South Bay Sweet Indulgences
My favorite 'Mainland' bakeries, specifically in Silicon Valley. One Asian, one mochi/manju and one European. Picking just one would be like deciding which of your children you like best. While you love them all fiercely, on any given day, you may be in the mood for one more so than the other.
Kee Wah Bakery My go-to bakery for its combination of Asian-inspired-that-meets- American-palate-cakes and pastries, sparkling clean spaces and great value to boot. It's the perfect hapa bakery.
Angelically light sponge cakes (orange, coconut, honey, vanilla and matcha/green tea), and fluffy yet filling meat pastries made onsite plus traditional Chinese cakes and cookies directly from Hong Kong. Orange or coconut sponge cake--Big orange flavor or lightly dusted with delicate and perfectly toasted coconut flakes, these sponge cakes are the perfect blend of ethereal sponge cake and creamy center. It's what every twinkie should aspire to be. Curry pork buns--These are in the heated section. Flaky crispy puffy, almost croissant-like pastry with a hearty pork curry filling. "Cigar cookies"--This is what I called them growing up. At Kee Wah, they are called eggroll cookies. They are crunchy, slightly sweet, hollow tube cookies. Great for dipping into into coffee or tea. Or crumble over ice cream. Wafer-thin and addicting. |
Shuei-do
The place to go for Japanese and American-Japanese mochi and manju. Mochi is a smooth-as-velvet, chewy dessert/snack. Shuei-do daily makes traditional azuki (red-bean), kuri (lima bean) or an (black sugar)-filled manju and also raspberry, milk, orange, or coconut-flavored mochi.
If you want to order for special occasions, make sure you order ahead of time. They have a small selection of Kauai cookies and Japanese and Hawaii snacks. In the summer, they also sell shave ice. Sugar Butter Flour
408-732-8597
669 South Bernardo Avenue Sunnyvale, CA 94087 www.sugarbutterflour.com Next to Round Table in the Cherry Chase Shopping Center Absolutely consistently delicious pastries at this aptly named bakery. My favorite is the almond croissant, but I am also fond of their individual desserts. For family birthdays or just because, we usually get four different mini-desserts and then play pass the dessert. Our favorites are listed below.
Almond Mini-croissants--(see above) Flaky, crunchy, pastry nirvana. Just the right amount of custardy almond filling. I would eat this every day if I could. Order ahead or go early because they sell out fast. Mango Raspberry Mousse--A creamy layer of mango mouse atop a perfectly sweet-but-not-too-sweet layer of raspberry mousse. And just enough fresh raspberries to snap everything together. Key Lime Mousse--My husband and my daughter's fave. Puckery-tart yet smooth and creamy. I have no idea how they do this, but it's awesome. Chocolate Mousse Cake--I don't much like chocolate, but I do like this mousse cake. It's rich chocolate flavor without the over-sweetness that a lot of chocolate desserts have. |
