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Showing posts with label dessert. Show all posts
Showing posts with label dessert. Show all posts

Monday, June 10, 2013

Lekker GEC, Gent Belgium

Location: Koningin Maria Hendrikaplein 4, 9000 Gent, Belgium
Walking around Gent after dinner we decided to try and find some dessert. We walked by Lekker GEC to check out what they had. We got a piece of Apple Crumble Cake which was very good. Lots of apple pieces, lots of cinnamon, not super sweet and very moist.


We also ordered a chocolate shake. I was hoping for a thick shake instead of the water chocolate milk like you get over here. This was kind of in between, thicker than milk, but not really thick like a good milkshake. It was tasty, though it did not have a strong chocolate flavor. It really tasted like chocolate pudding.

Overall - Both items we got here were quite tasty. We didn't try their main meals, but their desserts are quite good.

Wednesday, April 10, 2013

Full Tilt, Seattle WA

Location: 5453 Leary Avenue Northwest, Seattle, WA 98107, USA

So I know this isn't the prettiest picture, but it sure was tasty. We were hanging out in Ballard eating sweets so we stopped by Full Tilt to see what their vegan options were. They had a blue one which I was super excited about until I tried it and it was just coconut colored blue - yuck! I hate coconut flavor so no go on that. They did have two delicious ones, Peanut Butter Chip and Peanut Butter Banana, so we decided to get the smallest non-kid size and share. Man am I glad we did. This is so much ice cream! It has to be at least a pint and it is a bit ridiculous. I am used to my one small scoop that I still share with Raymond here in Berlin. Oh well it was tasty. The Peanut Butter Chip was just like peanut butter chocolate chip which was really really good. The banana one was very banana-y and eating them together was delicious. They went well, probably because they were both peanut butter flavored.

Overall - I really enjoyed my ice cream at Full Tilt. It is a ton of food though so I definitely have to share.

Saturday, April 6, 2013

Hot Cakes, Seattle WA

Location: 5427 Ballard Avenue Northwest, Seattle, WA 98107, USA

Hot Cakes is a "molten chocolate cakery" in Ballard. I heard about it from a friend before our visit and checked out the menu to find they do indeed have a vegan molten chocolate cake served with whipped coconut milk so of course we had to try it. It is the only thing that is listed as vegan on the menu though we didn't inquire if any of the boozy shakes were as it was mid afternoon and we were not wanting a drink. The cake itself was a tad expensive as it is a tiny little thing of cake, but it is good it is not that much as it is so rich. Raymond loved it, but I had a hard time finishing my half as it was very very rich and chocolaty. It was very good, just a bit much for me to eat a lot of. Really I would have liked more whipped coconut milk to cut some of the richness of the chocolate. Still very tasty.

Overall - I would go back again for another cake if I were with someone to share it with. The chocolate is very rich and tasty.

Monday, March 11, 2013

Cupcake, Berlin Germany

Location: Krossener Straße 12, 10245 Berlin, Germany

One day while wandering we wanted some treats before we headed home. We stopped by Cupcake for some brownies and maybe a cupcake. They apparently do make vegan cupcakes, but we have never been able to get one when we stop by. They usually have brownies though, and this time they had both the peanut butter and the walnut. First up was peanut butter. This was alright, good, but not much peanut butter flavor.


The walnut one however was really tasty. Nice and soft and delicious.

Overall - The brownies at Cupcake are good, the walnut one being the better of the two. Apparently they also have cupcakes, but they have never had any when we stop by.

Monday, February 25, 2013

Sfizy Veg, Berlin Germany

Location: Treptower Straße 95, 12059 Berlin, Germany


While looking for vegan places to try in Berlin I stumbled across Sfizy Veg in Neukölln. Their menu is kind of crazy - they have a ton of pizza options, calzones, pasta, bruschette, etc. Seriously they have way too many options it is hard to choose what to get. We decided to try out the three cheese pizza first. Something simple to get a taste of their normal pizzas This was really tasty. Raymond even liked it and he usually doesn't like a lot of vegan cheese. The dough is delicious and it is a lot of pizza.



We also tried the Chicken Masala - spinach, chickpeas, potatoes, tempeh chicken, broccoli and spices with some dough puffs sauce and cheese. This was a mess to try and eat, even with a fork and knife. It was however delicious! I liked it better than the three cheese one even though it was a little odd. I mean I never would have put Indian food on my pizza, but now I think I might try it next time I make a pizza at home. It was incredibly good. A little spicy, but really tasty. So so good.



We were way too full from our pizza to get dessert there, so we got a piece of peanut butter chocolate cake to take with us and eat later. I was very excited for this, especially after the delicious dinner we had but unfortunately it was not very good. The cake was kind of dry and the frosting didn't have much flavor and was a little like greasy. Like it coated your mouth and it just wasn't very good.

Overall - Definitely stop by Sfizy Veg if you are in Berlin. Really I think if you only go one place in Berlin this should be the place. It is tiny inside, and can take forever to get the food (if you come in right after everyone just ordered - they must not have a large kitchen) but it is well worth the wait. I wish we would have known about this place sooner - we are definitely going to be going back to try out more of their crazy pizzas. As Raymond said it is real pizza. It is also a lot of food. 

Thursday, September 6, 2012

Eislabor, Berlin Germany

Location: Raumerstraße 32, 10437 Berlin, Germany

After having dinner at Vego Foodworld we wandered down to the park and found Eislabor with 4 different vegan flavors. Raymond went with soy chocolate and soy stracciatella which he is a big fan of.


I tried the soy chocolate and soy almond. The chocolate was really chocolaty but not as good as some of the other ones we have had. The almond was alright and Raymond enjoyed the stracciatella.

Overall - This was not the best ice cream we have had in Berlin, but it was not horrible either. If we were in the area again and wanted ice cream we would stop by again.

Saturday, June 30, 2012

Karmavore The Vegan Shop, New Westminster BC

Location: 610 Columbia St, New Westminster, BC V3M 1A8, Canada
From Vegan Gastrobot
Karmavore was a little bit out of the way in New Westminster, but it sounded amazing so we tried to fit it in. The only time we had was Sun morning so we had a very tasty sweet breakfast. First up was an ice cream sundae! They were out of chocolate, we had ordered the swirl, and so they gave us the vanilla with chocolate sauce for free. This was amazing! I love soft serve and wish we had this in Seattle. It was creamy and tasted just like normal soft serve to me.

From Vegan Gastrobot
Next was a plain croissant and a daiya croissant. The plain croissant was Raymond’s favorite, but it was missing something to me….I couldn’t quite figure out what was missing. It was flaky and light, and good, but something was off for me. The Daiya croissant was much better – still flaky and the cheese gave it a nice flavor. They were both flaky like croissants should be, but a little denser maybe? I don’t know. I did like the cheese one a lot.

From Vegan Gastrobot
Finally we had a cinnamon bun. This was so disappointing…it needed way more cinnamon. It didn’t really have much flavor which is surprising. I definitely would not get it again; it was dry and just not good.

Overall – I really liked the store/bakery set up. The soft serve was amazing so definitely get that! Also, the croissants were not bad. They also have cupcakes from Edible Flours which are amazing so they have lots of treats. Plus some shoes and other apparel and grocery items. Definitely worth a stop if you can manage it.

Sunday, June 24, 2012

Grub, Vancouver BC

Location: 4328 Main St, Vancouver, BC V5V, Canada
From Vegan Gastrobot
While looking through vegan options in Vancouver I came across Grub – they change the fresh menu often (maybe nightly?) and only have one vegan option on it. Normally that would be another eh – let’s skip it kind of place. I did however find a review that was so great it convinced me to give it a try. Their thought – yes there is only one vegan option for dinner, but it is the best vegan food ever! Okay I have to try this out. We came just as they opened and ordered the vegan entrée and dessert to share. The entrée that evening was White navy bean, artichoke and spinach filled cannelloni baked in rosemary cashew coconut cream, smokey vegetable and corn salsa, lemon arugula salad. Sure it sounded good. They brought it out and it looked amazing!! I tried the first bite…and the reviewer was right. This was some of the best food I have ever had. It was incredible! The only have one vegan option, but they do do it well. The filling was creamy and smooth, the veggies were nice and smoky (finally! Someone who can do smoked foods right!) the asparagus on top crisp, the sauce nice and creamy and…just everything paired so well together that it was incredible. I REALLY wish we would have been able to fit in another dinner here. If we go back this is a must stop on the list.

From Vegan Gastrobot
The dessert was chocolate and hazelnut layer cake with brulee bananas. This was a HUGE slice of cake. I was expecting a normal slice, but this would have been way too much for just me. The bananas on top were nice and caramelized and crunchy and really paired nicely with the cake and helped offset some of the dense richness and add a little sweetness. The hazelnut filling was almost like butter – dairy butter – which was odd but somehow it worked.

Overall – If you can definitely stop in at Grub. You will probably have to make reservations ahead of time as it gets busy, but it is well worth it. The one vegan option is amazing.

Friday, June 22, 2012

Sweet Cherubim, Vancouver BC

Location: 1105 Commercial Dr, Vancouver, BC V5L 2N1, Canada
From Vegan Gastrobot
I had wanted to check out the co-op and found a ton of organic and vegan places in the same area. I had looked up Sweet Cherubim, but decided against putting it on the list as we had already had too many places to go to and nothing shouted out to me as have to try. We wandered into the store though and then the restaurant just to spy since we were there and found a case full of vegan treats. They all looked amazing! We tried the Chocolate carrot cake cupcake which looked really good (and was a different flavor than plain chocolate or vanilla). This was…just not very good. I tried to eat it, but immediately spit out my first bite it was that bad. I couldn’t do it.

From Vegan Gastrobot
We also tried an oatmeal raisin cookie which I could eat, but it really wasn’t that good. It looked amazing, but I don’t know why it didn’t taste fantastic…we threw out most of it.

From Vegan Gastrobot
And last but not least we tried a chocolate shortbread bliss cookie. This was the only thing that I enjoyed that we ordered. It was like a shortbread cookie with some chocolate inside. Really crunchy and good.

Overall – I would not go to Sweet Cherubim. Most of the baked goods were disgusting, the lady was not at all happy or pleasant to us (we asked for the goods to go as we wanted to sit outside since it was sunny, and she just threw them in a bag with the cupcake upside down so the frosting was all smashed on one side and it was just very unnecessary). There are much better places to get food in Vancouver.

Monday, June 18, 2012

The Wallflower, Vancouver BC

Location: 2420 Main St, Vancouver, BC V5T 3E2, Canada
From Vegan Gastrobot
The Wallflower was top on my list of places to try in Vancouver. It sounded like divey dinner food with lots of vegan options. We were there on a Sat around 11 and it was packed! We had to wait a while for a table, but that was fine since we were still kind of full from breakfast. I loved the atmosphere – this is another place that I would return to again and again (maybe for one of the shows they have in the evenings? Or just a few drinks and some vegan poutine). They had many vegan options clearly marked on the menu. We tried the Vegan Mac & Cheesey – this was incredible! Probably my favorite mac and cheese I have had. Not very oily, I don’t think they used a commercial mock cheese, super creamy and just yum! It was so creamy and cheesey that it reminded me of “real” mac and cheese. Highly recommended.

From Vegan Gastrobot

We also got the vegan breakfast poutine – veggie dogs, marinated tofu, daiya mozzarella, hashbrowns and gravy. This was also incredible!  There were big pieces of potato, the hot dogs tasted very much like real ones (or what I remember real ones tasting like) I think the gravy was a miso gravy and was amazing, there was not too much of the daiya cheese, and the crumbled tofu really pulled it all together. I would definitely get this again! Much better than the poutine we had in Toronto. So tasty and we were so full, but we ate every last bite.

From Vegan Gastrobot
The menu also lists vegan crème brulee which I had to try – I have never had a vegan version. While it did not have the caramelized sugar on the top to crack, I loved it! It was super light and creamy (I think it was a coconut milk base, but didn’t have a strong coconut flavor) with a super sweet sauce on top and was just amazing. The perfect end to a perfect meal.

Overall – I would highly recommend stopping by The Wallflower if you are in Vancouver. It was definitely one of my favorite places to eat in the city.

Sunday, May 27, 2012

Sticky Fingers Bakery, Washington DC, Brunch

Location: 1370 Park Rd NW, Washington, DC 20010, USA
From Vegan Gastrobot
While picking up treats from Sticky Fingers Bakery we saw that they have brunch on the weekend including biscuits and gravy which is one of my favorites. There are a few food items that if a restaurant has it I like to try it and this is one of them. I never had non-vegan biscuits and gravy so I am not 100% sure what it should taste like, but I know what I like in the breakfast food. You can get the biscuits and gravy by itself or as a platter with cheesy grits and tofu scramble. We decided to go with the platter to try a little bit of everything. The cheesy grits were…not my thing. They did not have any flavor and I don’t know that I have ever had grits before. Maybe if you like grits you would like them. The tofu scramble was alright. It had a very light flavor and was not bad. The biscuits and gravy were delicious! The biscuits were light and fluffy, the gravy was very meaty and like a dinner gravy, but it was good.

From Vegan Gastrobot
We also picked up a Mini Berry Pie to eat later. We heated it up and it was really tasty. The crust was flaky and delicious, the filling quite good.

Overall – Sticky Finger I found to be hit and miss. The biscuits and gravy were delicious, the mac and cheese amazing, the pie and cookies good everything else we tried was just not so good. I am still so disappointed that they only have chocolate and vanilla cake bases….and that the cakes were very dry. Would it hurt to add a little flavor and make it fun?

Saturday, May 19, 2012

Dama Pastry & Cafe, Arlington VA

Location: 1505 Columbia Pike, Arlington, VA 22204, USA
From Vegan Gastrobot
When searching for vegan treats in and near Washington DC I found Dama Pastry and Cafe  listed as having vegan desserts. I put it on my list and it was a little bit out of the way, but also near the Pentagon and Air Force Memorial so why not? I had never been over on that side of the river site seeing so it would be fun to explore. Well we got off at the Pentagon subway station and walked out past the Air Force Memorial to Dama. We were walking and I just kept thinking is this right? It doesn’t look like there is anything out here…then we came upon it – there are really four different stores on the same lot – a bread shop, a restaurant, a grocery store and the bakery/coffee shop. The parking lot is completely full of taxis – I don’t think there was a non-taxi parked anywhere near here. We walked in and everyone was hanging out watching Ethiopian tv and drinking coffee – It was just full of Ethiopian taxi drivers. I take that as a good sign as it must be somewhat authentic if all the people from that country are eating there! So they have a half case of vegan cakes to choose from – coffee, chocolate, fruit, etc. We went with the fruit cake even though I was a little worried it would be lemon flavor. The lady working however told us the fruit was just on top so we tried it. It was sooooo moist, not too sweet and completely delicious! There was a light lemon flavor, but not too bad. The cream was super good, like whipped cream, just light and fluffy and delicious. The jellied fruits on top added a nice sweetness.

Overall - Really amazing and if I am in the area again I would go back for more (and try the restaurant out as it smelled really good). The chocolate cake it probably incredible!

Tuesday, May 15, 2012

Bakeshop, Arlington VA

Location: 1025 N Fillmore St, Arlington, VA 22201, USA
From Vegan Gastrobot
Bakeshop is a cute little bakery in Arlington VA (off of the orange at the Clarendon Station stop). We walked in and I was really excited as they had tons of unique flavors of cupcakes like nerds and sprite...but they were not vegan. Unfortunately the vegan cake flavors were just chocolate and vanilla  - that is my one complain about this bakery and every other bakery in the area - why can you not add different flavors to the vegan batter like you do with the non-vegan ones? It makes no sense to me....however they did have other tasty treats and I really loved it. Bakeshop is run by a cute couple with a few employees and everyone was super super friendly.

From Vegan Gastrobot
We did try one of their chocolate peanut butter cupcakes and it was delicious! WAY better than the Sticky Fingers one we had. The cake was really moist and the frosting was light and whipped and very peanut buttery and amazing. So much better than the dry lackluster Sticky Finger peanut butter cupcake we had....

From Vegan Gastrobot
They also had a vegan Oreo Chocolate Chip Bar. This was soooo good! It was cookie dough sandwiching Oreo cookie layers....it was not like they just wrapped the cookie dough around the Oreo - they were too big for that and no round Oreo edges. Somehow they made a layer of Oreo in between the layers of cookie dough. Amazing. And really really tasty. The chocolate chip cookie tasted a lot like the ones  I make which I love so it was good. I am definitely going to have to make this at home! They were so good that on our last day we stop just to get more (and bought them out!) so we had some once we got home.

Overall - definitely stop in at Bakeshop and pick up an Oreo Chocolate Chip Bar!

Sunday, May 13, 2012

Le Pain Quotidien, Arlington VA

Location: 2900 Clarendon Blvd, Arlington, VA 22201, USA
From Vegan Gastrobot
While walking from Red Velvet to Bakeshop in the Clarendon area we walked by Le Pain Quotidien and I decided to spy on the menu. They have everything labeled that is vegan, which I always like, and they had a few baked goods that sounded delicious. We walked in and the space was very open with long tables for people to sit together and I really enjoyed the atmosphere. We were just going to get a few baked goods and decided to eat them there. Once we sat down though and I looked at the menu we changed are mind and decided to share a Tartine as well. The menu started Tartines were a Belgium open faced sandwich, and I was intrigued as a few of them sounded amazing. We opted for the seasonal special - Sweet Pea Hummus Tartine. This had sweet pea hummus, carrots, radish, cucumber and smoked green tea vinaigrette. The presentation was lovely (though it doesn't really look like it from my photo) and the sandwich was delicious. It tasted light and felt summery even though it was a chilly overcast rainy day. The sweet pea hummus was flavorful and the green tea vinaigrette gave it a little kick. All the veggies were crisp and the bread was very crusty and rustic which I loved. Overall the sandwich was delicious, though a little expensive.

From Vegan Gastrobot
After finishing our sandwich we ordered our baked goods - An Apple Cannele, A Carrot Muffin and an Organic Hazelnut Flute.
From Vegan Gastrobot
The Hazelnut Flute was just like a very crusty bread stick with raisins and nuts and all kinds of goodness in it. Almost like a crunchy raisin bread stick - I really liked it, but I really like crusty bread. The Apple Cannele was amazing - really moist with lots of apple pieces, a bit of a sharp vinegary flavor and it reminded me of a dense apple cake with apple slices baked in. Delicious! The carrot muffin was really good - cinnamony and savory with a little bit of sweetness. I wish we would have picked up more baked goods to bring home with us as they were very tasty.

Overall - If you are in the Clarendon area definitely check out Le Pain Quitidien if you have some extra money to spare. It is not cheap, but the food was very good.

Sunday, April 29, 2012

Sticky Fingers Bakery, Washington DC

Location: 1370 Park Rd NW, Washington, DC 20010, USA
From Vegan Gastrobot
I was very excited to try out the baked goods at Sticky Fingers Bakery. I mean they won cupcake wars so the cupcakes have to be good right? Unfotunately not. We ordered a bunch of treats to try a little bit of everything. We got a slice of the chocolate mousse cake, Cookies & Cake Cupcake, and a Peanut Butter Fudge Cupcake. The cake...well the mousse was really good, creamy and delicious. The cake itself was very dry and just blah. The cupcakes...the cakes were very dry and just not good. The frosting's were not very good either. The peanut butter one had a bad aftertaste, the cookie one was better, but still not good. If this is the caliber of cakes they make how in the world did they win Cupcake Wars? They were not even close to the best baked goods we have had. I could make better. Definitely not worth the price tag.

From Vegan Gastrobot
We also ordered a Sweet & Salty Cookie and Jenny's Brownie. The brownie was also dry and way too cake like, not gooey and fudgy and chewy like it should be. The cookie however was really good. The best baked good we got there. I would try another one. I liked the salty chocolate chip cookie - I will have to try it at home.

From Vegan Gastrobot
The last thing we ordered was the mac & cheese. I always try mac & cheese if it is an option just because there are so many different ways to make it. This was probably the best vegan mac & cheese I have ever had. I loved it! It was similar to the ones at Hillside Quickie and Bang Bang Cafe in Seattle, but not nearly as greasy and just was better. No commercial fake cheese used, I wish I knew how they made it!

Overall - Skip the cakes. They are dry and just not good. The cookies were tasty. Definitely try the mac and cheese as it was delicious!

Friday, April 27, 2012

Busboys and Poets, Washington DC

Location: 2021 14th St NW, Washington, DC 20009, USA
From Vegan Gastrobot
I loved Busboys and Poets.  I loved the atmosphere, the waitress was very friendly, it was very artsy and the food was delicious. It was like a combination of coffee shop, restaurant, book store, art gallery, performance space, everything all combined into one (and very popular). We stopped by around 3 in the afternoon on a weekday and it was packed. We were seated at a short table with a very long couch on the one side and comfy chairs on the other. Very relaxed just hang out and sip a coffee all afternoon and when you get hungry have some food kind of feel. I loved it. We tried the vegan pepperoni calzone (vegan mozzarella, veggies, vegan pepperoni in a whole-wheat crust). This was really tasty, though not as good as the calzones we get in Olympia, WA. They used mozzarella daiya cheese with pepperoni and lots of veggies. If the crust would have been amazing this would have been a top contender for best calzone. The crust was really thin and good, but not great. Overall I would order this again.

From Vegan Gastrobot
We also ordered a Peanut Butter Banana Panini (peanut butter, banana, and agave nectar). We opted for the sweet potato fries as a side. The panini was delicious - very creamy and sweet, but really how can you go wrong with peanut butter and banana? You really can't. The sweet potato fries...well they are one of my favorites! These however I did not like that much. They had a lot of cinnamon on them and I just did not like them. A lot of people like their sweet potatoes with sugar and cinnamon and marshmallow and all kinds of sweet thing on them, but I find them way too sweet that way and prefer them plain and simple. Just fried and a little bit of salt would have been perfect. I wish I would have known they were dessert fries as I would have ordered a different side. This is the only item that I was disappointed in.

From Vegan Gastrobot
They also had a vegan brownie so we had to try that. It came with a scoop of vanilla coconut ice cream and a sliced strawberry. This brownie was amazing! It had mousse on top of it and was very rich and chocolaty. The ice cream did not have a strong coconut flavor and was really smooth and creamy. The combination of the ice cream, brownie and strawberry was perfect - just a small piece of each with each bite was wonderful. I would definitely order this again.

Overall - I highly recommend Busboys and Poets. The food is delicious, the service friendly, the atmosphere very relaxing and artsy.

Wednesday, April 25, 2012

Chez Harag Pastries, Washington DC

Location: 2312 4th St NE, Washington, DC 20002, USA
From Vegan Gastrobot
I read about a vegan French bakery in DC and I knew we had to stop by. They didn't have croissants, but they did have all kinds of cookies and treats that I have never had before. Chez Hareg Pastries was a small shop with a full case of vegan cookies. We tried a few different items - the Vegan Palmier, Raspberry Sprtiz Cookie, Pecan Snowball and a Napoleon.

From Vegan Gastrobot
The napoleon was light and flaky and not too sweet. Layers of puff pastry that was flaky like philo with a light lemon custard in between. This did not have strong lemon flavor which is good as I do not like lemon that much. Not too filling and not too sweet so not a very heavy dessert which was good since we had so much walking to do.

From Vegan Gastrobot
The Pecan Snowball is one of my favorite cookies and this one was buttery and delicious just like it should be. I had never had a spritz cookie before so we had to try one of them and it was really good. Very light and buttery, though I would have prefered it without the jam. The Palmier was my favorite - these were so light and flaky and lightly sweetend and just perfect. Like eating lightly sweetend airy crispy pasty. We took a dozen of these and the plain spritz cookies to go to share with my freinds we were staying with. My friend was hesitant - she said she really liked spritz cookies, but made with real butter. She tried these one and conceeded that they were just as good - surprisingly buttery for a vegan cookie.

Overall - definitely stop by here and pick up some Palmiers and Spritz cookies. They were so good. Now I wish I had some to snack on...

Saturday, April 7, 2012

Vegan Danish Bakery, Thornhill ON, Canada

Location: 7718 Yonge St, Thornhill, ON L4J 1W2, Canada
From Vegan Gastrobot
When I saw Vegan Danish Bakery near Toronto I knew we had to go. I see danishes and such all the time, but I can never eat them. I was very excited when I saw Toronto had a vegan danish baker. I wish we would have been there over the summer so we could try the soft serve ice cream! We did try an apple danish which was amazing! They heated it up for us and it looked like it was going to be way too sweet for me, but it wasn't. There were apples and almond slivers in a nice flaky pastry with a not too sweet frosting.

From Vegan Gastrobot
We also took home some sugar buttons and a sticky bun. The sugar buttons were not what I expected. They were not sweet, even though they had sugar on the outside. They were crumbly cookies with some anise flavor and they were good, just not what we expected them to be. The sticky bun was excellent - again not too sweet and just perfect. One of the better sticky buns we have had - the bread was flaky, the syrup sweet but not too sweet. Just delicious.

Overall - Stop by the Vegan Danish Bakery if you are in the area. It is just north of Toronto, but the treats were very good.

Thursday, April 5, 2012

Organic Oven, Toronto, ON, Canada

Location: Toronto, ON, Canada
From Vegan Gastrobot
Toronto has a lot of vegan bakeries (or bakeries with vegan options). Organic Oven has a few vegan options (if you look at the website they have more options listed than what they had when we went in). Nothing really sounded amazing, but we were there so we asked the guy what he would suggest. He suggested the chocolate cupcake so we went with that, a brownie and gingerbread men. The gingerbread men were good - crispy and flavorful. The cupcake and brownie....they were both mint even though they did not say they were on the tags in the store. I hate mint so I couldn't eat either of them which was incredibly disappointing. I mean we wouldn't have purchased them and wasted the money if it would have said they were chocolate mint.

Overall - I would skip Organic Oven. Raymond said the cupcake was alright, the cookies were good but not spectacular, nothing we had would make it a must go to if we are in Toronto again. Plus there are much better bakeries in Toronto.

Tuesday, April 3, 2012

Rise Above Bakery, St Catherines ON, Canada

Location: St Catharines, ON, Canada
From Vegan Gastrobot
On the way down to Niagara Falls, ON to spend a night we stopped in St Catherines at Rise Above Bakery to pick up some treats and hopefully something to eat for breakfast the next morning. I wasn't really sure what they would have here as I didn't remember what this place even was I just noted that they were a vegan bakery. We almost just kept driving as it was getting late by the time we got here due to the traffic and we were tired. I am so glad we still decided to stop! This bakery was amazing! We got a cinnamon roll for breakfast the next morning and it was good, but a little too much frosting for me and it was slightly dry (this could be because we kept it out overnight).

From Vegan Gastrobot
We also picked up a cinnamon sugar doughnut and a chocolate chip cookie. We ate the cookie when we got to our hotel and it was good. We also saved the doughnut for the next morning and it was really good as well.

From Vegan Gastrobot
The last treats we picked up on our first stop was a brownie and a blondie. These were...incredible. The brownie was the best brownie I have ever had. It was rich and moist and just unbelievably amazing. The blondie - I have never had a blondie before and I didn't really even know what it was, but it looked good. The blondie was the best thing I have ever had. Ever. No contest, this was out of this world good. Man just thinking about it now I wish I could get more. I tried making some myself and they just did not come out anywhere near as good. These were so good that we decided to stop by again for lunch the next day so we could pick up some more blondies and bring them home with us.

From Vegan Gastrobot
For lunch we had some a bowl of chili. This was very good, Raymond loved it, but I like my chili better (I make a very different chili from most people).

From Vegan Gastrobot
We also got a small Asian Noodle Salad. This was also very good and light.

From Vegan Gastrobot
The last thing we got was the potato, broccoli daiya ball (served like a burger) with frites. The daiya ball was really good, but the frites - I don't know what they did differently from every other places but they were incredible! Raymond was making fun of me because I was raving about them so much. They were cooked perfectly and were just incredible.

Overall - Everything here was really good but the Blondie is the best thing ever, the brownie is incredible and the frites are amazing. Definitely stop here if you are anywhere close. I would even drive the hour+ from Toronto to here just to get some more blondies.