - there was simply too much syrup. 

Lastly, the surprise winner was the date square. Now, I do love dates, so why the surprise? In truth, I was expecting something different, perhaps infused with more Middle Eastern flavours than a classic Canadian date square with an oat granola topping. That being said, it was nice and chewy and I liked the texture of that top. Overall, I wasn't the biggest fan of the miniature pastries - I think they would have been more in proportion had they been slightly bigger. The price, on the other hand, really was too much for what you get. 

Rating: **

Gulbay Turkish Bakery

Bakery: Gulbay Turkish Bakery

Address: 90 Winges Rd #21, Woodbridge ON

Website: n/a 

Style: Turkish

Price: $$ 

I'm always a sucker for less common ethnic baking and Turkish bakeries definitely fall into this category (though I do have another one coming up shortly); this small bakery, though focusing predominantly on savoury baked goods and breads, does have limited selection of sweet items you probably won't find anywhere else. 

Beyond the Turkish-style pita bread and bagels, there were a few treats that I totally jumped at the chance to try. Namely, the korek ($10), which they called a poppy seed cake. Poppy seed? *__* You know you can count me in! Prompted by my initial surprise at not finding anything black inside, I did some online research and found that korek is actually stuffed with white poppy seed and walnut. That white poppy seed had a definite sesame seed taste and... I was pretty darn devastated. Fluffy, semi-sweet bread with a delicate undertone of halvah and nuts that - like everything both sweet and savoury from this bakery - could have most certainly benefited from more filling, notwithstanding my disappointment at not being the poppy seed cake I was envisioning... 

The other item was the intriguing "mom's cookie" ($2). Except I'm not quite sure I could call it a cookie, certainly not the cookie you and I are thinking of. For lack of a better description, it was like a ever so slightly spiced raisin bun with a rock-hard crust. Eating it, it seemed rather dull on its own, like it needed to be sliced and served with butter. I'm not sure if that was the intended purpose, but I'll admit I was expecting something a little more exciting?

Rating: **1/2

Crown Pastries

Bakery: Crown Pastries

Address: 5083 Dixie Rd, Mississauga ON

Website: http://crownpastries.com/

Style: Middle Eastern, Syrian

Price: $$$ 

So someone wanted to get a baklava gift box and I couldn't help tagging along and giving this pastry shop a try. Unlike most Middle Eastern pastry shops, where the focus is without a doubt the baklava, the signature item here (at least they have a dedicated sign for it in the window) appears to be knafeh and a few other varieties of syrup-soaked, cheese-stuffed squares. But of course they still have many varieties of baklava along with a few buttery pastries and cookies - actually, one of my favourite items was their 'cream puff' (not pictured; called "shabiatt" in-store) with an incredible caramelized bottom. 

Those items that were pictured included all the varieties of squares I was talking about above. I'll admit that I did try knafeh before (a sort of cake made from syrupy semolina and filled with gooey cheese) and wasn't a fan. Seeing as it wasn't at a pastry shop, I thought I'd give it another try. Um, I think I have to admit defeat. This was better than the first one, but I just can't get over the combination of sweet, crumbly dough and that gummy, almost mozzarella-like cheese. 

There were two other squares: the one with stringy kataifi dough on top was filled with a creamier fresh cheese; this I preferred, but I still wasn't the biggest fan of the filling. Despite others liking this one the best, I liked the date-stuffed square the best. 

However, the best thing I got from this bakery had to be these pistachio "cookies": bite-sized, syrup-soaked nutty nuggets wrapped in filo dough. The texture was incredible. I started with just trying one and couldn't stop. Honestly, I would go back and just get a whole box of these next time, they were that good! 

Rating: ***

Bread and Salt Bakehouse

Bakery: Bread and Salt Bakehouse

Address: 3455 Semenyk Ct, Mississauga ON 

Website: http://www.breadandsalt.ca/

Style: Middle Eastern

Price: $$ 

This newer bakery appears to be related to the Afghan restaurant on Dundas. It has the same name and logo, so it's a bit of a given and yet the bakery offshoot comes across as more Lebanese with its zaatar- and pita bread-heavy selection as opposed to something like barbari bread which I would associate more with Afghan baking. I was a little confused. Nonetheless, despite it being located in an industrial area, this unique bakery is an upscale fusion of Middle Eastern and European styles and flavours, especially in their sweet assortment that ranges from buttery French pastries to creamy cakes. 

Starting with the more traditional European pastries, I took the chocolate croissant ($2.99). The French dough was nice and flaky, with a great crunch when you bit into it and a good amount - not too skimpy which is sometimes the problem - of chocolate. 

I spotted honey cake in the cake section and... said opera cake when it came to ordering it. Not wanting to correct myself after such a silly blunder, I stuck to my opera cake ($5.99). After all, I like opera cake as well and this was a pretty one, with multiple layers of alternating dough, chocolate and vanilla cream. The problem was, in my opinion, that the chocolate slab on top in addition to the thick chocolate cream in between made simply taste like chocolate, to an overpowering degree.

Without a doubt, however, the highlight had to be the double-baked pistachio croissant with mulberry jam ($3.95). I love double-baked croissants as it is and this pistachio version was delicious: nutty with a sweet jam filling and a chewy texture, though it could have been more buttery and had more of that amazing pistachio topping. An excellent and interesting addition to the Mississauga bakery scene. 

Rating: ***1/2

Laleh Bakery

Bakery: Laleh Bakery

Address: 130 15th St W, North Vancouver BC 

Website: facebook

Style: Persian, Middle Eastern

Price: $$

I had a mega craving for zolbia ever since having some phenomenal ones from nearby Golestan Bakery. Zolbia were on my mind for weeks, so when I decided to further explore the bakeries lining Lonsdale, I just knew what I was going to get: zolbia. A whole box of them! At any rate, a whole smaller box of them. ;) One of the most highly rated Persian bakeries I found was Laleh and the fact that many people commented on the reasonable prices made it my top pick. After all, those sugar syrup-soaked pastries sold by weight do add up pretty quickly. In addition to typical Middle Eastern pastries like baklava and kataifi, Laleh also sells a wide assortment of cookies and cream-stuffed treats and cake slices; all, I believe, is sold by weight and nothing is labelled or priced. 

But this time around I was here for the zolbia ($4.62 for 5 pieces). My mouth was watering just looking at them, so I don't know if it was simply a matter of too high expectations, but I was almost immediately disappointed. I don't know if it was a bad batch, but the strands of dough were so thin that they were hard and brittle - some were so overdone that they were a dark brown (such as the one in the back). The purpose of soaking them in syrup is to get them hard on the outside and chewy and gooey on the inside. They're not supposed to be hard candies. I was so let down that I gave the rest of the box to someone else and even they didn't expect it to be shards of dough. I was heartbroken. 

Rating: **1/2

Golestan Bakery

Bakery: Golestan Bakery

Address: 1755 Robson St, Vancouver BC 

Website: n/a

Style: Persian

Price: $$$ 

 

There are some bakeries where the name alone just brings that sparkle to your eyes and everything else in life simply vanishes upon the memory of whatever delectable treat you had. Yes, it doesn't happen often. Actually, it hardly ever happens, which can be evidenced by how few 4-star bakeries there are on my little blog. In this case, however, one word is needed to transport me back to bliss: zolbia. Zolbia from Golestan, to be exact. Whoa, and here we go... *-*

When it comes to Middle Eastern and Indian pastries, I'm such a sucker for what I universally call jalebi, though of course they have different names depending on the country and language. I just love these golden yellow/orange spirals of syrup-soaked fried dough and in my opinion Persian zolbia are the best in terms of style. So when I spotted the zolbia at Golestan - a bakery originally from North Vancouver with a newer location on Robson - among their wide array of traditional pastries and cookies (all sold by weight) in addition to a few more universal treats like chocolate cake, I knew I had to try them. These zolbia ($5.15 for three) didn't look like anything particularly remarkable, but that first bite was incredible and it only got better from there. They had the perfect texture: super chewy with a mild crisp on the outside, just the right amount of sugar syrup inside and out. They were so good, to the point where I couldn't stop until I'd eaten everything. Wow, these changed my mind about how I see these simple pastries. The best ones I've ever had!

Rating: ****

Kostas Greek Bakery

Bakery: Kostas Greek Bakery
Address: 265 Ellesmere Rd, Scarborough, ON 
Website: https://www.kostasgreekbakery.com/
Style: Greek
Price: $$ 

Though the meat market and deli of the same name located right next door seems to enjoy more renown and crowds than its neighbour, Kostas is a well-stocked bakery filled with one glass case after another of both traditional Greek pastries and desserts - both perennial classics and more unique sweets you may not find at all Greek bakeries - along with a lovely array of more pan-European cake slices. Honestly, Kostas is one of these rare bakeries where you have such a hard time picking out one item, simply because everything looks good. The prices being fairly reasonable, you do have some leeway when it comes to getting more than you initially came for.

 Every trip to a new Greek bakery merits a slice of classic baklava ($2.50).  This one was oozing in honey syrup and had a nice amount of nuts in between the thin layers of filo dough. The bottom layer got a little soggy, but it was nonetheless an excellent example of what makes Greek baklava the best.

I also gave a slice of ravani ($2.50) a try. I've seen this semolina-based cake in its original variety before; it's certainly more prominent in Lebanese bakeries than in Greek, but I've never seen any different versions. This one had the same syrup-soaked semolina sponge cake with a hint of orange and it was that orange that really set it apart. There was indeed a reason why the tin was almost empty!

That should have been it had I not spotted the sugar doughnuts ($2.00) at the cash. Literally the size of a dinner plate, these doughnuts are huge! Granted the whole in the middle is larger than average, but that thinner, less puffy dough allowed the doughnuts to be nice and crispy with every bite. What a find - so glad I unexpectedly stumbled on this bakery!

Rating: ***1/2

Loukoumania Cafe

Bakery: Loukoumania Cafe
Address: 3120 Rutherford Rd Unit 10, Concord, ON 
Website: https://www.loukoumania.ca/
Style: Greek
Price: $$ 

I can't even remember the last time I encountered a new 4-star sweet spot in the GTA - it's been a long time! I'd driven past Loukoumania a couple times and kept saying I'd give it a try in the future. The idea of a cafe specializing in the greatest of Greek pastries - loukoumades - was certainly an appealing one, though having tried them elsewhere, I wasn't really prepared for how good the ones from Loukoumania were.

 The one thing Loukoumania definitely has going in their favour is that their loukoumades - honey-soaked dough balls - are made to order so they're not sitting around at room temperature all day, getting soggy and losing the incredible crunchy outer layer they have when freshly made. Of course you have to bypass all the gimmicks and go with their traditional, in as big a pack as possible ($16.95 for 36). They're soaked in honey and dusted in cinnamon, deliciously crunchy on the outside and, with a quick crack, you have a moist spongy centre. These were a transcendental experience - I'll never look at loukoumades the same again!

Rating: ****

Smith's Bagelry

Bakery: Smith's Bagelry
Address: 191 W Broadway, Vancouver BC 
Website: http://www.smithsbagelry.com/
Style: Turkish, Greek 
Price: $$-$$$ 

I've come across quite a few unlikely finds at bagel joints: here is another one. On the outside, Smith's is as bagel joint as it gets - they even have displayed outdoors for purchase. Inside, well, with its counter of Turkish sweet and savoury treats, it appears that "Smith" isn't the name of the family running the place - and of course I mean that in the most positive sense. Unfortunately, that counter is actually filled mostly with savoury pogaca and bourek, both available in several varieties. The sweets consist mostly of classic baklava, tulumba (called "Turkish churros" in-store) and a few couple types of cake, sold in slices (that could be a little bigger ^^).

I was going to go with the baklava when I noticed the man in front of me take two slices of banana cheesecake. I myself am not a banana person, but their cheesecake - also available in plain - looked amazing! And I happen to be a cheesecake expert. So one slice of San Sebastian cheesecake ($4.49) it was. A little too blackened on top was the only minus here; this was one delicious slice of cheesecake. The texture and amount of cheese were perfect: not too thick, only slightly crumbly. To top things off it was soaked in a sugar syrup similar to what you'd find in a baklava and there was just a hint of pooling at the bottom - incredible. Local cafe Trees (future Cake Tour post) claims on each of their stores that they have the best cheesecake in Vancouver; I was skeptical before I tried and I now know it to be wrong: the best cheesecake in Vancouver is found at Smith's.

Rating: ***1/2

The Sweet Greek [RIP]

Bakery: The Sweet Greek 
Address: 2277 Commercial Dr, Vancouver BC
Website: n/a 
Style: Greek 
Price: $$ 

I know I've fallen a little behind in my reviewing, but how could this popping spot serving Greek pastries and hot food close within two months of my having gone there?! Before I got a chance to even post my review of it! Well, I ate it, I have the review for it, and so it's going here nonetheless...

The Sweet Greek really is more a cafe than anything else and I think the name probably brings up connotations of a dessert cafe; however, they've got some sweet, some savoury, and some classic Greek food (souvlaki, anyone?). Though the counter space isn't that big or well-stocked (actually it came across as quite empty), in terms of those sweets, they have everything that comes to mind when you think of Greek pastries: baklava, kataifi, bougatsa... just no loukoumades when I was there. Darn it! ;) In addition to this, they have a couple cake options as well - something you don't often see. Some sort of coconut cream and cheesecake, for example.

Of course you have to try the baklava. Mini baklava, to be exact ($2.50). It definitely was mini; the price, on the other hand, was a bit too much for the size. Still, it was a beautiful, intricately twisted piece of syrupy and nut-stuffed phyllo dough. It could have perhaps been a bit more soaking, but still a classic Greek baklava - the best kind of baklava there is.

I was intrigued by their original creation: the apple bougatsa ($3.00). Bougatsa is that flaky, rich and syrupy custard pie, so I was kind of expecting to bite into this and get an eruption of custard and spiced apples. In that sense, I was a little disappointed that there actually was no custard and the dough wasn't really flaky or honey-soaked. The spiced apples were there and had quite a nice flavour, but I think there were too few of them and too much dough in comparison. The baklava was definitely the highlight of this now defunct show. :/

Rating: ***

Boulangerie Patisserie Wellington

Bakery: Boulangerie Patisserie Wellington 
Address: 3990 Rue Wellington, Verdun QC 
Website: n/a 
Style: French, Algerian 
Price: $-$$ 

Along Verdun's main street, there are quite a few bakeries among the other commercial businesses. Boulangerie/Patisserie Wellington is one of them and while it may not exactly have a very creative name, it has the distinction of having, in addition to baskets filled with classic French baked goods and quite a few full-sized and individual cakes, an impressive array of, I believe, Algerian or at least North African/Middle Eastern pastries including several types of baklava along with more unusual sugar syrup-soaked sweets that have been elaborately twisted, folded and piped to form a wide variety of pretty shapes.

The fried dough clusters ($1.50) definitely had to be tried... except if I knew they'd be so cheap, I would have bought more than just one. I only realized once I'd left how little I paid! According to personal research, these are known as "griwech" and consist of several strips of airy dough that have been fried and lightly coated in an orange water-scented syrup and sprinkled with sesame seeds. Unlike their cousins jalebi/zalabia, these were lighter and less sweet, less candy-like; I did like that texture. Very good and a nice discovery on my tour of Verdun!

Rating: ***1/2

Melina's Phyllo Bar

Bakery: Melina's Phyllo Bar
Address: 5733 Park Ave, Montreal QC
Website: facebook
Style: Greek 
Price: $$$

No, it's not a bakery - it's a phyllo bar! Melina's is a small, hole-in-the-wall snack bar and cafe with seating for just a few people that specializes in flaky, layered dough in any shape or form. And everyone knows some of the best stuff to come from Greece involves phyllo dough; naturally, though they have savoury items such as spanakopita and tiropita, I'm specifically referring to the sweet side of things: most famously baklava along with kataifi and honey syrup-soaked pies. Some even come warmed up and cut up into bite-sized pieces for your convenience (because it's not easy breaking off phyllo, after all).

It being a cold, rainy and thoroughly miserable day, I went with the only sweet served warm: the bougatsa ($4.30). Bougatsa is a sort of flaky pie stuffed with custard. Melina's version was rich and comforting with thick, decadent custard and layers of crunchy and chewy dough. Not too much custard (which is sometimes the case), not too much dough: just right.

Rating: ***

Serano Greek Pastry

Bakery: Serano Greek Pastry
Address: 3185 W Broadway, Vancouver BC
Website: n/a
Style: Greek 
Price: $$

Serano Greek Pastry is most likely the destination for Greek pastries in Kitsilano. Small and well-established, Serano is old-school Greek bakery that focuses on various types of baklava and other syrupy, nut-filled filo pastries along with a small selection of slightly more pan-European cake slices and cookies. Though not a priority of mine, they also happen to make their own pita bread.

 Naturally, trying the baklava ($2.25/each) was a must. As opposed to other styles of baklava, Greek baklava tends to be soaked in honey syrup; in some cases, it's positively oozing and Serano certainly doesn't disappoint on that level with moist, juicy layers stuffed with a delicious nutty filling. Great texture that's neither too soggy nor too dry and great taste -- this is some good baklava!

Rating: ***1/2

Walla Artisan Bakery [RIP]

Bakery: Walla Artisan Bakery
Address: 114-1475 Fairview Rd, Penticton BC
Website: http://wallafoods.com/
Style: Mediterranean, Middle Eastern, Israeli
Price: $$$

I recently did a fairly thorough tour of Penticton. The first stop was this artisan bakery located inside the Cannery market (though it's not much of a market) that also doubles up as a quaint cafe serving hot lunch items. In some ways, owing to the limited selection of items up for sale (many shelves were empty on an early Saturday afternoon), it might be more a cafe than a bakery, though Walla does sell bread, some cake and a few rotating baked goods which include Middle Eastern classics like baklava, chocolate babka along with French staples like pain au chocolat. So while the choices are limited, they do look good; in that sense, the one thing detracting me from buying up more was the price. At prices starting at $5 for an individual baked good or $4.50 for a piece of baklava, I thought it was a bit much.

Still, one look at the Italian plum and almond danish ($5) and my mind was made up. Firstly, it was so nice to see something different and baked goods using plum -- well, it would perhaps be more appropriate to say "prune" -- are definitely few and far between, so I always like to give them a try when I do see them. Maybe it didn't look too photogenic, but it was good in taste: a softer dough (though I would have like it to be flakier) stuffed with a filling of prune jam and almond mass. The prunes were slightly sour, not too sweet or homogeneous, and they really complimented the more subtle flavour of the almond. Nice amount of dough. Good, slightly more elevated pastries from a skilled bakery.

Rating: *** 

Blue Canoe Bakery & Cafe [RIP]

Bakery: Blue Canoe Bakery & Cafe 
Address: 121 Shuswap St S, Salmon Arm BC
Website: http://www.bluecanoebakery.com/
Style: Mediterranean, Canadian 
Price: $$-$$$ 

The second dedicated bakery in Salmon Arm is, like Shuswap Pie Company, more a cafe and sit-down spot than a place to pop in and grab baked goods or bread, though they sell both. Instead, Blue Canoe seems more of a lunch/coffee break destination with a fairly large menu featuring sandwiches, salads and wraps, although they do also offer an interesting, almost surprising array (especially given it's a smaller town bakery) of treats that include classic Canadian bakery staples (cookies, muffins and buns) with a more than generous dash of Mediterranean/Greek/Lebanese pastries thrown in there for fun. I'll admit I didn't expect to find baklava -- but it was pretty exciting I did.

 These baklava ($3.95) are bigger than usual, come in two varieties (the braided one pictured and a more conical version) and are made individually, almost like nutty danishes, so you don't get it sitting in a tray of sugary syrup, which just so happens to be the best kind of baklava. A bit pricey, it nevertheless had a lot of crushed nuts, raisins, and a smattering of pistachio as well. Pretty good.

The second item I couldn't resist grabbing was a single-serve basboussa (was it $3 or $3.95 as well? I'm not sure...). This Middle Eastern sponge cake made with semolina and sugar syrup was one I'd tried once before and really liked; the latter used Greek yogourt for a denser, richer dough and I don't think anyone can beat it, but this was very good in its own right: moist, semi-sticky dough with great texture and taste. It really is one of those treats you can't stop eating!

In short, if you're in the mood for something a little different, Blue Canoe is a friendly, interesting bakery worth checking out.

Rating: ***

Galata Cafe

Bakery: Galata Turkish Cafe
Address: 5122 Dundas St W, Etobicoke ON
Website: http://anatoliafinefoods.com/
Style: Turkish
Price: $$

This Turkish cafe a few doors down from Anatolia restaurant somewhat-recently changed its name but still redirects to Anatolia; is it still a more laid-back offshoot of the restaurant and they simply tried to avoid the confusion of having two Anatolias on the same plaza? Or are they independent? Either way, this is one of the very few places for Turkish food in the GTA. There are, of course, a couple spots specializing in pide (a pizza-like savoury pie), but nothing really delving into the sweet realm.

 That being said, Galata/Anatolia advertises Turkish coffee and pastries, but these pastries are mostly savoury, stuffed with feta cheese, spinach or meat. Of the sweets, there are but few. These include three types of baklava, a honey-soaked cookie and a Bundt-style walnut cake. All are more or less the same price. 

 The walnut cake ($2.25) was a big slice of slightly dense, sandy coffee cake with chunks of walnut mixed into the dough. The size of the nuts made them restricted to only one area, but it was homemade in taste. I personally prefer the moister coffee cafe style, but this was a nice treat.

Secondly, there was the cookie ($2.00). Just like baklava, it was soaked in a honey syrup and it drank it all purchases. Not soggy, but still nicely moist, this was the highlight, if, that is, you don't count the hospitality. There's a reason why it's one of the first things mentioned on their website: genuine, warm hospitality that you seldom meet at any business and completely changes your view of customer service.

Rating: ***

Soula's Tea Garden

Bakery: Soula's Tea Garden
Address: 260 George St, Cobourg ON
Website: http://www.soulasteagarden.ca/
Style: Greek 
Price: $$

It doesn't happen often, but there are times when the Cake Tour stumbles onto something undeniably unique, maybe even lovingly random. Today, we feature Soula's. ;) Soula's is a tea house on overdrive: in addition to loose leaf teas that you can enjoy there or buy for home use, there's an art gallery, random gifts, lunches, locally made preserves -- and Greek pastries. It would be interesting to even count how many times "Greek pastries" appears on their website, because, after all, the perfect compliment to tea is.. Greek pastries. Who knew? Of course I won't disagree with that! :D

Nonetheless, this very cute shop with a little bit of almost everything has homemade Greek pastries and they seem insanely proud of that fact. Even the man in-store began charting the history of the family baklava recipe. It's so refreshing to find genuine people passionate about what they sell! Nonetheless, this famous baklava ($2.25, taxes included -- if I didn't confuse the price with something else) was a great example of classic Greek baklava: a triangle of honey-soaked flaky dough that was filled with nuts. One baklava connoisseur said it could have been a little more soaking in that good stuff or bigger even (naturally), but it was very good nonetheless. Just more proof that, indeed, the best baklava is the Greek kind, hands down. Whether or not the recipe passed down from generation to generation is required is up to interpretation. :P

Rating: ***

NLPita

Bakery: NLPita
Address: 82 O'Leary Ave., St. John's NL (@ St John's Farmers Market)
Website: n/a
Style: Middle Eastern
Price: $$

While in St. John's, I decided to make a visit to the Farmers Market, having heard there was some good food worth picking up. Naturally, I was hoping that "good food" involved baked goods. And it did. :P In fact, I told myself I would buy one item and that would be that. I grabbed two and was forced to give up on a third. One of the items I did try were the sweets from the NL Pita table outside. In addition to your usual pita bread, they had a few sweeter selections, such as date croissants (which I would have so taken had I had a bigger budget; the attestation from the seller that they were very good didn't help -_-) and slices of basbousa ($3), the Egyptian variation of semolina cake. The woman in front of me was asking what they were and the seller was explaining what went into them -- though I have to say likening it to baklava may be somewhat misleading for someone who has no idea what semolina cake is.

I'll have another piece, please! ^^;;

Made chunks of almonds, and drenched in a sugar syrup, these guys also added Greek yogourt instead of the usual milk or condensed milk. The result was a denser, creamier dough that stayed together as one mass and almost had the feeling of a cheesecake, often difficult with semolina cakes, which crumble and are more sandy. This was then soaked in sugar syrup, but not too much for it to be soggy and then generously topped with chunks of nuts. Having had no breakfast, I ate it on the spot and enjoyed it so much I would have probably run to buy more if my budget allowed it (it didn't -- I had already spent too much at the market .__.) and if I hadn't bought the last piece. ;)

I'm generally not the biggest fan of Middle Eastern sweets, so even I was amazed at how delicious this was! Another high ranker from St. John's.

Rating: ***1/2

Mid-East Food Centre

Bakery: Mid-East Food Centre & Cafe
Address: 2595 Agricola St, Halifax NS 
Website: n/a
Style: Lebanese, Middle Eastern 
Price: $$ 

This was my first of two attempts at getting baked goods for reviewing from the local market directly across the street from Mid-East; their website says that they make their own baked good with organic ingredients and the photos look pretty good, but every time I'm there, there's never anything there! I was hoping to get something before my flight this time around and found, in the morning, fully-stacked shelves with bread but no individual goodies. :(

I may not be sweet, but don't forget about me~!

Not quite sure what to do and devastated I wouldn't have a Cake Tour that day, I crossed the street and popped into this deli and adjacent cafe, which is located next door is the somewhat deceiving Fancy Lebanese Bakery (deceiving in that they're more or less a commercial bakery and this is their pita bread production facility). Having spent several nights in the North End, I'd walked by the windows of the cafe a few times and noticed with too sharp an eye that they had a sweets section, a whole case of various types of baklava and cookies along with savoury baked goods as well. Unlike the vast majority of Lebanese bakeries, items were individually priced, not charged by weight, which was greatly appreciated by me. At least there are no surprises: various styles of mammoul were $2.00 while baklava was $1.75 (if I remember correctly) per item. It still will add up if you want to go all-out, but at least it's a conscious decision. :P

Nonetheless, I got three items. The first was my makeshift lunch at the airport: a feta fatayer ($2.25), a small patty stuffed with feta and white cheese (presumably akawi). No, it's not sweet, but it was good, so I thought it deserved some mention.

Bring on the mammoul!

Not an overwhelming baklava lover and wanting something more meaty to get me through the day, I settled for two mammoul ($2.00/each), one date and the other walnut. The date variety melted in your mouth: lots of tasty date filling with a semolina-based dough and just the right amount of fragrance -- this is usually way overdone and too aromatic but this was perfect. The walnut variety was filled with a delicious filling of chopped walnuts with an excellent dough. I do like mammoul and these were some great examples; most of all, they tasted fresh, which was appreciated. More often than not, cookies taste a bit like they've been sitting there for weeks on bakery shelves, but these were neither dried out or stale. I probably would have bought more had it not been for this darned budget. *sighs*

Rating: ***

Lebanese Bakery

Bakery: Lebanese Bakery
Address: 2094 Lawrence Ave E, Scarborough ON 
Website: http://www.lebanesebakery.ca/
Style: Lebanese, Middle Eastern
Price: $$

One a not so recent trip to Scarborough (the same that brought my purchaser to last post's McEwan), I received some Middle Eastern baked goods for the trying. And while the area abounds in Lebanese bakeries (more future Cake Tours, I hope) and the name is lacking in creativity, it's the baked goods that do all the talking at this place. Think your usual Middle Eastern pastries: various types of moist baklava and cookies as well some savoury options as well, such as the zatar bread (not pictured; a thick pita smothered in Lebanese thyme), which other samplers are still raving about. In fact, they'd like to add that it was one of -- if not *the* -- the bakery's highlights.

But of course not all of us can be placated with herb-encrusted flat breads. That's where I come in. ;) The first item were these sesame cookies that the bakery was offering up as free samples. Finding them very tasty, my purchaser bought the box. Thin cookies generously coated in sesame seeds, stuck on with a sticky syrup, these were really good. And addictive. They knew what they were doing, handling these out for free samples!

Then there was the baklava (sold by weight; a small container -- not all is pictured -- cost around $7-8) which comes in a variety of shapes and styles. Unlike some Lebanese-style bakeries, where the baklava can tend to be dry and doughy with no substance, these were super moist and almost resembled the soaking Greek variety (which happens to be the baklava of choice ^^). Nutty, fragrant, and saturated -- one of the few times this is a positive characteristic. One of the best Lebanese baklava out there.

I was really impressed with Lebanese bakery. Which just goes to show you: there may be many Lebanese bakeries throughout the GTA, but there's only one Lebanese Bakery. And yes, that did sound wittier in my head. :P

Rating: ***1/2