Kashi Bars

Remember those "7 Whole Grains on a Mission"?  While that tagline has been retired by Kashi, the brand is still a big player in the breakfast and snack food market, with a focus on using healthy whole grains.

"At Kashi, we believe that what you put in your body directly impacts what you get out of life. We know that by combining plant-based, nutritious ingredients in our cereal and bars we can make choosing wholesome a little easier. And we do it all while carefully considering our farmers, our food chain, and our planet. Because, after all, we're all in this together." 

Kashi has a huge product selection at this point, literally, 90+ products (!), including breakfast goods like hot and cold cereal, frozen waffles, and breakfast bars, plus snack bars, cookies, crackers, and crisps, and for a while, they even made frozen entrees, rice, and pizza.  Basically any where those whole grains can go on their mission, they will go.

The focus of this review is the assorted bar offerings, I'll focus on breakfast cereals in a separate review.

Soft-Baked Cereal Bars 

"Kashi® Soft-Baked Cereal Bars are baked up toasty and golden with real fruit and wildflower honey for natural goodness you can see and taste."

Since Kashi's main focus is the breakfast scene, it makes sense that one of their bar offerings is a breakfast bar, a soft baked cereal bar.  The Seven Whole Grains make an appearance here, with each bar delivering 11g of whole grains and 3g of fiber.

I used to eat a lot of Kellogg's Nutrigrain cereal bars as a very quick breakfast on my way to class in college, so I was interested to see what a slightly more sophisticated version would be like.  The Kashi offerings did remind me of Nutrigrain, except, well, they just weren't as good.  The actual cereal bar part was better, more complex and hearty tasting - I guess 7 whole grains do make a difference.  But there wasn't any additional topping like the oats on top of a Nutrigrain, and the amount of filling wasn't enough to stand up to the cereal part, for me.

Cereal bars are available in 3 flavors: "Ripe" Strawberry, Mixed Berry, and Chocolate.  I only tried the fruity ones.

Ripe Strawberry Baked Cereal Bar.

"Bright, ripe strawberries give our wholesome soft-baked bars a sunny, yummy taste."

This was the first flavor I tried, as I thought it would be the best.  I was sad to see that there was no extra crunchy topping, like with Nutrigrain bars.

But the real problem was the amount of strawberry filling.  There just wasn't nearly enough.  It was fine filling, a bit sweet, but, it got very lost inside the bar itself.  Too much bar, too little filling.  I liked the cereal bar part, but, without an additional topping, or any flavor from the filling, it was too plain.

**+.

Blackberry Graham Baked Cereal Bar.

"With these soft-baked cereal bars, every bite of blackberry is wrapped in warm honey graham goodness."

I moved on to a blackberry bar, now discontinued (replaced with a mixed berry version with strawberry & blueberry in the mix alongside the blackberry).

It was very similar to the strawberry flavor.  Same soft crust that just wasn't very exciting, no topping, blackberry flavored paste inside.  I was glad the blackberry paste did not contain seeds, since I dislike blackberry seeds.

Overall, it just seemed dry and boring.  Again, just a lot of cereal crust.

**+.

Granola Bars

Chewy

"Our chewy granola bars are truly lovable. They bring our unique blend of Seven Whole Grains and Sesame together with whole, roasted nuts, succulent, sun-dried fruit, and a touch of wildflower honey. And with 4g of Fiber and 6g of Protein, they are as nourishing as they are tasty."

Most of Kashi's bars are granola bars, chewy style.  They come in 6 flavors, none of which really pretend to be super indulgent.  Kashi isn't marketing to those who want a "Birthday Cake" or "Brownie" or "Apple Pie" as their granola bar, rather, they focus on the nuts and seeds used, e.g. "Honey Almond Flax" or "Chocolate Chip Chia".  Exciting?  No, but they at least aren't a surprise.

I've tried a number of Kashi's Chewy bars.  They are all standard, chewy style granola bars, which I do like.  But ... none of them have ever tasted nearly as good as the star ingredients sound (even when that star ingredient is something simple like dark chocolate, mocha, or even almonds).  I know I'm not the target audience, as a big part of my problem with them is that, well, they are too healthy.  I don't particularly LIKE that signature mix of Seven Whole Grains, that yup, show up here too.

 Dark Chocolate Pomegranate Chewy Granola & Seed Bar.

"Rich dark chocolate chunks and slightly sweet and tart pomegranate combine with chewy whole grains to create a delicious snack."

I started with the most interesting sounding of the bars, featuring dark chocolate and pomegranate.  This one is now discontinued.

Ok, so I don't know what happened to my bar.  I know it is a soft bar, and I threw it into my bag, but, when I opened it, a bar it was not.  A pile of components, yes, but certainly not a bar.  It didn't seem just smushed though, as every single component really was separated from the others.  I've never seen this happen before with a bar.

Anyway, looks aside, I pressed on.  I liked the chunks of dark chocolate, and, since they were separated from everything else, it was easy to just eat the chocolate.

As for the rest ... I wasn't a fan.  I did not like the bitterness from the chia seeds, nor the tartness from the pomegranate (both little dried arils and juice), nor the puffs of brown rice.  Meh, definitely not for me.

**, for the chocolate bits.

Chocolate Almond & Sea Salt ... with Chia.

"Sweet and salty flavor plus ALA omega-3 from chia make up one deliciously nutritious, chewy granola bar."

So, I missed the little "with Chia" description on this when I grabbed it.  In fact, I didn't realize that was my problem with the bar, until I went to write this up.

But, let me back up.

The bar was a standard chewy-style bar, and in this case, it didn't fall apart like my previous one.  It looked pretty good, with bits of almond and chunks of dark chocolate that looked quite tempting.

But ... it was bitter, in a strange way.  I initially blamed those 7 Whole Grains, but, I'm pretty sure it was the chia I tasted, and disliked.   But again, the dark chocolate pieces were nice.

**, again just for the chocolate bits.

[ No Photos ]

I've also tried many others, but failed to take photos of them.

• Dark Mocha Almond: "Roasted almonds, dark chocolate, espresso and the goodness of whole grains — these bars are an anytime treat you can't wait to eat." Tasting notes: Not goeey like most chewy granola bars, but also not crisp like crunchy ones.  Somewhat in-between, and I would have liked a softer texture.  The small dark chocolate chips were quite good though, and the mocha flavor was subtle but good.  Lots of whole almonds, so the almond component was not lost.  But overall, not particularly interesting. **+.
• Honey Almond Flax: "Nutty and nutritious, our chewy almond bars are made with a sprinkling of flaxseeds and a hint of wildflower honey." Tasting notes: This was basically just standard Kashi cereal in a bar form.  Not very good, I just don’t care for chewy granola bars like this. **+.
• Peanut Peanut Butter: "Creamy peanut butter is mixed with our whole grain goodness and a bit of wildflower honey." Tasting notes: Meh.  Not chewy.  Peanuts in the mix but not really peanut buttery in flavor. **.
• Trail Mix: "With whole, roasted almonds, succulent, sun-dried fruit, toasted sunflower seeds and a touch of wildflower honey, our Trail Mix granola bars have 4g of fiber and 6g of protein."  Tasting notes:  This tasted like Kashi's Go Lean cereal, held together with brown rice syrup, plus some nuts and dried fruit thrown in there.  Which … is what it was.  I think I just don’t really care for these type of granola bars.  **+.

Layered Granola Bars

"Each bar starts with our signature blend of 7 whole grains for a hearty, natural wholesomeness. The chewy granola base is then topped with a real fruit spread and hearty nuts. And with 4g of fiber, 4g of protein and real fruit, they're as nutritious as they are tasty"

For a while, Kashi had a line of "Layered" bars, but now they make only one.

Dark Chocolate Coconut Layered Granola Bar.

"Our whole-grain goodness gets layered with real fruit, rich chocolate, walnuts and a sprinkling of coconut."

I wish I'd taken this photo from the side, so you could see how thick the layer of chocolate on top was.  I've never seen a bar with that much of the good stuff on it.

The aroma coming off the bar was pure chocolate.  The chocolate layer was visibly thick.  I was confused.  This looked decadent, yet claimed to only have 7g of sugar.  How could this be?  

I read the full description online, which says that top layer, which I thought was all chocolate was "a layer of real soft fruit mixed with rich, dark chocolate".  Ok, so there was fruit in there.  I didn't really taste fruit, I tasted chocolate, although, the fruit explains the texture, as it was very soft.  I investigated further, reading the ingredients list.  The only fruit I could find was dates.  Normally in these sorts of bars, like LÄRABAR (ugh!), use dates for sweetness, and it overtakes the whole thing, very easily detectable.  I was shocked that I hadn't identified dates by taste.  I think it is because they balanced the sweetness of the dates with bitter chicory?

Anyway, the chocolate layer did taste like chocolate, it was smooth and soft, although, the aftertaste was a bit like a fruit roll up.

The base was standard Kashi, 7 whole grains, forming a classic granola bar.  On top was sprinkle of coconut and a few bits of walnut.

I selected this bar for its promise of chocolate and coconut, since I love those flavors together, but, I was disappointed by the coconut shreds on top.  Coconut in this form is always a bit off putting to me, it always makes me feel like I'm eating sawdust.  I greatly prefer toasted coconut, larger shreds.

Overall, this was better than most granola bars, but, at the end of the day, it was still a granola bar base, just with some decent chocolately fruit spread on top.  More coconut and more nuts would have done wonders to it, but at that point, it would basically just be my favorite ice cream sundae toppings on a granola bar :)

***.

Update Review: I had one a few years later, without re-reading this review.  I also had it without re-reading the description.  I again didn't know about the date mixed in with the chocolate, but I thought the chocolate was strangely mushy, and wasn't a big fan of the chocolate.  And I again didn't like the coconut, and thought the base was boring.  **+.

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Bravado Coffee Bar & Lounge

Update Review

You may remember, way back in 2012, I reviewed Bravado Coffee Bar & Lounge, a fairly new place at the time (originally called Caffe Pascucci), offering up some very fascinating coffee desserts, er, beverages.  They featured fluffy italian yogurt, or their signature super thick Confuso cream.  Really unique, and really tasty, drink-desserts.

Flash forward to today, and Bravado is still open.  The staff are still incredibly friendly.  But the good news stops there.  The menu has changed to be more mainstream, and they have dropped all those special drinks.  No more Italian yogurt.  No more Confuso cream.   They have a fairly extensive beer and wine lineup, clearly, catering towards ballgame crowds.  The breakfast menu is fairly standard (avocado toast, scrambled eggs, breakfast burritos, etc), lunch is sandwiches, wraps, tartines, and salads, and weekend brunch adds on a few things like waffles.

Although the signature drinks are all gone, they do sometimes offer up special creations, and I tried a few, hoping to be reminded of the glorious previous drinks.

Strawberry Nutella Latte, Decaf.  $4.50.

I was very disappointed that they no longer carry any of their previous totally crazy drinks.

Now, I don't actually normally order these sorts of things, I drink my coffee black, and when I get cofee, I want to just taste coffee, but I went there seeking one out, as a dessert item, so I was pretty let down to see the new menu.  It read like any generic coffee shop.

I could have just ordered a normal beverage, but, since I was there and in the mood for something decadent, I went for the barista's suggestion of his signature drink: a Strawberry Nutella Latte.

Now, I never order lattes.  Too much milk.  If I'm going for a drink with milk, a cortado is what I prefer, or at least a short cappuccino.  A latte though?  Never.  Like I said, I want to taste my coffee, not, milk.

I also don't really like Nutella.  Not that I hate it, but I just don't go crazy for it like everyone else seems to.  And ... fruity coffee?  Eh ....

So why did I order this?  Again, I think I was just confused, since everything I had intended to order was no longer an option, and ... this was special!

I watched the barista make it, scooping in a generous amount of Nutella into the bottom of the cup.  He mixed it around a bit, but alas, the Nutella didn't really budge.  I didn't taste it in the drink at all, but, it was clearly all there, pooled in the bottom.

What I did taste was the strawberry, which came in syrup form, and, tasted like it.  Very fake.

It wasn't actually a very sweet drink, which surprised me.  It tasted fairly bitter actually, and I didn't really like their decaf.

So, yeah, I didn't like this.  I didn't bother finish it.  **.

The $4.50 price tag was hefty, particularly for something I ended up tossing.  I obviously wouldn't get another.

Ciaobella Pistacchio. $4.

"Our classic cappuccino with white chocolate, topped with whipped cream and pistachio sauce".

I still fondly remembered so many of their crazy drinks, so on my next visit, I decided to try the most decadent sounding on the menu, besides the barista's special Nutella once, since I clearly didn't like that.

I went for the Ciobella Pistacchio, which was on the menu for a limited time.

I really had no idea what to expect, I figured the white chocolate would make it sweet, the pistachio sauce would give some interesting flavor, and whipped cream would just be awesome.

I sat down and admired the drink for a moment.  Lovely foam on top, drizzle of pistachio sauce.  I took a sip.  It was far more bitter than I expected.  The white chocolate did add a touch of sweetness, but, the underlying espresso was so dark that it was the flavor that come through more strongly.  I didn't taste much pistachio.  But then I realized something wasn't right.  Where was my whipped cream?  As it stood, this was just a flavored cappuccino, not quite a dessert creation like I wanted.

I went back to inquire about the whipped cream, and was told they didn't realize it was supposed to have whipped cream.  I guess I wouldn't have ever just randomly added whipped cream to this drink either, but it was on the menu that way, and was part of what drew me in.  He offered to make me a fresh one, but I told him there was no need, and he could just to add a squirt to the current one.

Out came a metal whipped cream dispenser, and my creation was topped off.  Much better now.  I appreciated that they didn't use canned whipped cream, and the fresh whipped cream added a touch more sweetness.  It also melted in nicely.

The drink was ok, but not really as interesting as I was expecting.  The best part was when I got to the end, and discovered the pool of pistachio sauce, really thick, in the bottom.  I don't think it had really been mixed in.  The sauce was quite tasty, and I imagined making an ice cream sundae with pistachio sauce and whipped cream.  Mmm.  But this?  Not that exciting, and I probably wouldn't get another.

***.

Original Review, August 2012

Last week, I had a horrible cold.  I couldn't swallow anything.  All I wanted was cold liquids to soothe my throat.  I remembered that over a year ago I'd visited a new cafe in the neighborhood, Caffe Pascucci, and that they served some very crazy cold drinks, most topped with all sorts of whipped creams and syrups.  It seemed like a great place to return to perhaps brighten my mood, but I couldn't find it.  Alas, they had changed names, now called Bravado Coffee Bar & Lounge.  And even better, they were on GoPago, so I could try it out for the first time AND get a cold drink.

The drink menu, as I remembered, was extensive.  Tons of crazy sounding, and amazing looking, hot drinks, cold drinks, blended drinks, drinks with yogurt in them even.  The menu is illustrated to help you pick your drink.  They also serve beer and wine in the afternoons, and brunch comes with a free mimosa or sangria.

The food menu changes throughout the day, offering a few breakfast options in the morning during the week, soups, salads, and sandwiches for lunch during the week, and some pizzas and other snacks in the late afternoon.  On weekends, they serve a hybrid brunch menu.  They have daily specials. The pastry case is filled with assorted cookies, croissants, and cakes.  I haven't tried any of the food yet, as quite honestly, it didn't look particularly great.

The cafe has a bunch of seating options, some small tables for 2, some round tables for 3, and some high tops for 4.  There is also outdoor seating.  The decor puts it right at home in SOMA.

They offer wifi, which is necessary, as they happen to be in a cell phone dead zone.  Sigh, San Francisco!  This is particularly problematic if you are trying to use GoPago while actually there.  Obviously, you are supposed to use GoPago in advance and have your drink waiting for you, but if you want to go look at the menu and then order, you need to get on the wifi with your phone to place an order.  The wifi was pretty flaky while I was there.

On my first visit, I also discovered that they were running a LevelUp promotion this week, giving a $10 credit all week!  So I used GoPago my first visit, and LevelUp on the subsequent visits, which was much easier, as it didn't require a network connection.

The staff were all friendly, although very busy.  I think the GoPago giants promotion was leading many people there, and then obviously their own LevelUp promotion was a big hit.  The first time I was there they were out of a bunch of things, like the chocolate confuso cream required for the drink I most wanted, and the icy coffee freddo that I also wanted.  The fourth time they were out of caramel sauce.  Both of these were surprising to me, as they are required components of signature dishes, and I was really disappointed both times because the things I really want to order, I couldn't! The second time I was there the single worker was clearly trying to do too many things at once, and had left the sink on, with it overflowing all over the place, until I pointed it out to her.

Anyway, the drinks were hit or miss.  Some were amazing, some not so much, but all very creative and amazing looking.  They clearly use high quality ingredients, and I was particularly impressed with the assorted whipped creams they used.  I'll definitely return to try more of their concoctions!

Yogurt Cappuccino Caramel, decaf.  $4.25.

"Our Gold espresso with light, Italian style yogurt and caramel sauce."

From the yogurt section of the menu.  I really had no idea what to expect when I ordered this.  What was Italian yogurt?  And why would I want it with my espresso?  I had no idea, but this sounded vaguely like an excuse at brunch, as it contained yogurt after all!

When it first arrived, I almost thought there was a mistake.  The beautiful treat placed in front of me was clearly a big pile of whipped cream and caramel sauce, right?  Oh well, I wasn't going to complain.  I took a spoonful, and realized ... this wasn't whipped cream, this must be the Italian yogurt!  It was insanely fluffy, lighter than whipped cream even, but it was somewhat tart.  It was fairly amazing.  Drizzled over it, adding just the right amount of sweetness, was a caramel sauce.  It was like eating a greek yogurt and honey parfait ... just, lighter, and really quite different.

On the bottom was the shot of espresso.  I wasn't quite sure how to get to it, but once I was a few spoonfuls in, I was easily able to get some espresso and some of the yogurt at the same time.  Now I was reminded not of a yogurt parfait, but of an affogato, with that same contrast of bitter liquid and sweeter soft part, except without the hot and cold contrast.  Once more of the yogurt was gone, it then started to remind me of a cappuccino, albeit one with some crazy froth.

I really liked this.  It was intriguing and delicious.  I was really into how the experience of it kept changing as the ratio of espresso to yogurt changed as I moved along.

I almost ordered another one immediately, but there were too many other, equally amazing sounding, things to try!  I'd certainly get this again in the future, although I'm also curious about the fruit versions. They seem like they'd be more like a yogurt parfait, but I don't really know how that goes with espresso.  Intriguing!

$4.25 was a perfectly reasonable price for the portion size and beautiful presentation.

Yogurt Cappuccino Frutti Bosco, decaf.  $4.25.

"Our Gold espresso with light, Italian style yogurt and fresh fruits."

On my next visit, I decided to try one of the fruity yogurts.  They offer two varieties, one with fresh cut fruit and one with fruitti bosco sauce.  The fruit of the day was strawberries, and I asked the barista which she recommended.  She picked the fruitti bosco, so I went with it.

As you can probably tell from the photo, the yogurt was very different this time.  It wasn't nearly as fluffy as before, and there was less of it.  It still had a nice tart flavor, but the consistency wasn't as enjoyable.

The frutti bosco sauce was a sweet berry flavored sauce.  It went ok with the yogurt, but the caramel worked much better.

The espresso was very bitter, and when mixed with the fruity sauce, it just really didn't work for me.

I really didn't like this, and it was a big disappointment after loving the caramel version.  Would not order again.

Fraspuccio Confuso, decaf, skim. $4.25.

"Gold espresso blended with ice and milk, topped with our signature Confuso cream."

Since I had my "brunch" treat to start, it was time to move on to a "dessert" selection.  And ... a dessert this was!  The menu listed a number of blended beverages, called Fraspuccios.  The first selection I made, the Fraspuccio Meringato, was unfortunately unavailable, as they were out of the dark chocolate cream, so I settled on my second pick, the amazingly delicious looking Fraspuccio Confuso.  The photo was absolutely droolworthy, and the server described Confuso cream as a whipped cream made from sweetened condensed milk that tastes like birthday cake.  Sold!

This drink was another visual stunner.  I almost didn't want to dig in, it was so pretty.

The base layer was the espresso, ice, milk, and some of the confuso cream, blended up.  The ice was nicely blended up, tiny little chunks.  It was fairly bitter, but did have some sweetness from the creme mixed in, just enough to balance it out.  Very, very good.

On top was a ton of the confuso cream.  It was pretty much exactly as she described, thicker than whipped cream, reminding me somewhat of a custard.  Very sweet on its own.  I believe there was also some caramel sauce drizzled on top.

And, to complete the deal, were little bits of crumbled up almond cookies.  Sweet, great flavor, and added a nice crunch.

This was pretty insanely decadent.  I couldn't convince myself it was a drink, it was clearly a full fledged dessert.  And a delicious one at that.  It was better than any Starbucks Frappucino, Peet's Freddo, Dunkin' Donuts Coffee Coolatta.  Not even in the same league.

I'd definitely order again, although I'd love to try the one I originally wanted, with the chocolate confuso cream and the meringue.  But then, there is also one with caramel and regular whipped cream.  So many amazing sounding treats!

$4.25 was again a reasonable price for a large, beautiful concoction.

Fraspuccio Caramel, decaf, skim.  $4.25.

"Gold espresso blended with ice and milk, topped with our caramel sauce."

On my next visit, I moved on to a different Fraspuccio.  It was late afternoon, so I was avoiding caffeine, so I went with the caramel version rather than the chocolate.

It wasn't very well blended, with the bottom being mostly just the espresso and milk liquid and the middle being the icy mixture.  It separated even further very quickly.  Perhaps the confuso cream helped hold the other one together?  Or maybe it was just not prepared as well?

The liquid and ice parts of this were much more bitter than in the confuso version, presumably because they were just the milk, icy, and a little bit of caramel sauce, rather than the sweet cream mixed in.

It was topped with very delicious whipped cream, albeit too much of it.  I'm not one to complain about too much whipped cream in general as I love the stuff, but the ratio was off here.  I think there was close to a cup of whip on here!  But it was very good, sweet, fluffy, clearly not from a can.

The caramel drizzle on top was delicious, very sweet, with a great caramel flavor.  Again, likely not just a flavor syrup, this seemed like a quality ingredient.

Unfortunately, I didn't like this much either, particularly compared to the confuso version.  The bad blending and the lack of sweetness in the body of it just didn't work for me.  I would not order again.

Fraspuccio Meringato, decaf, skim.  $4.25.

"Gold espresso blended with ice and milk, topped with our dark Confuso cream and pieces of meringue."

On my fourth visit, I went to order my favorite from my second trip, the Yogurt Cappuccino Caramel, as it was my favorite "drink" overall.  But ... they were out of caramel sauce!  Ahh!!

So, even though it was late in the day, I decided to go for the Fraspuccio Meringato, the one Fraspuccio that I hadn't yet tried, because I'd been avoiding it due to the caffeine content from all the chocolate.

This one was served in a different glass than the other Fraspuccios, and seemed a little larger as a result.  Like the Fraspuccio Caramel, it separated out fairly quickly into an icy layer and then just a cold milk and espresso layer.  I'm really not sure why my first one didn't do this, but I greatly preferred it when it didn't separate!

The chocolate confuso cream had a subtle chocolate flavor and was a nice thick consistency, but I thought that the regular confuso cream was much better, as it was sweeter and a more interesting flavor.  The chocolate flavor in this was strong enough to mask the uniqueness of the confuso cream, but not intense enough to be really interesting.  I would have believed it was just chocolate whipped cream.

The chocolate sauce drizzled on top and throughout was a thin sauce, not really distinguishable from Hershey syrup.

The meringues on top were a nice sweet crunch and added to the ice cream sundae like feel of the drink.

Overall, I liked this more than the caramel Fraspuccio since it had more interesting flavors and sweetness, but it didn't compare to the regular confuso one.  I probably wouldn't order again.

Ciaobella, soy, decaf, togo.  $4.50.

"Our classic cappucino with white chocolate, topped with whipped cream."

On my way out the door, I decided I wasn't quite satisfied, and would like a warm drink for the walk.  Normally, I just drink black coffee, but I figured that they seem to specialize in crazy concoctions, and I might as well go for it.

This was basically a latte with some white chocolate syrup mixed in, topped with whipped cream, drizzled with more white chocolate, and topped with tiny little meringues.

I forgot that I really dislike lattes.  Back when I drank espresso drinks other than americanos, I always got a macchiato, or occasionally a cappuccino, but I really dislike how milky lattes are.  This was described as a cappuccino, but there wasn't any froth that I could find.  It was sweet, but not with any real white chocolate flavor.  I couldn't taste the soy milk.

The whipped cream was the same delicious stuff I had on the fraspuccio, and I liked it a lot.  The white chocolate drizzle also had a nice flavor.  The little meringues were sweet, and added a fun crunch.

Overall, I didn't like, but perhaps that was just my own preferences.  Seemed like a pretty unremarkable generic white chocolate mocha.  Would not order again.

Iced Americano, decaf, togo.  $2.65.

And another treat to take with me on the way out the door, on a hot afternoon.  I wanted an iced coffee, but they only brew caffeinated iced coffee, so I got an iced americano instead.

It was really strong, stronger than any iced coffee or iced americano I've ever had.  I think it likely had two shots in it.  The flavor was bitter and quite good.

It arrived with only a tiny amount of ice in it.  Perhaps there had been more but it melted quickly against the hot espresso?  I had to ask for more.

I have to give a shout out to their large assortment of sweeteners.  Sugar, raw sugar, splenda, simple syrup, several types of honey.

Overall, good, and if I were in the mood for one again, I'd get it.

[ Not Pictured ]

Cold Chocolate Freddo: Ice blended chocolate.

I was offered a sample of the cold chocolate freddo.  This was a pre-made drink, served from a dispenser.  Very similar to the coffee-free chocolate freddo I had at Peet's last week.  It had a very, very rich chocolate flavor, was nicely icy, but I think it would be too rich to really have a lot of.  A small portion, with some whipped cream to balance out the chocolate, would perhaps be good, but I can't imagine drinking a full portion of it, it was kinda like drinking pudding!  The server also mentioned that they could add espresso to it, which I could see mellowing it out a little, and making it more like a frappucino/freddo.

[ Not Pictured ]

Sorbetto: Ice blended coffee.

I also tried samples of the ice blended coffee, on several occasions.  It was really good!  Like the ice blended chocolate, it was really icy, very well blended.  It had a great coffee flavor, and was slightly sweet.  It was almost too thick to drink, but very, very enjoyable by the spoonful.  If it wasn't for the caffeine, I'd certainly order a full cup of this.  Very good! [ Tried this one more time.  Again, it was delicious!  Icy, well blended, great coffee flavor.  I'd really love to get a full size one of these sometime! ]

---

[ Originally posted June 26, 2011 ]

Fraspuccio Caramel. $4.25.

"Gold espresso blended with ice and milk, topped with our caramel sauce."

In the bottom of the cup was massive layer of thick caramel sauce, the body was blended cream/espresso/sugar/ice mixture, topped with Confuso cream, crumbled cookies, and a chocolate/nut candy.  The barista described this as the "light" choice ... it was way too sweet and decadent for me though, certainly not what I thought I was ordering!

I *think* this was the fraspucio caramel, although that is supposed to have standard whipped cream and not confuso cream.  But the fraspucio confuso shouldn't have caramel.  So ... I'm not 100% sure which this was, and perhaps the menu has evolved since this visit.

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Desserts from The Melt

Update Review, 2020 & 2021 Visits

April 2020, 925 Market St. Location

Week #6 of quarantine life, and San Francisco decided to treat us to a beautiful day.  72 degrees, sunny, and warm.  I wanted to get out, take a walk, and, eat ice cream.  It was *perfect* ice cream weather.  And I adore ice cream.

I immediately wanted a soft serve ice cream cone, and, The Melt came to mind instantly.  I knew they were open AND I knew I had a birthday reward on my account that was I was saving to use for a special time.  This seemed like the perfect chance to perk myself up.

I headed into the Market Street location, intending to get just a cone, but still lamenting that The Melt does not offer toppings besides the chocolate cookie dust (that I dislike).  I had sprinkles in my bag, because I'm #alwaysprepared, but still, I wished for more.  Plus, a simple, cone, the cheapest thing on the menu, seemed like such a waste of my precious reward!

I pondered the milkshake, twice the cost, even though I'm not really a milkshake fan, and I hadn't cared for others I've tried at The Melt before .  They did have some new flavors on the lineup though, including a strawberry one (and every once in a while I do love strawberry milkshakes (like the one I had at Holy Grill years ago ...).   I asked if it was made with real strawberries (rather than just syrup), and the staff member taking my order said yes, AND got very excited.

I told her I was using my birthday reward, but really just wanted soft serve.  She told me that nearly everyone gets a shakes with their rewards, because its a far better value, just like I thought, and strongly encouraged me to do it.  She loves the shakes, and continued to go on telling me how much she loves them.  Another staff member walking by jumped in to say that my server was the reason the strawberry shake had been added to the menu!  They both told me they love the shakes.  But still ... I hesitated.  I really just wanted ice cream after all.  A lot of ice cream.

"Perhaps I could just get a nice big ice cream? In a cup?".  My amazing server was on board.  "I'll just make it in the milkshake cup, and put a cone on top, how is that?  I'll make you ... a milkshake, hold the milk, hold the blending, heh!"  she said.  "And I'll ring it up as the shake."  This arrangement sounded great to me.  Then, entire staff sang Happy Birthday to me.   They didn't look annoyed to *have* to do something like that, and really seemed to be having fun with it.  Honestly, it made my day, more than I ever could have imagined, and remember, this was in the early depths of pandemic isolation despair.

And then, my day got even better.

A Very Off Menu Strawberry Sundae. $5.49.

"Strawberry shake, hold the milk, hold the blending."

Another staff member went to make the "shake", and was clearly confused of course, as my server called over, "it says strawberry shake on the order, but its just a big ice cream cup! Perch a cone on top at the end!", but that person hesitated, confused, which, well, makes sense.  

"Or I'll come do it, and make it with love!!!" my server called out.  So she did.  She filled my cup up, a huge milkshake cup, filled with ice cream.  Sooo much ice cream.  I was thrilled.  And she asked me, "Do you want ... chocolate sauce?  Cookie crumb? I can add toppings!"  I opted for the strawberry topping, to honor her strawberry shake adoration.

I was handed over a glorious creation.

Um, yeah.  This was a *ton* of ice cream.  Is it the best soft serve around?  Nah.  Super Duper has richer, creamier soft serve.  But it is decent, creamy, nice consistency, good vanilla flavor, and is made by Fosselmens.  Adding the strawberry turned out to be an amazing move, as, well, I had a legit sundae at this point.  A generous scoop of strawberry topping was applied, soft, slightly stewed, in its own juices.  All different size chunks.  Not quite the same as fresh berries of course, but this was more suited for ice cream topping anyway.

And with that, I had a fabulous ice cream sundae.  I walked out with glee, and literally every other customer stared.  As did the folks on the street.  I'm sure I looked like a kid in a candy store, so very, very excited.

I made a mini cone first, scooping some ice cream into the cone, layering with fruit, and added my own sprinkles.  It was fantastic.  I stashed the next scoop of ice cream in my vacuum mug I had with me (like I said, #alwaysprepared), and then polished off the rest with a spoon and a slurp, as it turned into a melty-almost-milkshake anyway.

And I was happy.  Very, very happy.

****.

May 2020, 455 Market St Location

A month later, in May, the weather in San Francisco took a two day turn for amazing summer weather.  80*.  I had no choice.  Time to get get more ice cream.

I again decided to "hack" the menu, in exactly the same way.  I almost went for the snickerdoodle "sundae", rather than strawberry, when I learned that the snickerdoodle shake is made with cookie butter added in (yum!), but, at least minute, I went back to my original strawberry creation.

It was a great decision, and I realized something about this genius trick: the best part is that you get 3 desserts in one, really.  You get a strawberry sundae on top.  You can then make an ice cream cone.  And, all the melty goodness you don't use for the other two, turns into a milkshake in the cup.  For someone like me who hates deciding on things, this was perfect.  I had it all!

Off Menu Strawberry Sundae #2.

I ordered the same way, this time intentionally: "Strawberry shake, but not blended, no milk, just as a big cup of ice cream with strawberry stuff, and a cone on top.  Here is what it looked like when they made it last time", and I showed my photo.

The cashier definitely paused, and I said, "and you can ring it up as a shake".  Once it was clear I wasn't trying to cheat the prices, he was game to try.  The other staff member nearby was pretty excited about it too.

The result was much the same as the previous, although, he was far less generous with the ice cream.  Perhaps he added the proper amount they use for the shake?  The previous one was full to the very very top with ice cream, and then had the strawberry and cone added, whereas this, with topping, was still well below the top line.  Probably a more reasonable portion, but, it was less.

The strawberry sundae worked just as well as before.  That strawberry goo really is great, juicy stewed berries, and very sweet.

The ice cream however was a bit of a letdown.  It was more icy, grainy, and more milk-tasting.  Definitely didn't taste like vanilla, wasn't very creamy.  It was a different location, but it was sad, as it reminded me of why I originally didn't have a strong opinion of the soft serve at The Melt.  I wonder if the machine just hadn't been cleaned as often?  Or if this machine works less well?  Who knows.

I still enjoyed it, but, the difference was quite noticeable.

The part that melted down (after I made my ice cream cone, stay tuned), tasted exactly like a strawberry shake, and was pretty delightful that way.  It almost made me consider getting a real shake in the future.  ***+.

Off Menu Strawberry Shake - cone part!

I did of course utilize the cone and made a mini cone, stuffed with ice cream, a bit of the berry (but I tried to avoid it) and I added my own sprinkles and crumble that I came prepared with.

The ice cream lack of creaminess and iciness was more obvious in this form, but, it still was a soft serve cone, in San Francisco, on a hot day, and I was still pleased with it.

*** for the cone part.

May 2020, Embarcadero Center Location

The weather was great again the next day, so, I went back, picking the Embarcadero Center location instead, just a few blocks further, to try the difference in the ice cream machines.

3 Treats in One!  Cookie butter snickerdoodle sundae /
Cookie Butter Lined Cone with Soft Serve (and my own sprinkles) /
Melty Cinnamon Shake.

And ... I went for the snickerdoodle version, just, of course, not as a shake.

Again I loved the fact that I got 3 dessert experiences out of it: a sundae to eat at first, a cone to make and enjoy next (really my favorite way to have soft serve!), and, a melty shake at the end.

I *adored* this one, in particular the cone - because I lined it with the cookie butter!!!  I almost would say it was even better than the strawberry one, but really, it is just different.  The strawberry one is very sweet but has fruitiness (not the same as fresh fruit, or feeling healthy, but, still, fruity), where this one is much heavier ... cookie butter is not a light item!

Off Menu Snickerdoodle Sundae. $5.49.

I ordered the same way of course: "Snickerdoodle shake, but not blended, no milk, just as a big cup of ice cream with cookie butter and a cone.  Here is what it looked like when they made it last time", and I showed my photo, saying, again, "just the snickerdoodle topping, not strawberry this time please".  

My cashier was again totally into it, asked if I wanted both strawberry and cookie butter (which I was THRILLED to say yes to!), but then he couldn't figure out how to ring it up that way.  The person making it was again totally amused, and had a ton of fun.  She asked if I wanted cookie butter layered throughout or just on top, and if I wanted cinnamon sprinkled all over and throughout too.  I loved how excited they were for me.

The "milkshake" was handed over with glee "Tell everyone {her name here} made this for you!", she exclaimed, so very clearly proud of it.  I too was proud!

The "shake" was again a huge cup of soft serve with toppings on top (I opted to not have it layered, in case I didn't like the cookie butter).  This time it was filled right up to the top! I honestly think this is ... a pint of ice cream, gulp.  Its sooo much more than you get in a cone, which makes sense, the price is much higher, but its also considerably more than ... well, what someone should eat in one sitting.  Don't mind me ... just call it a large sundae from an ice cream shop and it will make sense?

The ice cream *was* better at this location, slightly less grainy, and I did like the milky taste this time around, particularly with the rich cookie butter, but the 5th & Market location definitely is best.

***+ for the ice cream alone.

Snickerdoodle Toppings: So much cookie butter!

Here you can see the "Snickerdoodle" toppings: cinnamon and cookie butter!

The giant glob of cookie butter was enough to make my eyes go a bit wide (I do know the nutrition stats on this stuff!), but also, it made me smile with glee.  I hoped I liked their brand!

And I did.  So, "cookie butter", if you aren't familiar, is basically Biscoff cookies (or knockoffs of them), turned into a spread like peanut butter.  You can use it anywhere you use peanut butter, and its pretty glorious.  It became quite popular when Trader Joe's introduced a version a few years ago, and I've since discovered that I do quite like it (you can even get little snack packs of just cookie biscuits and biscoff spread dip now, which I've reviweed before).

It is heavy, it tastes like ... well, a spread made from graham crackers, its really buttery, really rich, really thick ... and pretty delicious, in small bits of course.  It is intended to be blended into a shake here, not consumed in a giant lump of course.  There was also plenty of cinnamon on top, and the cinnamon and cookie butter combo is a great one.

Mini cone filled with cookie butter!!!

So what did I do?  I made something *amazing*.  Yes, I took the cookie butter, and lined the inside of my cone with it. And then I filled the cone with ice cream, and topped with the sprinkles and crumble I brought with me.

Now this, this was glorious.  The crunchy cone, the decadent sweet and rich cookie butter throughout, and the melty milky soft serve?  Glorious.  I loved this so very much.

I was inspired to line the cone remembering the epic creation I had at Turn Dough down in Santa Monica - now *THAT* was a thing to behold, omg - a freshly made churro chimney cone, lined with cookie butter, filled with soft serve, and then topped with mint chocolate sauce, white chocolate sauce, sliced almonds, AND rafello ... yeah, um, that was insane, literally 4 desserts in one.  And really, really, really good.  But yes, this cookie butter lined cone was inspired by that cookie butter lined creation, I can't claim to have thought it up.

This was magic, and I'd do it again in a heartbeat. **** for this creation.

Snickerdoodle Milkshake.

And then, after all that ... you are left with a cup of melty ice cream (because, really, there is no way to consume THAT much ice cream fast enough, particularly if you are, uh, taking time to line your cone with cookie butter, make a cone, add toppings, etc), so you do basically get a rich milkshake too.  It was great to drink at the end, tons of cinnamon and some cookie butter made it in, and it was a great way to polish off way too much dessert.

Embarcadero Center Location June 2020 Visit

Soft Serve In A Cup (but with cone) + Cookie Crumble.  $2.99 + $0.50.

A few days later, our heat wave came back *again*.  I was thrilled.  But not ready to commit to a huge sundae this time.  Thus, I just wanted a cone.  For me, there is nothing better than soft serve, in a cone, with sprinkles, on a hot day.  So many childhood memories.

I was asked if I wanted a cup or cone, and I actually asked for a cup, but with a cone on the side - because usually, if you do so, you get more ice cream!  And also, it would give me some damage control for when it melted too fast.  What I was handed however was a cone, made as a cone, and then just turned upside down into the cup.  Doh.  It still worked fine, but, not quite what I intended.

Of course I knew the only "approved" topping for ice cream is the cookie crumble, which I haven't liked before, but I still asked about other options.  None were offered, and I decided not to be complicated and ask for a scoop of strawberries or cookie butter, or even a sprinkle of cinnamon, since I knew they wouldn't have any idea how to charge for it, or ring it up.

I gave the cookie crumble another chance, for $0.50.  The cone itself is one size only, for $2.99 which feels a bit high for the size and quality compared to other fast food places, but, I do know they use a nicer brand, even if I don't love it.

Soft Serve with Cookie Crumble - As a cone!

I pulled it out of the cup to enjoy.  It did come out easily, no real loss.  So, dumping it into a cup was really no different than getting a cone at least.

The soft serve was good, still not the richest, creamiest out there, and the vanilla flavor has a slightly odd taste, but, it wasn't too grainy or icy.  It also wasn't too soft although it melted quickly due to the warm weather.   This location has their machine well calibrated.

Alas though, I still did *not* like the cookie crumble.  I'm not sure why, but I really, truly just do not like it at all.  Gritty, just chocolate cookie (*not* cookies and cream, if you are wondering! No cream!) I half-heartedly ate a little, then just knocked the rest off.  I just really didn't want the coating.

I wish they offered sprinkles.

Soft Serve ... with *my* sprinkles and peanut crunch.

But of course I was prepared for such a "disaster".  I always am.  I added my own sprinkles (100s and 1000s from Australia!) and peanut crunch.  Saved!  I enjoyed my cone this way.

***.

Update Reviews, 2018 & 2019 Visits

The dessert menu, like all areas of The Melt's menu, has evolved over the years.  Gone are the dessert melts.  Gone are the sundaes I never actually got to try.  The offerings now are pretty ... sparse.  Simple chocolate chip cookies and soft serve ice cream, vanilla only, that I have tried before.  The milkshakes remain, although the lineup has expanded.  Root beer floats were added (I argue that the later are not *really* desserts though ... aren't they just decadent drinks?).

Anyway, nothing very inspiring on the dessert menu, but The Melt does give you a free dessert item for your birthday, so, over the years, 've tried a few,  because I can't resist freebies.  Shout out to The Melt for not giving you only a handful of days to use your birthday reward - they have no expiration date!

Soft Serve Vanilla Bean Ice Cream with Chocolate Crunch. $2.99 + $0.50. (August 2018).

I've had soft serve at The Melt before, but it was years ago.  Back then, I wasn't impressed.  I was sad that they had only vanilla, more sad that they had no toppings, and even more sad by the sour taste.

Things were slightly better this time.  They still have only vanilla, and only one size.  But, they added a topping: chocolate crunch, which you could add on for $0.50.  Since I'm a serious lover of sprinkles, I opted for this, hoping it would be like crunchy chocolate bits or something.

My name was called out, and I went to pick up my ice cream, only to be handed a plain cone.  I reminded the staff member that I had ordered the chocolate crunch.  She looked at the receipt, and went back to the machine, but was confused.  "Uh, what is the chocolate crunch?", she asked someone nearby.  He pointed her at the topping, and then swooped in to help when she started very awkwardly spooning it on.

The result was the creation above, with the topping sorta covering half the ice cream.

The chocolate crunch wasn't crunchy.  It was basically Oreo powder.  I didn't care for the gritty texture all over my cone.  I really wanted sprinkles, or better yet, the crispy crunch coating I've had at some ice cream stands.  I would not get it again, and was happy when most of it blew off anyway (not exactly applied well!).

The ice cream was better this time in that it wasn't sour.  It was creamy.  It melted nicely.  But it still didn't really have any flavor, and wasn't particularly rich.  I'm sorry to say, I think generic fast food restaurant soft serve is better.

The cone was at least fresh, not stale.

Overall, just highly mediocre.  The cone was much bigger than before, but I can't tell if that was just the luck of the staff member I had, or if they have increased portion sizes (the price has only gone up by $0.04).  I'd consider another if I had a freebie, and it was a hot day, and I brought my own sprinkles, but, this offering could use some improvement.

Soft Serve. $2.99. (June 2019, Embarcadero Location).

Another visit, another cone, just plain this time.  I was hoping The Melt would introduce a second flavor of soft serve, or another topping besides cookie crunch, but ... alas.  Still the same vanilla only, cup or cone, cookie crunch only option.

So, vanilla it was, in a cone.  I brought my own sprinkles.  #alwaysPrepared

This was a hot day, and the server apologized for the cone not being pretty.  I handed this one over to my companion, as we were both getting cones.  The ice cream also melted very fast, but I don't consider that a bad thing.

Soft Serve. $2.99. (June 2019, Embarcadero Location).

The next one came out better ... because the server "cheated", and used a spoon to prop it up after she made it, lol.  She really did want them to look nice when she saw me taking photos.

The ice cream was better than I remembered, although still not particularly special.  Creamy, sweet, but just simple, not an intense vanilla flavor.  I really wanted it to be something more.

I added my rainbow sprinkles, and I added candied pecans, and enjoyed it more, but I kept wanting chocolate dip, or even a drizzle of caramel.  Just something to make it more interesting.

Soft Serve. $2.99. (August 2019, 1st & Market Location).

I've often lamented The Melt's soft serve, due to its lackluster nature, and lack of toppings besides the chocolate crumb, but I still gave it another try, on a particularly warm day, when all I wanted was ice cream.  Luckily, I had additional toppings in my bag (#alwaysPrepared).

I was fairly surprised when the cone was handed over, as it looked different than any other the Melt has ever serve me. I was more hopeful, as it seemed to have better integrity than the previous ones, actually standing upright on its own.

And it was better.  It still was a fairly icy style, not as rich and creamy as I'd like, not an interesting deep vanilla flavor, but it was hands down the best I've ever had from The Melt, and, with my own sprinkles + crunch coat + cannoli bits to dip it into, I was quite pleased.

This one did come from a location I hadn't visited before, the newest location at 1st & Market, and perhaps it had a newer machine?  I'll return to only this location in the future for soft serve!

Cookies & Cream Milkshake. $4.99. (August 2018).

When I visited for years, The Melt had only vanilla and chocolate milkshakes.  Now they have a few more: Snickerdoodle, Mint Chocolate Chip, and Cookies & Cream.  All can have malt added for $0.50.

A friend opted for a Cookies & Cream shake, which of course he shared with me, even though I had my own ice cream cone.

It was very thick, impossible to suck up at first.  As it warmed up, it became drinkable, but basically just separated into milk and ice cream.  It used the same vanilla base as my ice cream, and thus didn't have much flavor, and the milk was also very plain.  I think it likely had the same chocolate powder bits blended in, although they worked much better here, creating a decent cookies and cream flavor.

Overall?  Not very good, and it turns out, exactly what I thought about it last time: milky soft serve.  The price has been raised by more than $1, and $5 seems pretty high for a very generic milkshake, given that it is the same price as Roam, which serves organic local Straus Creamery shakes or Big Mouth Burgers, with local Mitchell's.

Original Review, August 2014

I've been to the Melt a number of times.  I've gone for breakfast for the egg and cheese melts and the oatmeal, and of course for lunch/dinner for the classic melts and soups.  The regular melts haven't ever really done it for me, but their breakfast melts are pretty tasty.  You can read about all my earlier adventures in my previous review.

I hadn't been to the Melt for months, and admittedly, most of my visits were very early on, so I was curious how they were doing.  They are clearly successful, as they have a slew of locations now, and a fleet of busses too!  They've also really refined the menu, giving far more customizations and ingredients to add-in.  If ever I feel like trying another melt, there are a few new ones I have my eyes on, including the breakfast ridiculousness of an Egg-In-A-Hole, in a waffle.

Anyway, the one part of the menu that I had somehow not yet explored was the desserts!  The original dessert menu had a few different dessert melts, I remember one was a pound cake with raspberry filling, another was a biscoff and fig jelly melt.  Those have both disappeared.  The only dessert melt remaining is the chocolate marshmallow s'more melt, which I keep meaning to try.

This time however, I was drawn in by their newest offerings: ice cream and milkshakes!  I grew up in the land of soft serve ice cream, and have been pretty saddened by San Francisco's general preference for soft serve froyo instead.  So I was eager to try out the soft serve.  And of course, I went on a milkshake crusade last summer, so I needed to see how The Melt's measured up.  And, I always like to bring things home for Ojan, so he got to try out the cookies.  Unfortunately, the ice cream products weren't hits, but the cookie was decent.

Vanilla Bean Milkshake. $3.95.

I started with a milkshake.  They offer only two flavors of milkshake, classic vanilla or chocolate.  Both are made with soft serve ice cream and milk.  In fact, that is all the vanilla milkshake seemed to be: just a bunch of the soft serve, sorta mixed up with milk.  It was way too thick to drink through the straw originally, so it really was just slightly milky soft serve.  Super strange.  As it warmed up, it didn't do so in a very nice way either, turning into a pool of milk on top.  It also didn't have much flavor.  Not that vanilla milkshakes are usually that interesting, but I was expecting more vanilla flavor, or something to make it enjoyable.

It reminded me in a lot of ways of the fairly crappy one I had from Del Taco last summer, but at least that one had whipped cream on top.  I desperately wanted to enjoy my milkshake, so when I got home, I decided to spruce it up.  Inspired by the absolutely delicious strawberry shake I had from Holy Grill, I grabbed a bunch of frozen strawberries from the freezer, threw them in, and got to work with my handy immersion blender.  It was better once it tasted like berries, but it was admittedly a bit melted at this point.

The price was about in range for all other milkshakes I've had in San Francisco, but it was not worth repeating.

Vanilla Bean Soft Serve Cone. $2.95.

Next I moved on to the soft serve ice cream.  Now, soft serve ice cream is an important thing to me.  I grew up in the land of soft serve.  I've had a lot of it over the years.  Moving to the West Coast, where people eat froyo instead, has been hard for me.  I'm always overjoyed when I see places that offer real soft serve ice cream!

They had only one flavor: vanilla.  Which makes me think that the chocolate milkshake is the same as the vanilla, just with syrup added.  They also offer once size.  And only in a cake cone (I imagine you could ask for a bowl?).

The cone was a decent size, not overwhelmingly big, not too small.  The ice cream was a nice creamy consistency.  But it was a bit sour.  And really didn't have any vanilla flavor.  It needed toppings, sprinkles at least!

For a place that is all about customizations, I'm surprised they haven't added toppings, or at least a few additional flavors.  This was an incredibly unremarkable cone.

Chocolate Chip Cookie.  $1.25.

Besides ice cream, I also seem to eat a lot of cookies.  I don't actually even like cookies that much, but Ojan does, and I'm always trying to find ones he likes.  I read good reviews of The Melt's cookies, and they were displayed prominently in front of me in the shop, so I figured we needed to try them.

They offer only one variety, chocolate chip.  Baked fresh in house daily.  Not bad for a grilled cheese shop!

I tried a few bites of it at room temperature first.  It was fairly soft, not cakey-soft, but not crispy either.  A good consistency.  It was loaded up with seemingly high quality chocolate chips.  Nice buttery taste.  Average thickness.  Not mind blowing, but not bad.  Just a good standard chocolate chip cookie, and it tasted very homemade.  I ate the second half after warming it up in the toaster oven, since a warm cookie, particularly one oozing with melty chocolate, is always better than a cold one.  And I may or may not have topped it with some whipped cream, just because.  I liked it much more warm.  I of course brought one home for Ojan as well, and he really enjoyed it, exclaiming that it was rather amazing how something so simple could make him so happy sometimes.

The cookies were a large size, and cheaper than what you find at most bakeries.  Ojan loved these, and although I wouldn't necessarily want another, he'd happily eat more.

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