蓬萊漢堡 [Mimi's World Tour] [RIP]

Bakery: 蓬萊漢堡 (Penglai Hamburger)

Address: No. 365, Zhongshan Road, East District, Chiayi

Website: n/a

Style: Chinese

Price: $

 

It's always sad when a bakery closes before I get a chance to review it. This one shut its doors in July after countless years in the business and to public outcry. Nonetheless, I reviewed it when I was in Chiayi and I'm not letting my trip there go to waste! As the name indicates, the highlight at this bakery was actually the burgers. Sold from a table in the doorway, every time I walked past this place during my stay, there was a line of people waiting for those famous hamburgers. But they do have a full-scale bakery inside with a lovely window display of cream-filled cake slices, probably more than the usual bakery. These were definitely my top pick - but I didn't know whether you had to ask the worker for it and well, I didn't want to try asking the worker for one. After I'd already paid, a couple came in after me and just started snatching cake onto their tray themselves... too late. -_-

Maybe I needed to lay off the cream too. Instead, I grabbed a classic castella ($20). Super cheap, but also lacking in any distinct flavour. That fluffy eggy flavour and texture was nowhere to be seen and it resembled more an angel food cake (in that it was airy and didn't taste like anything) than a castella. Far from the best I had. 

Rating: **1/2

Nestor's Bakery

Bakery: Nestor's Bakery

Address: 912 20th St W, Saskatoon SK

Website: https://nestorsbakerysaskatoon.square.site/

Style: Canadian, Doughnuts

Price: $$ 

 

Nestor's is a charming neighbourhood bakery that appears to be all about the doughnuts. And that is a good thing. I mean, sure, they do sell pie and bread, but the moment you enter your mind is clouded by all those racks of doughnuts and you kind of forget about everything else. Doughnut holes? Churros? It was quite the dilemma, especially given the fact that it was announced that everything on that busy afternoon was 50% off. No wonder everyone was there! 

I was actually telling myself before entering Nestor's that I needed to lay off the doughnuts, at least for a while. Mimi's Cake Tour does love doughnuts, but sometimes you start feeling a bit guilty. Kind of a like a New Year's resolution. And like resolutions, this one didn't last. I grabbed 6 doughnut holes and an apple fritter (I paid $2.50 for everything). No regrets. 

Well, maybe only that the doughnut holes especially were very dense and doughy and I wasn't really expecting them to be cake doughnuts; I'm not the biggest fan of cake doughnuts. Even though the apple fritter wasn't necessarily a cake doughnut, it still had that compact, heavy texture. The glaze was also a bit overbearing. Still good, but had both been a little more fluffy, it would have made a world of difference! 

Rating: ***

San-Ho Bakery [Mimi's World Tour]

Bakery: San-ho Bakery (三和食品店)

Address: No. 445, Zhongshan Road, West District, Chiayi 

Website: n/a

Style: Chinese

Price: $$ 

 

My second stop in Chiayi was San-ho, a busy bakery with a delightful retro vibe. I mean, check out that sign! You'll encounter slightly rundown bakeries that have been there many a year all over Taiwan, but you just can't find these "well-preserved" old-school shops in the bigger cities. In keeping with the overall atmosphere, they have plenty of traditional cakes along with the usual Westernized bread varieties. 

I really wasn't planning on it, but their sugar ring doughnut ($25) was calling out to me. It may not look that pretty, but honestly, it's not easy to find these in Chinese bakeries anywhere (anymore) and I do love them so. ^^; I'm not sure if this one really qualifies as a ring doughnut, though. The hole appears to have grown in somewhere along the way... it was a little flat, with not enough fluffy dough on the inside, but it was a good one. Classic, simple and good - that's what you expect from an established bakery like this. My pick for best in Chiayi. 

Rating: ***

Focaccia Bakery [Mimi's World Tour]

Bakery: Focaccia Bakery (芙卡夏麵包坊)

Address: No. 281, Minsheng North Road, West District, Chiayi

Website: n/a 

Style: Chinese 

Price: $-$$

I arrived in Chiayi quite hungry and this bakery was pretty much around the corner from where I was staying, so I made a bakery run and ate it immediately upon returning. Despite its name, there is no focaccia for sale, nor is there anything really European, let alone Italian, that you sometimes encounter in Asian bakeries. On the other hand, they had a fairly standard selection of classic sweet and savoury buns, with a few gift box selections. Their specialty appears to be various flavours of cream rolls. I didn't come very late, but either they don't have a lot to begin with or they sell out early, this particular bakery had so little in store with a couple empty trays with labels and other sections with just one or two items left. 

The dainty milk cream bun ($22) looked tasty and interesting with its strip-shaped crumble on top, which added a nice texture to the otherwise soft, fluffy bun. The dough was pretty good, but the milk cream on the inside was strangely grainy. I don't know if it was the sugar or they milk powder, but the chalky consistency was a bit off-putting. Not so bad, but not my top pick in Chiayi.
 

Rating: **1/2

Nana & Papa's Bakery

Bakery: Nana & Papa's Bakery

Address: 897 Island Hwy W #104, Parksville, BC 

Website: https://nana-papas-bakery.business.site

Style: Canadian

Price: $

 

This is either a newer bakery or I somehow missed the previous time I was here; I believe it to be the former. Nonetheless, Nana & Papa's is located almost in between Qualicum Beach and Parksville-proper, in a highway-side plaza that you wouldn't presume would have a bakery. But it's there. And for a new bakery, it was so nice to see that it was as classic Canadian as it gets. With its selection of cinnamon buns, scones and other old-school treats at ridiculously amazing prices (though it would be great if those amazing prices were displayed beforehand), it feels like this bakery has been around forever.  

In my opinion, one of the more unique products available was their coconut Bavarian cream bun. Did I get that name right? Or at least the description of what it was... The cinnamon-style bun was fresh and fluffy, but I was hoping for more rich, Portuguese flavours with the coconut and custard pairing. Instead I found it a bit lacking in taste. Next time, I would probably try something else.

Rating: **1/2

明新食品 [Mimi's World Tour]

Bakery: 明新食品 (Mingxin Food)

Address: No. 569, Qingping Rd, Anping District, Tainan

Website: http://www.minsin.com.tw/

Style: Chinese

Price: $$ 

Despite its aspirations as something more than a simple bakery (after all, I don't often encounter bakeries using "grocery" as a label), Mingxin is a classic multi-location bakery with shelves of sweet and savoury baked goods lining two walls and a large space dedicated to gift boxes like pineapple cake. Their specialty, however, appears to be steamed buns with meat. They sell them individually or by the box. They come hot and the whole area smells like meat bao, which somewhat deters from the bakery experience. At least the sweet baked goods. 

But why am I talking about meat bao? I'd seen "beehive" buns in many bakeries before this moment, but I'd never tried them. They're usually slightly more expensive than the average bun and the whole "beehive" description didn't tell me much, but it was here that I gave them a try. They were well-priced ($38) and quite large. Beyond the almost cookie-like shell, crusty on the outside and a little chewy on the inside, the inside was filled with raisins (possibly the bees... though I could have done without them) and a sort of rich almond? paste. Quite rich, to tell the truth. It was different from the standard fluffy white bread, however, and the taste and texture was quite a pleasant surprise. Certainly not bad for a meat bao place! ;)

Rating: ***