Dean & Deluca Snack Baskets

Dean & DeLuca is a chain of fancyish grocery stores.  I associate the brand with New York, although the store I have actually been into is in Tokyo, and I fondly remember their ice cream served on a Japan airlines flight (which, I've reviewed before).  

"For over 40 years it has been our mission to find and provide to you the world’s best epicurean treats for cooking, eating and entertaining. Our team of International food experts are committed to a quest for excellence. We work persistently to curate a food-forward assortment of the best and newest food products from around the globe."

Dean & Deluca offers a curated shopping experience, hence, the premium branding. They also operate a mail order business, perfect for gift baskets around the holidays, or sending to corporate clients, which is how I encountered a large variety of their goodies.  I don't understand why my co-workers don't devour their gift baskets, particularly when the items are high quality like this, but, their loss, my gain, right?

Snacks on the Run. $75.

"Time is tight, so these tins full of chocolates, mixes, candies, and nuts are an easy, delicious choice."

For the holidays, my co-workers received several "Snack on the Run" assortments.  The "Snacks on the Run" series is available in 3/6/12/18 packs, all different, unless you custom order a set with exactly what you want in it.

Ours were 12 packs, mostly chocolates, with a few other candies in the mix.  Interestingly, it contained no plain nuts, and only one dried fruit option.

I tried everything except the milk chocolate covered raisins, as, well, I just don't like them, and didn't see a reason to waste.  For $75, this was a good variety, and seemingly decent value for quality items.

Chocolate Covered

Our package consisted of majority chocolate covered things, 8 total, including 4 types of caramels (one sugar free), one type of covered nut, and one dried fruit.

Dark Chocolate Rum Cordials.

"Dark Chocolate and Rum, a match made in confectionary heaven. Our Dean & DeLuca Chocolate Rum Cordials are a lovely and affordable gift with the same style and good taste you expect from Dean & DeLuca."

OMG, OMG, OMG.  That is all I have to say about these.

This was not my first encounter with these rum balls, er, cordials, I just hadn't written about them previously.  I remember discovering these before, and, well, adoring them.  In particular, of course I remember the rum.

Because, beware.  These are filled with liquid.  Boozy liquid.  Do not bite in half and expect not to make a mess.  Pop the whole thing in your mouth, bite, and enjoy the booze.

The dark chocolate is necessary to hold up against the rum, and the rest ... well, its rum!

White Mint Lentils.

"Pure white and minty fresh, these dark chocolate disks made with real oil of peppermint are the perfect refresher."

Heh.  I thought these were just after dinner mints.  Bo-ring.  They looked like just mints.  And, what are "lentils", of the confection variety, anyway?  A: It turns out, this is a "standard" name for this type of confection.  Huh.  Strange, they ... are like oversized lentils I guess?  Or smooshed M&Ms?

But it turned out, these were chocolate.

At first, they seemed just like any other chocolate disk, like an M&M.  But then ... the mint kicked in.  And it wasn't entirely pleasant.  Such a strange aftertaste.

I was not a fan.

Triple Chocolate Toffees.

"Premium almond toffee in luxurious milk, dark and marbled dark and white chocolates."

These looked pretty interesting, assorted colors and sizes.  But, all tasted basically the same: sweet toffee, crisp, coated in sweet creamy chocolate.  Absolutely fine, but they looked more interesting than they were in practice.

Milk Chocolate Peanuts.

Our single chocolate covered nut offering was a milk chocolate peanut, not as exciting as many of the others like dark chocolate sea salt hazelnuts.  But, an easy crowd pleaser.

I tried them, and they were fine.  Decent enough milk chocolate coating, not too much of it, creamy.  Standard peanut inside.

Nothing remarkable, nothing bad.

Dark Chocolate Sea Salt Caramels.

"Our creamy caramels lavished in rich dark chocolate with a hint of sea salt."

These had a nice dark chocolate on them, but I wasn't quite into the chewy caramel center, just personal preference.

Tiramisu Caramels.

"Semi-soft caramel dipped in our famous milk chocolate with tiramisu flavor, then rolled in dark cocoa powder." 

These I really didn't like.

Again, the soft caramel chew just didn't do it for me, at all.  I did not taste tiramisu in any way either.

Pass.

English Toffee Caramels.

"Toffee caramels in a generous layer of creamy milk chocolate."

I know I tried these, but alas, I don't seem to have notes on them.  Sorry!

Sugar Free Milk Chocolate Caramels.

"If sugar-free is what you crave these are the chocolate covered caramels for you. Exclusive to Dean & DeLuca our Sugar-Free Milk Chocolate Caramels are premium Sugar-Free caramels covered in Sugar-Free chocolate coating. Dean & DeLuca Sugar-Free Milk Chocolate Caramels are a lovely and affordable gift with the same style and good taste you expect from Dean & DeLuca."

 I found it a bit funny to include a sugar free offering in a box of all sugary treats, but, perhaps they envision this to be a shared box, in which case, having an inclusive offering for those who need lower sugar is a great thing?

Anyway, these were fine, larger than the regular caramels, and the milk chocolate was smooth and good.  I still wasn't a huge fan of the caramel though.

Confections

We had only two "confections", chewy sugary things, in our basket.

Gourmet Assorted Jelly Beans.

The image on the container of the jelly beans showed what looked large larger size jelly beans, the type I like.  But inside I found ... what looked exactly like Jelly Belly, smaller size beans.  I'm not particularly fond of Jelly Belly, besides the buttered popcorn, which I have actually grown to love, so really should update my review.

I don't think these were actually Jelly Belly brand, but they were a fairly similar product, sweet sugar, no more, no less.  

Sanded Starfish.

"Gummy sugarcoated starfish in six fruity flavors."

These were a crowd favorite, so I was only able to try one flavor: blue.

They were good, nice chew, and I liked the "sanded" sugar coating on them.  Better than your average gummy candy.

Fruits & Nuts

Our assortment did not have any plain nuts, nor really many dried fruits (besides the chocolate covered raisins), although Dean & Deluca does offer plenty of these items.

I was not upset though, as these are some of the least interesting of the lineup.  We did have one mix.

Island Mix.

The "island mix" featured bits of dried pineapple, papaya, and banana, plus raisins and macadamias.

I tried everything in here except the raisins (eww, raisins!), and all were fairly generic and standard.  Not much to say about this one, it was dried fruit and bits of nuts.

Read More...

Silverland Bakery

Time for another wholesale bakery review, this time, a specialist in bars, and in particular brownies.  Not the baked goods  nor desserts I gravitate towards generally, but ... yeah, these are some great brownies!

Silverland is claims to be a pioneer in the commercial baked goods industry, started in 1983.  The business started with brownies, and expanded to include other types of baked bars, cookies, and eventually raw/gluten-free/keto items.  It was started by a woman who was pregnant, craving things like chocolately goodness, and looking for a new job going forward, and ... apparently, baked goods were her calling.

"If you're looking for a treat, you've come to the right place. The entire baking process, from melting to mixing to scooping our decadent treats, is still done by hand in small batches. We use the most natural and pure ingredients possible, from melted 100% dark chocolate in our brownies, to real fruits and nuts in our crumble bars." 

While primarily a wholesale distributor, they still make the products in small batches, and take pride in the ingredients.  You can also now order Silverland goodies as a home consumer as well.

Brownies 

"Silverland was the first commercial baker of brownies still around to talk about it today. The entire baking process from melting to mixing to scooping our decadent treats is still done by hand in small batches."

The brownie lineup is certainly Silverland's claim to fame, and one I endorse.  The range covers everything from a simple double chocolate or with walnuts version, to crowd pleasers like the decadent caramel turtle or "Cocoa Cow", swirled with cheesecake.  They also make keto, vegan, and gluten-free versions.

Le Sal Brownie.

"A rich chocolate brownie base with chocolate liqueur disks and pure vanilla, dusted with a whisper of the finest sea salt-perfectly sweet and salty." -- GourmetXpress, Distributor

"Our rich, all-natural Double Chocolate Brownie topped with a whisper of sea salt – so decadent and delicious." -- Silverland 

The first I tried was the simple "Le Sal".  It looked ... like any generic brownie.

But, oh wow.  This was a good brownie.  And, I'm not a brownie girl.

This brownie impressed.  It was seriously, seriously fudge-y.  Rich.  Not a cake-like brownie though, if that is your thing. Fudgey.

The salt on top was the perfect touch to make it pop.

Best when served warm a la mode, but great at room temp as well.  Just very rich, so having something cream based to cut it was helpful.  Even just a little whipped cream ...

****.

Update: I've since had many more of these, and love their dense fudgeyness every time.  Perfect warm with a scoop of ice cream on top.  So perfect.

Caramel Chocolate.

"Rich chocolate brownie batter topped with caramel and semi-sweet chocolate chips. Years of research went into retaining the gooey caramel on the top of our signature brownie."

Next I stepped it up to the caramel chocolate. Another impressive brownie.

Just like the Le Sal, this was deep, rich, fudgey, not cakey.  I really liked this brownie, and again, I'm not a brownie girl.

The caramel was very chewy, sweet, good, but not quite the consistency I was expecting.

The chocolate chips scattered on top seemed extraneous actually, I liked the crunch, but would have preferred them integrated into the brownie itself.

***+, I preferred the simpler Le Sal.

Pecan Chocolate Caramel.

"A moist torte chocolate base with melted caramel, layered with chocolate drops and pecan pieces." -- GourmetXpress, Distributor

"Dark chocolate brownie hand drizzled with thick, buttery caramel, semi-sweet chocolate chips, and pecan halves and pieces." -- Silverland Sell Sheet

But, it was time to get more decadent.  To the previous brownie, they added ... pecans!

It was the same incredible brownie base.  Seriously, so decadent, so fudgey.  I again thought the caramel was a bit too chewy though.  I appreciated the addition of pecans, more crunch, even better.

***+, better than the one without pecans, still not quite as good as the simple Le Sal ...

Double Chocolate with Walnuts.

"A chocolate lovers dream.  This double chocolate brownie is topped with chunky walnuts." -- GourmetXpress, Distributor

"Dense chocolate batter with the texture of whole chocolate chips hand topped with large walnut pieces." -- Silverland Sell Sheet

"A perfect combination of walnuts and rich chocolate make our "original brownie" a chocolate and nut lover's delight. " -- Silverland Website

And then I went for one that looked simple, but really delivered.  These brownies just get better and better.  This was my favorite, no question.

Same rich, fudgey base, but studded with chocolate chips for additional chocolate-yness and texture.  And walnuts for crunch.  And, uh, protein, to make it healthy?

I wanted to heat this up and have it a la mode, but when I tried a bite at room temp it was too good to have patience to do so.  Great at room temp, even better when dunked into whipped cream to balance the richness.

****+.

Vegan Brownie.

"Deep rich vegan chocolate brownie topped with semisweet chocolate chips with the added hardy texture and chewiness of ground flaxseed." -- Silverland Sell Sheet

Ok, now I was getting skeptical, and curious.  A vegan brownie?  I've never loved brownies to begin with, but a vegan one?  With, ew, flaxseed?

And ... yeah.  The chocolate chips on top were good, and it was rich, dense, and fudgy much like their other products, but it did have a bit of a strange flavor to it, kinda ... "healthy" tasting, which I imagine was the flaxseed.

It was better than expected, honestly, but still, not what I'd go for.

**+.

Peppermint Brownie (Seasonal).

"Moist chocolate brownie studded on top with crushed red and white peppermint candies for a chocolate mint sensation." -- GourmetXpress, Distributor

"The award winning double chocolate brownie topped with crunchy mini peppermint candy canes—crunchy mint chocolate holiday cheer." -- Silverland Bakery

For the winter season, they have a peppermint version, with limited availability.  Of course I ordered it for my group.  They looked quite festive, yes, candy canes on top ...

These were good brownies.  Again, such rich, deep chocolate fudge base.  Good at room temp, amazing warm a la mode.

The peppermint candy on top was fine, but didn't enhance the brownies, and really seemed a bit like what any home baker would chop up (irregularly) and throw on top.  I think I prefer them without.

***+.

Sugar Free Double Chocolate.

"Flavorful, chocolaty and moist, our sugar free brownie with mini sugar free chocolate morsels fulfills the need for a decadent dessert without the sugar. "

I know, sugar free dessert?  But Silverland makes such great stuff, I was willing to give it a try.

There was nothing that tasted odd about these in any way.  They were rich, chocolately, dense, sweet in a way that didn't taste fake.

I liked the chips on top for a bit of texture, and even more additional chocolate boost.

They were fine just as is, but better warmed up a la mode.  But they weren't as good as the other ones, in a way I can't quite pinpoint.  Just not as indulgent?

***.

Other Bars

Besides the brownies, Silverland makes a host of other bars, ranging from tart lemon or key lime, to nutty pecan pie, to fruity raspberry or blueberry crumbles, plus a slew of blondies and layered bars.  And yes, keto versions are available of some of these too.

Blondie.

"A hearty oatmeal flavor with brown sugar complemented with walnuts and chocolate morsels for a unique nutty taste." -- GourmetXpress, Distributor

"Hearty all natural oatmeal cookie batter complemented with white chocolate chunks, walnuts and chocolate morsels for a unique, nutty taste." -- Silverland

The blondie I actually ordered with glee.  To me, a blondie is always better than a cookie - thicker, sweeter, softer - and generally better than a brownie - more textures.

This was a good, solid blondie.  Moist yet dense in a decadent way, buttery, sweet.  The highlight was how loaded with goodies it was - plenty of large chunks of chocolate and nuts.

It wasn't mind-blowing, but, a good version for sure.  Better than your average bakesale.

I enjoyed it at room temp, but it was even better warmed up and topped with ice cream.  Like, well, most baked goods.

***+.

English Toffee.

"Brimming with walnuts, dark chocolate chips, English Toffee bits all held together with a buttery vanilla filling." --GourmetXpress, Distributor

"Brimming with walnuts, semi-sweet chocolate chips, and English Toffee bits all held together with a buttery vanilla filling, it will make any toffee lover’s day. " -- Silverland

Perhaps better than the blondie?  The english toffee bar.  These were good. 

Rich buttery sugary base, topped with crunchy nuts, sweet toffee bits, and chocolate chips.

The toppings stole the show, I really love english toffee and the sweetness from it was fantastic, and I loved all the different textures the nuts/chips/toffee brought out.  The base was a bit boring, but, I didn't mind too much.

I never got around to trying it warmed up.  And yes, I may have stolen a bunch of toffee off unclaimed bars ...

***+.

7 Layer Bar.

"A flaky graham cracker crust piled high with fresh coconut, chocolate chips, butterscotch morsels and walnuts." -- GourmetXpress, Distributor

"Graham cracker crust, sweet milk, coconut, chocolate chips, butterscotch drops, and walnuts, all hand layered in for crunchy melty goodness. " -- Silverland

The brownies are crazy successful.  Blondies solid.  This, a bake sale classic, ... was not.

Meh.

Lots of great ingredients, but didn't add up to greatness.

Dry graham cracker crust.  Shredded coconut with a poor mouthfeel.  Just some generic nuts, chocolate chips, and butterscotch chips plunked on.

It seemed like something you'd find at any bake sale, made by ... anyone.

**.

Dark Chocolate Truffle Bar.

"Topped with a rich, smooth dark chocolate ganache. Truly, a serious chocolate sensation!" -- GourmetXpress, Distributor

"If you like pure dark chocolate truffles, you will love our Chocolate Truffle brownie. A
rich, smooth dark chocolate hand frosted ganache adds dimension to our richest brownie, 100% natural. " -- Silverland Bakery

I know I have this in the "not brownies" section.  This might kinda look like a brownie, but, it isn't.  They do describe this fairly well.   It wasn't a brownie.  It was like ... a chocolate truffle, made into a bar, and topped with more ganache.  It is just ... rich chocolate.  Two different textures, the slightly firmer base and the creamy top, but, it is just chocolate.  Very intense.

And strangely, not very enjoyable at room temperature.  At least, not on its own.  I'd need to experiment with warming it up, or adding ice cream/whipped cream to temper it.

***.

Natural Foods Bars

"These all-natural bars are handcrafted with simple, whole foods such as fruits, nuts and seeds flavored with natural ingredients like ginger, turmeric, and cocoa. A satisfying snack that curbs hunger while providing a beneficial combination of whole foods and superfoods.

Our no-bake Natural Food Bars are minimally processed using 100% vegan and wheat-free ingredients."

Clearly, at some point, Silverland Bakery took stock of what niche consumers wanted, and launched a Natural Foods line, all vegan, all gluten-free, and raw to boot. 

Yes, I even tried some of these, ordering to be inclusive of my large group, but ... hard pass.

 Cherry (Super Fruit).

"This antioxidant rich bar is just dates, oats, walnuts, and cherries. A delicious and

fruity break between meals, or as a meal to go."

I don't generally go for raw, vegan bars made just of fruit/nuts/oats, but, these were served at an event I was at, and I do like Silverland Bakery, so, I gave them a try.

The ingredient list was simple: dates, oats, walnuts, cherries.

And ... well, they tasted like you'd expect.  Strange mushy texture, bitter from the walnuts.  I don't like the taste of dates.  Kudos for the big dried cherries inside.

Not for me.

**.

Spiced Ginger (Detox).

"Ginger aids in digestion and this bar is a great way to get a mini detox, 100% natural. "

Ok, trying another variety, a totally different recipe, no oats, but still dates and walnuts as the base, now joined by almonds, the namesake ginger, and spices (cinnamon, clove).

These were worse.  Super mushy, strange flavor all around.  Did not like.

*+.

Read More...

Cafe Dolci

Cafe Dolci is a tiny, and I mean tiny, little cafe (really, just a window) on Market St in San Francisco.  I probably walked by it 100+ times before ever noticing it.  Open only during the week, and it closes by 1:30pm every day, so, just not really on my radar.

In the morning, they sell coffee drinks, a few pastries, and mostly bagels.  At lunchtime, they offer one thing: banh mi.

I finally noticed the place a couple months ago when I saw the pastries, and my interest was furthered when I saw them listed on Too Good to Go - a new app in San Francisco that allows you to reserve "Mystery Bags" at merchants for a discounted price, with pickup times near the end of their hours.  Customers get a great deal, merchants are able to sell items at a lower profit that would often get thrown out.   Win-win.  Plus, um, its really fun to imagine all the possibilities of what will be in the mystery bag!

Cafe Dolci is one of the best merchants I have found on Too Good To Go, and others clearly agree - they sell out literally the moment they become available.  Not only did I help with food waste, and get a great deal, I'm fairly certain I'll return to Cafe Dolci as a "regular" customer, so, win-win-win.

Storefront

Cafe Dolci is located right on Market street.

Signage.

I strode up to Cafe Dolci at 1pm on the dot, the start of my collection period, which was 1pm - 1:30pm, the last 30 minutes of their service.  

The chalkboard sign out front let me know I was in the right place, as there is little other signage.

Bagel & Banh Mi Menu.

The menu is tiny, really, just bagels in the morning, banh mi for lunch.

Display Case: Visit #1.

A single display case is in front, with the assorted bagels, plus their top selling item (besides the banh mi): pork buns.  This display also had hot dog buns, a few muffins, butter cake, and ham & egg buns.  No prices were listed.

It is this case that the merchant plucked my "mystery" items from on my first visit.

Display Case: Visit #2.

The next time I arrived for pickup a few weeks later, the assortment of items in the pastry case were quite different.  There were no croissants nor cake slices, and two kinds of muffins this time (they look rather like Costco brand ... which, uh, I do like).

The next row down, "asian buns" section was different too: no bbq pork buns (instead, chicken "deluxe" buns), no hot dog buns (instead, a twisted hot dog and onion bun), no ham & egg cocktail bun.  This section looked pretty empty, so likely the others had just run out.

And finally, bagels, 8 varieties remained: plain, whole wheat, cinnamon, sesame, cheese, jalapeño, garlic, and really seedy.

Food

I did not get to pick my items on either visit, nor did I get a bahn mi, so this review is only of the mystery baked goods I received, most of which I really, really enjoyed.

Mystery Bag.  $4.99.
June 2021.

Cafe Dolci offers a mystery bag for $4.99, which is required to have a minimum value of $15.  I wasn't offered the opportunity to pick any items, but got a nice spread of a bagel with cream cheese, a hot dog cocktail bun, a ham & egg cocktail bun, a massive croissant, and a slice of cake.

The hot dog bun is the only item I would have picked myself, so this was an interesting assortment for me.  I still really wished she'd picked a pork bun!

Mystery Bag.  $4.99.
July 2021.

The next month, my bag was ready when I arrived, so I again had no choice.  But, I was quite pleased with the contents, entirely different from last time - not a single repeat!

Inside I found a bagel with ham, egg, and cheese, a bagel with nutella, a bun, and ... a lemonade.  

I liked this bag even more than the first.

Asian Baked Goods

I'm not sure where Cafe Dolci gets the asian baked goods from, but it is somewhere local, likely in Chinatown?  The offerings change daily, but usually include some kind of filled cocktail buns, massive steamed buns, and ... something with hotdogs, be it a bun or other pastry.

Ham & Egg Bun.

First up for me from this section was a breakfast item, a ham & egg bun, asian style on a cocktail bun.

It was a nice, soft, fluffy, clearly fresh bun.  The fillings however let me down.

Ham & Egg Bun: Inside.

Inside was half a fried egg, and two thin slices of mediocre ham.  The egg was extremely greasy.

No cheese, no condiments.  And obviously, not served warm.

Since these are not made to order, they are never warm, and I am not sure if mustard or something is ever offered.  It felt a bit plain to me, but I brought it home, warmed it, added condiments, and enjoyed it, but the egg really was far too greasy for my taste.

Hot Dog Bun.

Now, this was an item I'd pick!  Little secret: I LOVE HOT DOGS!

The hot dog was inside similar soft fluffy bread as the ham & egg bun, and again, no condiments, and served room temp.

I brought it home, heated it up, and got my favorite honey mustard and ketchup ready.

It was ... ok.  The bun was so soft and fluffy, lightly sweet.  That part I really liked.  The hot dog however was a bit below average.  I'm not sure if it was beef, turkey, or a mix of something.  Definitely not a hot dog I'd ever want on its own.  Dunked in my ketchup-mustard mix, and with the soft sweet bread though, it was satisfying.

***.

Chicken Deluxe Bun.

I was thrilled, thrilled to see a bun in my bag.  I hoped it was the bbq pork bun that everyone raves about.

It ... was not, more on this soon, but, I adored it.

The bun itself was soft, fluffy, slightly sweet, just a perfect home for the ridiculous goodness that lay inside ...

Deluxe Chicken Bun: Inside.

I cut it in half to reveal ... well, not a bbq pork bun as I had hoped.  "This must be the Deluxe Chicken Bun!", I thought.

At first glance, "deluxe" meant chicken thigh, hunks of mushroom, and ... hard boiled egg.

All was flavorful, and I liked the chew to the meaty mushroom and flavorful dark meat chicken.  The hard boiled egg was a bit odd, but I know that is a thing.

But this bun had much, much more to it ...

Deluxe Chicken Bun: A ... Sausage?!

As I quickly discovered, there was so much more inside.  A ... sausage.  Yes, a sausage, casing and all.  Very flavorful, well seasoned sausage.  And ... meatball, again, really well seasoned, plenty of herbs.  There were chives too.

A sausage, meatballs, egg, chicken thigh, mushrooms ... wowzer.  This thing was loaded.  "Deluxe" indeed.

The flavors, the textures, they all just *totally* popped.  It was so crazy good.

I adored this, devoured in seconds, even though it was quite a heafty item.

****+, and I'd gladly get this again.  I'd love to try the bbq pork bun still, but, wow, this was good.

Bagels

Cafe Dolci serves the best bagels I've had in SF.  No question.  After getting one in my first Mystery Bag, I asked the next time I was there where they came from.  The answer?   Bagelry, on Polk Street.  They are just my perfect style, great chew, good toppings.  

Cafe Docli always has a large selection of bagels (at least 8 kinds), available with butter, jam, cream cheese, peanut butter, etc, or as breakfast sandwiches with egg, ham, sausage, and the like.

They toast them to order, perfectly, load them with goodies, and just really, serve some ridiculous good bagels.  Yes, simple bagels can be ridiculously good!

Cheese Bagel with Cream Cheese. $4.25.

The bagel lineup the first day I visited included plain, sesame, "really seedy", jalapeño, cinnamon, and cheese, but it was clear that they normally have 2 other varieties as well given the empty slots in the display.

If I were picking a bagel, I likely would have gone for the "really seedy" or perhaps cinnamon to save for breakfast, but alas, the merchant selected the cheese bagel.

It was an above average bagel, nice chew to it, a good crust.  Generous amount of cheese baked into it.

Bagels are available simply with butter for $3.75, or with other spreads like peanut butter & jam or nutella, or filled with egg, cheese, bacon, ham, sausage, etc.  For my mystery bag, she added cream cheese, a rather odd pairing in my mind for a cheese bagel ... but then again, I've never had a cheese bagels besides when turning it into pizza bagels.  She added a generous amount of cream cheese.

Overall, a good bagel, but, not what I would order, and pricey (I think? I don't order bagels out so maybe I just don't know if this is the going rate?), normally $4.25.

***+.

Blueberry Bagel with Nutella.

The next time, I got this.  I was pleased to see a blueberry bagel, but a bit weirded out when I saw what was inside ...

It was a strange combo.  I do like Nutella, and I love blueberry bagels, but I haven't ever put them together, and, well, I see why.  I like my blueberry bagel just toasted with butter (and a sprinkle of sugar!), or perhaps fruity or plain cream cheese, but nutella??  It muddled the lovely blueberry flavor.

I liked the bagel though, perfect chew.  ***+ for the bagel itself.

Nutella Bagel: Inside.

I'll give Cafe Dolci credit though, it was *loaded* with Nutella, and melty Nutella really is delicious.  Just, uh, not what I wanted with my blueberry bagel!  ***+ for generous, melty Nutella.

*** for the overall item, was less good than the individual parts.  I didn't see these on the menu, but likely about the same price as cream cheese bagel, ~$4.25?

Everything Bagel with Ham, Egg, and Cheese. $6.75.

I was pretty thrilled to get an everything bagel, and the bagel was everything I wanted it to be (pun intended!).  Perfect chew, good flavor from the seeds and garlic.  Yes, yes, yes.

****+ for the bagel itself.

Ham, Egg, and Cheese Bagel: Inside.

Inside was a very thick slab of decent enough ham, a fried egg, and plenty of melty cheese.  Kudos to Cafe Dolci for cheese on *both* sides, and it was perfectly melty.

The ham was an entirely different kind of ham than the cocktail bun version, much thicker, not deli meat style.  It was good, not remarkable as I prefer smokier, more flavorful ham, but, it was fine.  I suspect this is a product Cafe Dolci gets to make the breakfast bagels themselves, rather than the asian buns that perhaps come with the ham in them.

The fried egg was good, not as greasy as before, not rubbery, very satisfying with the cheese.  There was plenty of salt and pepper too, really well seasoned.  Definitely better fillings than the cocktail buns.

Overall though, the bagel and melty cheese alone made this insanely delicious and satisfying.

Normally $6.75, so a great item to wind up in my bag!

****.

Other

The rest of the pastry case offers a few muffins (they look like Costco!), croissants (MASSIVE!), and loaf cakes, depending on the day.  I was glad I didn't ever get a muffin, as they just didn't look great. 

Croissant.

The first time, I got a croissant.  A MASSIVE croissant.  As in, comically large, actually.

It was a bready style croissant, light and airy, rather than a flaky french croissant.  It had a buttery essence to it, but not in the decadent flaky way, it was more like a ... brioche?  Buttery but not flaky, hard to describe, but this was the case.

It was too massive to really imagine just eating alongside a coffee as a morning pastry, and likely could be great to use for a sandwich, although, it was so large that it was even too large to really think of for a sandwich.

*** for the style it was, ** as a croissant though.

Butter Cake.

Well, this one was totally lost on me.

I'm not one for pound cakes, and certainly would never, ever pick this.  It was dense, I guess it was buttery, but, it tasted kinda generic, stale, and like it should have come out of a plastic wrapper.  And cake without frosting ... just, why?

I can't really fairly evaluate this, as it just isn't an item I ever want.

*.

Drinks

Cafe Dolci *is* a "cafe" after all, and although I didn't see people getting them, as it was afternoon, they offer a standard lineup of coffee, tea, and espresso drinks, along with Vietnamese iced coffee, keeping in theme.

Fresh Squeezed Lemonade.

The lemonade was the first real lemonade I've had in many, many years.  I just don't really ever go for lemonade.  It was good though, very tart, and loaded with hunks of lemon.  Quality fresh squeezed juice, and, a totally random addition to my bag!

***+ for what it was, but I wouldn't get another.

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Dominique Ansel Kitchen, NYC

Baked goods.  Desserts.  Ice cream.  Some of my all time favorite things, and all signature items at the famous Dominique Ansel establishments in New York.

If you lived under a rock in 2013, or didn't pay attention to the baked goods scene, perhaps you missed out on the most famous item produced by Chef Dominique Ansel: the cronut.  Yup, the cronut, the croissant-donut hybrid, that took the country by storm and skyrocketed Dominique Ansel into culinary celebrity status (which, to be fair, is also due to his success as a James Beard winning, work at Michelin starred restaurants, etc).  But the cronut was his big rise to fame.

Hot off the heels of the cronut was another creation: the DKA.  Dominique's Kouign Amann.  While he didn't create the glorious kouign amann, he certainly perfected it.  Like the cronut, it quickly got a cult following, and required reservations in advance.

I had many imposter cronuts and kouign amann over the years, and in the summer of 2019, I finally got to try the later.  I had mediocre expectations, given the hype, but ... well, it lived up.  And it isn't just because a kouign amann is delicious by nature (which, it is), but, well, he really did master this namesake item.

In SF, I've tried all the "famous" local versions of kouign amann, such as the decent but average one from Starter Bakery, the much better one from b. patisserie, and the not-so-good one from Firebrand.  I've also had several from the oldest pastry shop in Paris (Stohrer), a fantastic version turned into a formal dessert at Clio in Boston, and, a memorable take home treat from an incredible meal at the (now closed) Cyrus in Napa.  I've had great kouign amann, ones that, at the time, I declared the best ever.  But the DKA ... yup, it blew them away.

Setting

The shop has an ice cream window outside to streamline those orders, and inside is the bakery counter (with everything on display!) and seating.

Ice Cream Window.

Another one of Dominique Ansel's well known creation is the soft serve.  Yup, the ice cream.  And you know how much I love my soft serve.

I was pretty excited to try the burrata soft serve, as, well, I do love burrata, and I loved the sound of the microbasil in it (I've had fabuous basil ice cream before), and the strawberry confit ... but, alas, the other flavor was What-A-Melon, which uses real watermelon, AND is served in a carved out watermelon rind, and thus ... danger, danger, danger for me, given my life threatening watermelon allergy.  I couldn't take the risk to order the other soft serve.

On another visit, they only had a cold brew flavor, and it wasn't very good, really, quite icy.  If you want great soft serve in New York, there are plenty of other places to get it, like Big Gay Ice Cream right around the corner, or my fav for the incredible ube soft serve (with halo halo toppings no less!), Soft Swerve.

Seating.

The seating area is tastefully decorated, and I appreciated all the floral touches.

Bakery Counter

Of course, most people go to Dominique Ansel Kitchen for the stunning, and unique, pastries and desserts.  All are on full display, tempting you as you want in the generally long line to place your order.

Baked Goods.

The array of tempting looking baked goods is extensive, ranging from thick cookies, to all kinds of filled croissants (including some unexpected versions like garlic confit, Nutella, and almond lavender), to the oh-so-notoriously hard to make canelé.  I honestly wanted to try nearly all of them.

More Baked Goods.

There were also some simple classics, like a plain or ham & cheese croissant for the traditionalists, and the cinnamon spun roll jumped out at me too.  Even the brownies had an interesting element to them, incorporating smoked sage.

Desserts.

And then ... the even more stunning creations, the desserts.
 

This section also showed models of the made-to-order items, like the a la minute mousse, the baked to order hazelnut madelines, nad the freshly made "Ultimate" S'more.

Beautiful Creations.

Every item was stunning, expertly made, and full of little twists.  I don't even like pavlova that much, but the brown sugar orange pavlova was gorgeous, just like the grapefruit honey tart, again, tarts aren't usualy what I go for, but these looked, and sounded, fascinating.

4th of July Religieuse.

The banana cream pie looked downright incredible, and, because it was 4th of July, the religieuse took a festive slant, decked out like Uncle Sam.  Oh, and the cheesecake?  Certainly not slouch, it was made with black truffle honey.

Retail.

The packaged retail section also includes some take-home items, like housemade granola or burnt caramel popcorn (which you know I almost grabbed, given my love of popcorn!)

Food

I would gladly have ordered a savory meal, or any of the breakfast items, or grabbed a slew of things to take home, but, alas, this visit was directly after visiting Big Gay Ice Cream one last time, and I was literally on my way to the airport from there.  Thus, I had restraint, and only got the one thing: the signature DKA.  I mean, I had no other choice, right?

Brown Sugar DKA. $5.50.

“Dominique’s Kouign Amann”: Our signature pastry made with brown sugar, similar to a “caramelized croissant,” flaky and caramelized on the outside with tender layers on the inside."

I could tell just by inspection that this kouign amann was in a league of its own.  The caramelization on the exterior was noticeable from a distance.  This is *clearly* unlike any generic bakery kouign amann.  But, I have had good koiugn amann before too.

My standards were set high.

I took a tentative bite.  Yes, wow, that was crispy.  So crispy.  So rich.  This is clearly a special item.

Bottom: That caramelization!!!!

Turning it over revealed even more ridiculous caramelized goodness.  It looked like the top of a crème brûlée!

I can safely say, on the caramelization dimension alone, this is the best I've ever had. 

At this point, I expected a good, crispy kouign amann.  Nicely layered, very rich, decadent treat.  Which it was.  I also expected, a slightly more interesting flavor, from the use of brown sugar, which isn't as standard.  And, that was there as well.

This was a good kouign amann.

But I still didn't know to expect what I found ... inside.

Inside: So gooey!

Yes, inside.  Among the crispy layers, a gooey pocket of sugary goodness.  Now *this* was unique.  I've had filled kouign amann before, usually chocolate filled, sometimes with creams or fruits, but this?  Unexpected, and I loved the quality it added to the treat.

So yes, this was an excellent treat.  Far more caramel forward than most, sweeter, and richer as as result.  While I'll eat a kouign amann for breakfast sometimes, this one I wouldn't really find breakfast appropriate.  It was just *too* much.  Actually.  

****, I still enjoyed it very much, and I think it would be lovely with a scoop of vanilla ice cream to help temper the sweet richness (they do serve it as an ice cream sandwich, but with salted caramel ice cream, which I think would be just too much).

I don't feel the need to get this again though - given my limited time in New York, I have too many other things to explore.

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