Utz Quality Foods

Update Review, 2024

I've reviewed Utz very addicting snack mixes, and decent enough chips before, but somehow, I never had tried the basic, plain, simple chips before now.

Original.

"Indulge in the timeless appeal of Utz Original Potato Chips. Made with the finest quality potatoes and a touch of salt, these chips deliver a crispy and flavorful snacking experience that has delighted generations. Each chip is meticulously crafted using Utz's time-honored recipe, ensuring that every bite is filled with pure potato perfection."

Thin and crispy.  Not a blistered kettle style.  Very simple basic chips.  Good salt level.  Not much more to say about these, they tasted like slightly higher end Lay's and not much more.  I found them quite boring, but suspect they'd go well with dip.  **+.

Update Reviews, 2021

Can't. Stop. Eating. Utz. Pub. Mix.

I think that sums this up nicely.

Pub Mix.

"Looking for the perfect snack to serve at your next party or get together?  Our Utz Pub Mix is a sure crowd-pleaser. This savory blend of honey mustard twists, cheddar cheese twists, honey roasted sesame chips, oriental rice crackers, pretzel stix, nacho bagel chips, and worcestershire rye chips is "crunch-tastic". 

Danger. Danger. Danger.

This mix, which I have reviewed before, and know I like, just spells, D-A-N-G-E-R to me.  The container claims to be 20 servings (!), which, um, perhaps you can not tell, but this is NOT a big container.  I don't have any idea where they get 20 from, even assuming small snack size portions.

I blame my mother for picking it up when I was visiting.  

It really does have everything going on.  There are many products like this out there, but what sets the Utz one apart is that it is actually, um, good?  Every element actually is decent.

I'll start with the most boring, and work my way up to the ones that I think are the best.  But really, I had no problem eating any of these, alone, or as a mix.  #addicting.

• Pretzel stix: Even the basic pretzel sticks, er, "stix", were good, although they are just pretzels.  Extremely buttery, crispy.  ***.
• Worcestershire rye chips: These are ok, good for what they are.  Nearly all of these were in-tact, full round pieces.  They taste a bit like Chex mix from the Worcestershire flavoring.  ***+.
• Nacho bagel chips: Probably my least favorite thing of the mix, they are ok, but not really my thing.  Strangely no whole ones anywhere in the container, all were broken. ***.
• Cheddar Cheese Twistix: Great form factor, zesty, cheesy.  If you want cheesy things, these are good. Sorta tasted nacho though which is less my favorite. ***.
• Honey Mustard Twistix: Yum.  Same twisty form factor as above, very savory, salty.  Sometimes WAY too addicting. ****.
• Oriental rice crackers: Good!  Just rice crackers, assorted shapes, but crispy, not stale, and well flavored. ****.
• Honey roasted sesame chips:  I always want to like these, in snack mixes or random brands we buy, and just usually don't like ... any.  I don't know why.  Well finally some I like - in this mix!  Super sweet, larger than most, crunchy, slightly savory from sesame ... just very very good. ****+.

Add it all up?  Yes.  DANGER.  Let's just say, this is not 20 servings for me.

****.

Utz Poker Mix: The Ultimate Blend with a Touch of Spice.

"It's no bluff when we say that Utz® Poker Mix is sure to be a winner at your next gathering or game night! This blend contains an assortment of Rice Crackers, Pretzels, Honey Sesame Chips, Cajun Corn Sticks, Chili Cheese Corn Jax, and Wasabi Peas with a touch of spice!"

Next up, "poker" mix.  You know, different from what you eat at the pub ... This mix was a mixed bag.

The downside?  It was VERY pretzel heavy, with pretzel twists in a variety of shapes, plus big darker pretzel rods.  Given that I am "eh" on most pretzels, the fact that it was more than 50% pretzel was definitely a downside.   The regular ones were nicely buttery, but still not my thing.  The dark ones turned out to be pumpernickel, which was as least unique.  If you love these, Utz produces a standalone version of these as well.

But the rest was good.  The asian rice crackers and honey sesame chips were the same as in the Pub Mix, and I liked them there, and felt exactly the same about them here.  The rice crackers came in a few shapes, and were well seasoned.  The honey sesame chips were sweet, crunchy, and fatter than the shapes found in other mixes, but I liked that too.  They too are available as a standalone product.

New to this mix were the cajun corn sticks and wasabi peas.  The corn sticks were fine, good crunch, zesty seasoning, a nice shape to add to the mix.  The wasabi peas were top notch, exactly the kind I like, great zing.  I never found any chili cheese corn jax ...

Overall, I enjoyed digging through it for all the pieces I liked, and may or may not have left behind a barrel of pretzels for my mom.

***+ overall.

Update Review, June 2017

Several years ago, I discovered Utz at Phat Philly, as I wrote about in my original review of the chips.   I tried a few varieties, thought they were good, and, moved on with life.  I love snack foods, and the chips were good, but, I didn't go seeking out more products.

And then I tried the pub mix.  I love snacks in general, but my absolute weakness is mixed snacks, where I can rummage through a mix, picking out the items I want most at that moment (hello, Chex mix, in all its varieties!).  The pub mix delivered on this as well.

So I took a step back to finally learn about Utz.  They are based in Pennsylvania, which I knew.  But I didn't know they are the largest independent privately held snack maker in the US.  Nor did I know that they started as a husband and wife, in the 1920s, with her making chips by hand in their house, and him delivering them to stores.  I think they've come a long way since then, like buying Zapp's, who's unique flavored chips I've tried before.

Chips (regular, kettle, or even lard based) and pretzels are their primary products, but they also make puffs, popcorn, tortillal chips, pork rinds, snack mixes, even crackers and dips.  This time around, I tried a snack mix, and pretzels.

Barrels

"When you’re ready to party and entertain, there’s nothing better than Utz Snacks – and we’re totally down with that! That’s why we make giant barrelfuls of all your faves, so you don’t run out!"

Utz makes a number of different snacks packaged in barrels, including all the crowd pleasers: cheese balls, caramel corn, pork rinds, and, savory snack mixes.   The mixes are dubbed poker mix, pub mix, and party mix.  I have no idea how they decided which mix is more "poker" appropriate vs "pub", as all are a mix of assorted shapes and flavors of pretzels, corn snacks, cheesy snacks, and chips.  The "Party Mix" is more chip focused, with 4 different types of chips in the mix, but the other two are near equals in variety, just with totally different choices.  Party Mix also comes in smaller sized bags, for when barrels aren't quite what you need.

Pub Mix.

"When you’re ready to party and entertain, there’s nothing better than utz pub mix. Contains honey roasted sesame chips, nacho bagel chips, oriental rice crackers, pretzel Stix, seasoned pretzel twistix, and Worcestershire rye chips."

I had the pub mix, although I was not in a pub.

I really liked this the.  I liked each element for different reasons, and although they combined together nicely, I preferred to just eat one type at a time.  The sizes of each item made for easy eating, only a bite or two each, and I liked the variety of shapes, as it encouraged my picking through the mix in a way I enjoyed.

I was amused how my choice of items changed based on mood.  Some days, I *really* wanted the cheesy nacho bagel chips, others I adored the sweet sesame chips, and others, I just wanted simple rice crackers.  The only item I never wanted?  The pretzels.

Sticks: Pretzel Stix, Cheddar Cheese Twistix, Honey Mustard Twistix.

The only element I didn't care for was the simple "pretzel stix", since I just don't care for pretzels.  They were, well, pretzel sticks.

The "seasoned pretzel twistix" were two varieties, honey mustard and cheddar cheese, both about the same length as the pretzel sticks, but twisty-style, and not really pretzel-y, as in, they didn't have a white interior and brown exterior, and they were softer.  I liked both flavors, although I didn't realize the honey mustard was supposed to be honey mustard until I read this description.  It seemed more like ... herby?  The cheddar cheese ones were coated in orange powder, that of course got all over my fingers, and had a good (fake) cheese quality to it.  Still, these were my last two picks, besides the pretzels, and not an item I ever found myself digging for.

Chips: Honey Roasted Sesame, Worcestershire Rye, Nacho Cheese Bagel.

There were three types of "chips" - honey roasted sesame chips, round flat nacho flavored bagel chips, and round flat darker Worcestershire rye chips.

Most of the chips were broken into smaller bits, but even full size pieces were still bite size.  The sesame ones were the only sweet element in the mix, and I appreciated them for when I felt like something sweet rather than savory, and I liked the texture from the seeds.  I also sometimes kinda loved them mixed with the cheesy elements, in a Chicago popcorn kinda way.  Overall, the honey roasted sesame chips were probably my first pick.

The Worcestershire rye chips reminded me of the flavors of Chex mix, and made me quite nostalgic for my mom's homemade Chex mix.  They were particularly good used as crackers with some soft triple cream cheese.

The bagel chips were cheesy just like the twists, but better coated, and had a tiny bit of additional zesty (I guess nacho?) spicing to them.  These were often my favorites, when I was looking for something besides the sweet sesame chips.

Oriental Rice Crackers.

The final element is oriental rice crackers, in an assortment of shapes, sizes, and colors.  They were fairly standard rice crackers, slight soy sauce flavor, good enough, but not particularly interesting.

Typical Handful.

Most of the chips and twistix were broken pieces.  The rice crackers and pretzels seemed less prone to the breakage.  The distribution of items was great, nothing dominated (I hate it when mixes are majority pretzels!).

This shows a typical handful, in terms of assortment, and piece sizes.

Country Store Pretzel Stix.

I also tried a barrel of just pretzel sticks.  I didn't seek these out, obviously, since I didn't like them in the mix.

These tasted exactly like slightly bigger versions of the stix found in the Pub Mix.  I'm not sure what made these "Country Store", or what was different, besides the size.  Meh to these, but I'm not one for hard style pretzels anyway.

Original Review, February 2015

The other day I reviewed Phat Philly, a cheesesteak shop in the Mission.

Along with their signatures cheesesteaks and fries, they also carry a few Philly classic treats, like Tastycakes and Utz Chips.  I hadn't ever heard of Utz before, but apparently they are a big thing in Philly, and they make a variety of chips, pretzels, and snack mixes.  Since I always love trying new varieties of chips, I couldn't resist grabbing a bag to take with me, to enjoy later.

"The Crab Chip"

"Dive into the unique and delectable flavors of Utz "The Crab Chip" Potato Chips. Inspired by the rich culinary heritage of the Chesapeake Bay, these chips capture the essence of the region's love for seafood. Each chip is infused with a special blend of seasonings that create a savory and slightly spicy taste, reminiscent of a mouthwatering crab feast.

Crafted with care and precision, Utz "The Crab Chip" Potato Chips offer a delightful crunch that will keep you coming back for more. The flavors are perfectly balanced, allowing the natural sweetness of the potatoes to shine through while delivering a hint of Chesapeake Bay-inspired seasoning. Whether you're enjoying a beachside picnic, hosting a backyard cookout, or simply seeking a snack to satisfy your seafood cravings, Utz "The Crab Chip" Potato Chips are a must-have."

I had to pick the most interesting sounding flavor: crab.  What on earth is a crab flavored chip?

It turns out, the answer is: a chip seasoned with Old Bay.  So no, they did not taste like crab.  Instead, they tasted like Old Bay.  Or basically, like a barbecue chip.  They looked like a barbecue chip too, in color.  They had the same slightly sweet, slightly tangy thing going on that a barbecue chip does.  If you gave them to me without a label, I'd say they were just a slightly different barbecue.  The seasoning was very heavy in the salt, perhaps too much.  But besides that, I was intrigued enough to easily finish the bag.

The chips themselves were decent, thin sliced, crispy.  Not kettle style exactly, but not certainly not baked.  Better than most brands at this price point.

I ate several of them plain to taste the flavors, but then decided to try something out.  In my head, I thought, "well, people eat chips with dip" and "I love my barbecue chips dipped in onion dip, or even yogurt, and these are basically like barbecue chips".  So, yes, I wanted to dip them in something.  I'd just finished a crab louie salad, which is what made me inspired to dig the crab chips out of my pantry in the first place, as I wanted more crab.  If crab goes with louie dressing in a salad, and chips go with dip, then, doesn't it follow that crab chips would be great dunked in louie dressing?  Don't judge.  They were awesome this way.  Creamy dressing, tangy chips ... perfect.  The bag stood no chance once I discovered this combo.

I wouldn't go out of my way to find Utz chips, but if I were ever somewhere that had them again, and I wanted a crunchy, salty snack, I'd get them again. ***.

Salt 'n Vinegar.

"Embark on a tangy adventure with Utz® Salt & Vinegar Potato Chips. Crafted with the perfect balance of zesty vinegar and savory salt, these chips deliver a bold and tantalizing snacking experience that is sure to satisfy your cravings. Each chip is thinly sliced and expertly seasoned to create a crispy texture and a burst of tangy flavor in every bite. The combination of salt and vinegar creates a taste sensation that will leave your taste buds tingling with delight. Whether you're seeking a flavorful snack to enjoy on your own or looking to add some excitement to your next gathering, Utz® Salt & Vinegar Potato Chips are the ultimate choice. Elevate your snacking game and let the zingy and savory flavors transport you to a world of deliciousness."

 Well, I found Utz again :)

This time, I was craving salty, so salt 'n vinegar it was.

Again, basic crispy, thin style chip.  They somewhat reminded me of classic Lays.  Tangy vinegar was the prominent flavor, with some salt.

Nothing wrong with these, but not particularly exciting.  ***.

Sour Cream and Onion.

"Treat your taste buds to the creamy and tangy goodness of Utz® Sour Cream & Onion Potato Chips. Each chip is perfectly seasoned with a savory blend of sour cream and zesty onion, creating a flavor combination that is both bold and satisfying. The crispy texture of these chips adds an extra layer of enjoyment with every bite. Whether you're snacking on the go, hosting a gathering with friends, or simply satisfying your cravings at home, Utz® Sour Cream & Onion Potato Chips are the go-to choice. Discover the delightful taste that has made this flavor a classic favorite among chip lovers. So, grab a bag and let the creamy and tangy flavors tantalize your taste buds."

 These looked exactly like the salt 'n vinegar.  That is, they had no visible specs of something green indicating onions, nor white powder indicating sour cream.

And ... they tasted pretty plain.  Not even very salty.

I do like the thin style, but these were majorly lacking in the flavor department.  **+.

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Sunday Bakeshop

I love everything I know about Sunday Bakeshop.  Baked goods and snacks - two of my favorite things.  AND in flavors I enjoy?  Yes!

"Sunday Bakeshop is an Asian American, French inspired bakery that celebrates the ingredients and sweets we grew up eating. Our philosophy is to create fun, flavorful and unique pastries that span many cultures and techniques, while using high quality, seasonal ingredients.

Sunday Bakeshop invites you to enjoy life’s sweetest moments; and treat yourself to something delicious.  Make life sweeter! "

What does Asian American inspiration look like in a French bakery?  Think: ube twice baked croissants, kimchi corn cheese danishes, red velvet White Rabbit cookies, black sesame crispy treats, raspberry rose mochi cakes, and more.  Oh yes.

I haven't actually gotten the chance to try their baked goods, as they aren't carried near me, but I did get to try some of their snacks, and I was quite pleased.

Chex Mix

I'm no stranger to Chex Mix.  As in, I consume far more of it than an average human, even one who thinks they eat a lot of Chex Mix.  That said, I rarely ever eat the commercial Chex brand Chex mix, as, well, it really isn't that good.  

I've been spoiled by a mother who makes custom Chex mix blends for every person at Christmas, with our own favorite brand items and our own favorite mix-ins (e.g. different brand pretzels for me vs my sister, mine has chow mein noodles, wontons, corn nuts, wasabi peas, plantain chips, and the like, my sister's has Goldfish crackers whereas those aren't allowed anywhere near mine, I have brazil nuts and macadamias, my sister has other mixed nuts, my dairy free cousin has vegan butter instead, etc).  Spoiled, yes.  My doesn't just make the standard Worchetershire savory blend (although that *is* her classic mix), she also makes other savory versions (spicy! Truffle! Cheesy!) and loves trying out new sweet and decadent versions.

I've also been spoiled by working in an office that had an in-house pastry department that made snacks for our microkitchens, and for several years, they made homemade Japanese style furikake Chex mix every day that I was absolutely addicted to.  Once those glory days passed, my Japanese Chex Mix hookup was easy to find, as another one of the pastry chefs from my office started his own brand, and he makes Japanese style Chex mix in a slew of flavors (not just a sweet furikake version, but also a white truffle one, a spicy one, etc.  Stay tuned for the review of Mackbox, coming soon!).  And of course, I've tried a few other commercial versions too, like LoloYum, that I wasn't really impressed by.

So it suffices to say, that at any given time, I have at least 8-10 different Chex mixes on hand in my house (most will be vacuum sealed, and frozen, for longer term storage). I definitely didn't need to try yet another Japanese style Chex mix.  But, when I saw it offered from Sunday Bakeshop, I couldn't help but try it.

Furikake Chex Mix. $9.

"A throwback to the classic Chex mix but amped up with soy, seaweed, and a little spice. This makes for the perfect savory and sweet snack with a small kick."

The Sunday Bakehouse version at first seems much like my mom's, or MackBox's classic version, with Chex, honeycomb cereal,  bugles, pretzel sticks, and of course, TONS of furikake.  

I was surprised when I took my first bite though that I was actually distinct from other versions I have tried.  First, it was considerably more, uh, green.  It just had a lot more seaweed coating than others.  This gave a stronger vegetal taste.  Second, it was not nearly as sweet.  My mom's version is essentially candied, and Mack's is pretty heavy in the sugar, and this, while certainly still sweet, was a touch more savory than others.  And finally, rather than just blonde (corn or rice) Chex, they also use darker wheat Chex, which again, just made it a bit more hearty and savory overall (the honeycomb and bugle pieces were of course still more sweet).

I appreciated the subtle but noticeable changes from other versions.  I think this bag was intended to be more than one serving, but, um, mine didn't go that way.  Clearly, I liked it.  ****.

Popcorn

Probably my absolute favorite snack, and quite frankly, a bit of an addiction for me, is popcorn.  Sweet, savory, cheesy, spicy, decadent, I eat it all.  Never microwave popcorn though.  And generally frozen (it is crispier!).  I can go on and on about my love of popcorn, but, you've probably heard it before.  I obviously had to try Sunday Bakeshop's popcorn.

They always carry one signature flavor, pandan coconut, but from time to time offer others too, such as a spicy gochujang one, and I think I saw black sesame once.

Pandan Coconut Caramel Corn. $8.

"Twist of the traditional Cracker Jack that many of us grew up eating and love. A sweet and salty caramel corn with hints of coconut and exotic notes of pandan flavor."

Well, clearly I love popcorn.  And, I really enjoy pandan.  So this was a no brainer.  I had high hopes, and they were entirely met, even exceeded.  The popcorn had a lovely green hue.

The kernels were all large, fluffy type, quite fresh tasting.  Well popped, no unpopped or quasi-popped pieces.  The pieces were well coated in sweet pandan flavored glaze, real legit pandan flavor that I quite enjoyed.  Certainly sweet, but not cloying at all.  I didn't taste much coconut, but that did not bother me.   Most pieces were entirely coated, but there were a few that were only 70% or so coated, which I actually liked, to lighten it up a bit.

Overall, very good, and very easy to devour.  I'd gladly get this again.  ****+.

Cookies

They also make red velvet White Rabbit cookies and a more pedestrian brown butter chocolate chip.

Ube Snickerdoodle. $3.50.

"A cakey cookie with chewy edges flavored with ube and coconut."

"A chewy, soft baked cookie with mashed ube and shredded coconut, finished with sugar."

Snickerdoodles are basically at the bottom of my list of cookie preferences.  I like cinnamon in general, but, I just don't really ever recall liking a snickerdoodle.  So although I adore ube, I was slightly deterred by the "snickerdoodle" name to this.  

When I looked at the ingredients though, there was no cinnamon.  I thought that was kinda a defining characteristic of a snickerdoodle, so I'm not quite sure why they call this one?  Anyway.  It was an ok cookie.  Somewhat soft, somewhat chewy edges as described.  Very mild ube flavor, stronger coconut flavor/texture from shredded coconut, pearl sugar on top.  Basically a sugar cookie, with some interesting texture from coconut, mild other flavor, and purple hue.  Definitely not as powerful as I was hoping the ube would be.  ***.

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Bon Appetit Creperie

Crepes.  I know people tend to get excited by them, but I generally do not.  I'm not sure why, particularly as sweet crepes are basically just an excuse for toppings/fillings, and I definitely get excited about those.  But crepes just aren't something I've ever been into (the slight exception being a very specific, savory no less, crepe from Ti Couz in San Francisco, which closed in 2011, but I still salivate thinking of the buckwheat crepe with this incredible mushroom sauce and caramelized onions ...).  Ok, crepe cakes I also can get excited about.  But actual just standard crepes?  Meh.

And yet here I am reviewing Bon Appetit Crêperie.  They are a small family owned business that started in 2017, as a crepe stand in Pennsylvania, and quickly moved to Boston.  They now have a location in Boston, and one in Chicago.

"Bon Appetit Crêperie infuses French, Mediterranean, and African cuisine to create dynamic flavors in every crêpe."

They have a physical shop in Boston Public Market, but I encountered them during a catered event, where they had a stand set up.

Event menu.

For our event, the hosts selected 2 savory and 2 sweet crepes:

• Sea Master (normally $13.50): Smoked salmon, capers and scallions on a cream cheese spread.
• Caprese ($11.99): Olive oil, Sesame Balsamic Vinaigrette, Mozzarella Cheese, Tomatoes, Basil.
• Classic ($10): Fresh cut strawberries and bananas on a Nutella spread topped with a chocolate drizzle and whipped cream.
• Parisian ($8.99): Squeezed fresh lime and lemon, melted butter and sugar.

At their shop, they offer an extensive line of savory and sweet crepes, including gluten-free.  I'll admit I was a bit let down by the choices we had, and would have preferred many of their other sweet ones, or any of the béchamel or brie based savory ones, but alas.

Parisian ($8.99).

"Squeezed fresh lime and lemon, melted butter and sugar."

It was evening, and I didn't want the caffeine in Nutella (plus, I just don't care for Nutella that much in general), so for a sweet option, I was left with the very simple Parisian.  My crepe was heated up to order, a hunk of butter added, and then their house lemon and lime syrup squirted within.  It was folded up and handed over.  Powdered sugar was available on the side as well to finish it if I wanted.

It was ... fine?  The crepes were pre-made, only warmed on the griddle to order, so not quite the same as a fresh crepe.  But nicely made, didn't tear too easily, etc.  Butter melted in nicely, lots of tang from lemon and lime.  It was what it was.  Boring for me, but, my mother enjoyed it with fresh fruit added.  Low ***.

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Renaissance Warsaw Airport Hotel Executive Lounge

Somehow, in all my travel over the past few years, I've never stayed at an airport hotel.  I've pondered it a few times, particularly as I get a bit stressy about things going wrong getting to the airport, but I've always valued staying closer to where I'm spending my time in a given city, and not wanted the additional burden of moving just for the last night.  During my recent business trip to Poland, I was in Warsaw for only one day (two nights) and decided to do the airport hotel thing, given my early morning flight out.  It was a good tradeoff, as I only had to "commute" from there to the office one day, and I would have needed to do one of those directions anyway to leave.

My hotel choice was the Renaissance Warsaw Airport hotel, located literally across from the passenger drop off area.  You cannot get closer than this, without being physically attached.  I'll admit, it was pretty amazing to just walk out the front door, cross the street, and be there.

But this is Julie's Dining Club, not a general hotel and travel experience blog (although, hey, should I branch out?), so I'll focus on the dining experiences I encountered on the property in the Executive Lounge.

Setting

The lounge is very modest, and seemed to serve very few guests.

Lounge Seating.

The lounge doesn't have all that much seating.  Several areas with couches for big groups like this, which feels like a mis-match from general lounge clients, which I thought were mostly solo travelers?  The seating also didn't really make sense for eating, as the tables were low.  There was only one single actual dining table.

Side Area.

On the side was a few small chairs with just a side table, and two desks to hunker down and work.

And that was the extent of the space.

Drinks

Drinks are all self-serve, although there is a lounge attendant hovering around to try to be helpful (with little else to do it seemed).

Cold Beverages.

Carafes of house filtered water and sparkling water were available room temp or chilled, along with fruit juices, a few mixers, Pepsi, and beer.

Wine and Spirits.

A single variety of red wine was on offer, along with gin, rum, mixers, and a single type of chilled white wine.

I tried the red wine (Kangaroo Shiraz) and didn't mind it.  Pretty drinkable, low acid, low tanin, still a bit of structure.  One of the better hotel lounge wines I've had.  ***+.

Snacks

During the day, and into the evening, little pots of different snacks are available.

Assorted Snacks.

There were several kinds of nuts, raisins, and apricots, along with some crackers on this stand.

Snacks.

Others were under a dome.  But there was no rhyme or reason to what was where, duplicates were everywhere.

More snacks.

I tried a few of the mixed colorful cracker-like things in front here.  They were tasty.  Nice to munch on.

Evening Dinner

The lineup could sorta be dinner.  I was surprised that it seemed to be more main dish focused than the standard canapes and small plates.  That said, even I didn't really want dinner here.  

The lineup had 3 hot dishes, and some sandwiches and cold snacks.  No hot apps.  And if you were vegetarian, you'd only have salad and small little snacks.

Beef in Oriental Sauce with Vegetables.

The first entree was beef, in "oriental" sauce with "vegetables".  It was lukewarm.

The beef was relatively tender, shredded style meat.  The vegetables I could never quite identify, besides bell peppers, mushrooms, and onion.  The vegetable pieces were all quite small, and there wasn't much of them.  The sauce was not really what I think of as oriental, but maybe a bit like American beef stew/gravy mixed with soy sauce?

I can't say this tasted good, nor bad, it was just kind of odd, and not what I wanted.  I wanted more vegetables!  **.

Tuna with Seafood in a Tomato Caper Sauce.

Next up, the seafood main dish.  Tuna "with seafood".  This had chunks of cooked tuna (fine I guess) and what I think was some very spongy bits of calamari.  The tomato sauce was basic, capers at least added some saltiness.  One bite of this was enough.  Also lukewarm. *+.

Mashed Potatoes with Truffle Oil.

The final hot dish was mashed potatoes.  The card said it had truffle oil, but I didn't taste truffle.  I did taste some garlic, which was nice.  The potatoes were fine, needed seasoning though.  Not a rich and creamy style, but fairly satisfying. ***.

There was no other carbs, like even rolls, to mop up the sauces from the two other hot dishes, which both really seemed like they needed a roll, or rice, or something.

Wraps, Cheese, Meat Sticks.

The signs said there were wraps with salmon, or ham, or hummus.  I tried to find a salmon one but did not succeed.  

There was no cheese or charcuterie board as is more standard in lounges, but rather, just cups with one kind of cheese sticks, or one kind of meat stick.  I did try the meat stick, and it was actually tasty enough.  ***+ meat stick.

No Idea ...

Thinking this might be some kind of seafood spread, I grabbed it.  I'm still not sure what it was, but I think it might have just been vegetarian, cream cheese mixed with something?  Not very good.  No real flavor, no seasoning.  There was another one that looked similar but more like cottage cheese on top that I didn't try.

*+.

Salad with Strawberries, Goat Cheese, and Chive.

The fanciest item was the salad offering, pots of one kind of torn greens, with strawberries and tons of goat cheese, and a pipette of I think chive vinaigrette?

I dislike goat cheese, so I pushed that aside.  The strawberries were not very good, and it was strawberry season, and I'd been eating great berries all week elsewhere, so this was a letdown.  There was no seasoning, and the dressing really seemed to be just oil.  The greens were loosely torn.

This was really the only vegetable available, besides pickles.  **.

Hummus?

No idea what this unlabelled tartlet was.  When I went back for my second round of food, there were no more, and they were never replenished.  Maybe hummus?

Desserts.

The dessert lineup had signs for several items: chocolate cake with cherries, chocolate block, and apple pie, along with panna cotta.  However, there was definitely one chocolate pudding, and, the base of the tall shot glasses with orange topping was totally different from the wider ones with the pink topping.  And the cake certainly didn't seem to be apple as labelled.  So, treat the signs with a grain of salt.

Anyway, I tried everything that was not caffeinated.

The tall shot glass pudding was my favorite.  It was a smooth pudding, almost yogurt-like, in a not very sweet way, and perhaps buttermilk.  Was this the panna cotta?  I think so?  The mango (?) sweet fruity topping was fine.  I wouldn't rave about this, but enjoyed it.  ***+.

Next, the other non-chocolate pudding.  This one was a totally different consistency.  It was more fluffy and mousse-like.  Maybe white chocolate.  It was sweeter.  And didn't taste particularly good.  Not bad, but not good.  The fruity stuff on top was kinda like a gel, not very good either.  I didn't really want more than a few bites of this.  **+.

And the non-chocolate cake, definitely not apple pie.  It might have been rhubarb?  It was dry, tasted highly processed, and even the crumble topping was not very good.  Meh.  *.

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Street Spudz Potato Cart, Boston

Street Spudz.  You know, fries you eat on the street.  That is the concept behind the Street Spudz Potato Cart, a french fry cart I encountered in Boston.

"We like to joke but frying potatoes is truly the intersection of Art and Science… We’ve spent countless hours researching different blanching techniques, testing more frying mediums than we can count, and finding the perfect temp to finish a fry at… All to get us to the point of being able to say we’ve created one killer French fry recipe (and have eaten a TON of spuds)."

Everyone likes to say their fries are the best, and that they've perfected the technique, and Street Spudz is no different. 

"We went 150 miles North of Boston to Vacation Land to find the perfect potato for our cart. We’re proud to source locally from Green Thumb Farms in Fryeburg , Maine. Our French Fries are created from Round White potatoes. Green Thumb has the perfect combination of above-average growing days, natural minerals, and the ability to irrigate from the crystal clear waters of the Saco River."

They also pride themselves in sourcing very locally, with potatoes from Maine.

I'm not sure where they normally set up their cart, but I encountered them at a catered event.  They had a great setup with fryers right there.

Menu.

For events, they always offer their classic house fries and spud sauce, plus your choice of 2 others.  For our event, the other options were truffle parmesan fries, or bacon cheese fries.  Street Spudz also makes some fascinating sounding pickle ranch fries, animal style, garlic + rosemary, bbq bacon, and even buffalo chicken or smashburger topped, but alas, not on our menu.

Spud sauce or ketchup were available to dip.

Truffle Parmesan Fries.

"Truffle oil, shaved parmesan, herb."

I went for the truffle parmesan fries.  These seemed to be just their house fries with a sprinkle of the shaved parmesan and herbs on top, which I think had been tossed in truffle oil.  I was hoping the fries themselves would have the truffle oil, and thus, considerably more flavor.  

That said, the fries were fine.  Thin style, a bit limp, but understandable given the catering and 98* weather (really!).  I liked the crispy skin on tips, and the truffle and parmesan *were* good, there just wasn't much of it.

The spud sauce (ketchup, mayo, pickles, vinegar, oregano) was creamy and flavorful, pretty classic "special sauce" style.

***.

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Torres Foie Gras Chips

OMG, OMG, OMG.

Ok, now that I've got my excitement out, let's dive into this review.  

Chips.  Something I grew up eating very regularly alongside lunch and always at parties with dips.  And then something I kinda just forgot about for years in my early adulthood.  In grad school, chips would have been a splurge I couldn't really afford, and then once working somewhere with cafes serving fantastic meals, I just never really found a spot or reason for chips in my life.

And then the pandemic happened, and I rediscovered chips anew.  I now eat them daily with my lunches, and find it crazy that I stopped entirely for so many years, but hey, I'm back on the chip wagon, and frequently seek out new brands and flavors.  Which lead me to discover Torres chips.

"Imported from Spain, Torres Potato Chips are light and crispy with bold flavors. Fried in high-quality Spanish oil, the taste is unparalleled. Torres chips are the perfect snack for those with food sensitivities, as all flavors are free of gluten, traces of peanuts and other nuts, lactose, or egg products."

The brand comes from Spain, and I haven't seem them in many places in the US.  I don't know much about the company, besides that it started in 1969 making chips, and has expanded to other snacks.  And that they make some pretty amazing flavors.  Like, um, foie gras chips.  Yes, foie gras chips.  Other flavors in their lineup include black truffle, caviar, Iberian ham, sparkling wine, cured cheese, fried egg, and more common paprika, Mediterranean herbs, and olive oil.   The caviar chips even actually include dried caviar (!).

I only found the foie gras ones at a local store, but I'd love to try others too.

Foie Gras Chips.

"Enjoy an original, delicate and delicious gourmet snack."

So yes.  Be still my heart.  Foie gras chips.  Longtime readers of my blog know how I feel about foie gras, so I couldn't wait to try them.  I'll admit that meat flavored chips aren't very common in general in the US, let alone foie gras flavored, so this was partially novelty to me too.

They were good chips.  The form factor itself was compelling, fairly thin, super crispy, little bubbles on them (indicating of course lots of oil and frying and unhealthiness!).  Large slices of potato, many of them rolled over.  Crunchy, addicting form factor.

And then the taste.  Did they taste like foie gras?  Well, not exactly.  If you gave these to me without a description and asked what they were, I wouldn't have guessed that.  But they are deeply savory, and complex, and unlike any other chips I've had, even other meat chip flavors. Do they contain foie gras?  Uh, no.  "Foie gras flavoring", says the helpful ingredients label.  But I liked them quite a bit, and don't really mind the mystery flavoring.

**** for complexity and uniqueness.  I'd love to get my hands on some of their caviar chips next ...

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Black Jet Bakery

Update Review, 2024

I didn't seek out Black Jet Bakery, but, when someone in my office had extra cake to share, of course I went to try it, as its 10 years (!) since I last had their goods.

Old Fashioned Chocolate Cake.

"Moist devil's food cake layered with our old fashioned chocolate cream cheese frosting and topped with sprinkles."

I'll admit the variety of cake the person who ordered this picked wasn't really one I'd generally go for - devil's food.  Chocolate frosting in particular is rarely what I'm interested in, and I mostly only like chocolate cake when it is warm, and served with ice cream.

But still, cake.  And I wanted to try it.

It was about as I expected.  Deep, dark devil's food cake, which is fine, but not exciting to me.  It was reasonably moist and not dry.  Reasonable chocolate flavor.

And then the frosting. I like chocolate.  I like cream cheese frosting.  I like cheesecake.  I don't like chocolate cheesecake.  Turns out, the same is true for chocolate cream cheese frosting.  Something about the chocolate and cream cheese combo just doesn't do it for me.  There was plenty of this frosting, and it was true to both the cream cheese and chocolate flavors, both fairly pronounced, but, alas, not my favorite.

Overall, I think a fine cake, good ratios of frosting to cake, fresh enough, but, not one I really enjoyed. **.

Available as 8 inch for $50, 10 inch or 1/4 sheet for $100, or 1/2 sheet for $200.

Original Review, January 2015

I remember when Black Jet Bakery opened in the Ferry Building.  I was so excited to have another bakery close by. You know me and my love of baked goods!  Plus, they had all sorts of interesting sounding items, like "German Shepherds", aka, homemade Devil Dogs with german choc cake filling!  And homemade "Nuttah Buttahs"!  And of course, homemade pop tarts with a variety of fillings, and absolutely adorable mini pies.

I tried many items over the years, but didn't take notes, as it was before my food blogging days.  A few years ago, as I mentioned last week, I wanted both pumpkin and pecan pies for Thanksgiving, so I decided to purchase mini versions of each, and Black Jet was where I immediately went for one of them, since I'd been eyeing their mini pies for years, even though I was never all that impressed with anything else I'd tried there.

They have since closed their Ferry Building location, but have a shop in the Mission, and are available around town through Good Eggs.  But I don't see any reason to seek them out.

Lil Pumpkin Pie. $5.

"This little 3.5 inch beauty is quite the treat for 1 or 2.  Excellent crust to filling ratio, to boot."

The pumpkin filling was not particularly interesting, not very spiced, just kinda there.  The crust on the bottom and where the pumpkin filling touched it was ok, but otherwise it was pretty dry.  It was also buttery, but not in a good way. There was no real flavor to the crust.  Meh, meh, meh

If you want a tasty pie, get it from Flour & Co.

[ Not Pictured ]

• Cookies
• Chocolate Chip Cookie with Sea Salt: "Classic chocolate chip cookies filled with milk and dark chocolate and topped with Maldon Sea Salt Flakes."  Tasting notes: Meh. (wow, that memorable huh?  Sorry, this is literally all my notes say!)
• Sugar Cookie: Soft, but no flavor complexity, just buttery, meh [ Slight lemon flavor, moist, bad mouthfeel, too much butter]
• Boozy Oatmeal Raisin Cookie: Tum!  Nice and moist, good flavor in cookie itself.
• Cakes
• Sour Cream Coffee Cake: "Classic Sour Cream Coffee cake. Delicious for breakfast or as an afternoon snack with coffee!"  Tasting notes: Nothing special, not bad but not good.
• Bars
• Salty Nutty Brownie: Nice rich chocolate flavor, moist, pretty good.
• Lemon Square: Way too sweet.  Very lemony.  Not my thing at all.
• Brown Butter Blondie: Not good.  Really plain, very little chocolate, no nuts.

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Chico's Pizza

Pizza.  Something I grew up eating tons of (we literally had family pizza night once a week, and, well, they still do), something I certainly ordered late night in college regularly, and then ... not really something I ate for like 15 years.  I didn't actively dislike it, but, I would absolutely never pick it.  And then the past few years happened, and I've turned back into a pizza fan.  I can't explain it.

But my pizza enjoyment has largely been at very well regarded places (e.g. Tony's in SF), or basically everywhere in NY when I was there for a month last summer, or, more recently, diving into the world of Detroit style pizza ().   I haven't really sought out generic, "American" style pizza, like Chico's.  To be fair, I didn't seek out Chico's either, but it was ordered by the host of an event I was at recently.

"Try the best pizzas in San Francisco.

Chico's Pizza is one of the most popular in San Francisco. Try their pizza, and you'll soon see why."

Even though I had never heard of Chico's before, it turns out that it is a small chain, with 3 locations in San Francisco.  It has been around a while.  Some, like their website, say it "the best" and "one of the most popular", which is a bit surprising to me, given that I'd never heard of it before.  I'm not sure which we ordered from, I assume the closest location, on 6th St.

Chico's offers a slew of pre-designed pizzas with all your basics like vegetarian, meat lovers, greek, bbq chicken, etc, along with some more unique options like the San Francisco pizza with pepperoni, Canadian bacon, beef, olives, and feta (which, frankly, sounds confused and muddled and I don't understand why it has anything to do with SF), or the Tijuana pizza with peppers, onions, sausage, tomato, and jalapeños.   You can create your own from a sizable lineup of topping choices.   They do not offer gluten-free crust, nor do they offer vegan cheese.   Sizes range from 12" small to 14" medium to 16" large and 18" x-large. You can customize any pizza, including their specialty ones.  Their online ordering even lets you put in a special note to the kitchen, which I've rarely seen offered.  

In addition to pizza, Chico's has salads (5 kinds), calzones (5 kinds), hot sandwiches (10 kinds, ranging from meatball parm to chicken pesto with grilled mushrooms), and sides/apps such as several kinds of wings, mozzarella sticks, jalapeño poppers, and garlic bread.  We had several kinds of pizza, and salad (which I didn't take a photo of, but it was fresh and tasty enough).

I liked Chico's for what it was.  It isn't trying to be fancy or any kind of niche pizza.  I wouldn't order it myself, but if I am at another party with it, and I'm craving generic pizza, I'd gladly grab a slice.

Meat Lover's.

"Cheese, Italian sausage, salami, pepperoni, and Canadian bacon."

This was not bad.  Very big puffy crust, very bready, not special, but it was fine.  Standard sauce and cheese, well coated, nicely melted.  Basically, as generic as it gets, but all fine.

The meats though were good.  The little balls tasted immediately recognizable, but not as Italian sausage, which is what they were I guess.  They tasted EXACTLY like (my memory of) the little meatballs in Spaghetti-os.  I liked them, but they weren't very sausage like.

The salami was salami, fine, but not my thing.  Generic pepperoni.  I really liked the Canadian bacon for some reason.

Overall, not a bad pizza if craving generic pizza, and yay for the meats. ***.

$22.50 (small) - $30.50 (x-large).

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Sheraton Grand Krakow, Executive Lounge

In the years leading up to the Covid pandemic, I travelled quite a bit for work, regularly 100-120 nights a year on the road, with Marriott hotels (originally Starwood) as my loyalty chain of choice.  As such, I had fairly high status, and with that, executive lounge access at properties that have them.  I didn't know prior to all those nights in hotels how much I'd value such an amenity, but lounges have become key elements of my stay as a hotel guest, and I highly value a nice lounge.

"Sheraton Club is a space designed for relaxation where you can enjoy refreshments throughout the day and a wide selection of hot and cold snacks and alcoholic beverages in the evening. Access to the Sheraton Club is additionally charged."

When I was in Krakow this year, I had access to the lounge at the Sheraton Grand.  It was easily the least impressive lounge I've been to internationally, and seemed highly underutilized.  During the day, I literally never encountered another guest there when I would cruise through for a drink or snack.  The fact that it isn't open for breakfast, the time when I think most elite business guests really value it, is odd to me.  So, it was pretty ho-hum and boring overall, but I did absolutely adore the crispy peanut snacks they had all day, and some of the desserts were shockingly good.  A nice-to-have, but not defining feature of the property. 

Setting

The lounge is located on the 2nd floor, down at the far end of the hallway.  If you didn't know to look for it, you would not know it was there, just on the lowest guest room floor tucked away.  It is open daily from 6am-11pm, but is largely empty and unattended, quite different from most lounges I've visited.

Seating.

The lounge is fairly small, with just one section.  There are a few soft couches with coffee tables, and a few small dining tables, plus an area where the evening buffet gets set up.  Not really the type of place people linger around outside of the cocktail hour.  It is open to the interior atrium of the main hotel, overlooking the restaurant below.

Drinks

Soft Drinks.

Soft drinks are available to grab all day long.  Sadly no sparkling water, and only sugared drinks.

They had a self-serve filtered water tap that made still or sparkling water, but was located very close to the counter, so you couldn't use it to fill your own bottle (likely intentionally for hygiene reasons?).

There was also beer on tap.

Coffee Machine.

A standard robot coffee machine is also available all day, with cups to go.

Water and Tea.

Spa water and tea bags were available all day long.

Red Wine.

Red wine, vodka, gin, and scotch are available nightly from 6pm-8pm.  No white wine.

My first night, there were two red wines.  Pluvium Spanish wine and Castillo Lagomar Semi Tinto.  I tried both, and didn't care for either.  Both not generally the style of wine I go for anyway.  I don't get the impression that wine is big in Poland - everyone else in the lounge was enjoying the beer on tap, or the vodka, and we saw very small wine lists in general when dining out.

Red Wine Night #2.

The second night a third wine was added, Alto Barrica Red Semi - Dry.  It also wasn't very good.  

Wine selection: below average, **+.

Savory Food

The savory food lineup features several hot dishes, plus cold canapes, and your standard cheeses and charcuterie.  I didn't find anything particularly good.  It changed nightly.

Fennel Soup / Couscous.

Every night started with a soup and a grain.

The fennel soup was ok.  It was very thick.  It needed seasoning, and I wanted something a bit more going on, but it was ok.  **+.

I didn't try the couscous.

Minestrone Soup.

The next night it was minestrone, which I didn't try.

Chicken Strips / Porridge with Bacon.

Nor did I try the chicken strips or porridge, also on offer the second night.

Pork Meat / Pasta with Tomatoes.

The other hot dishes didn't look good, but I tried them anyway.

The "pork meat" was some kind of stew, lackluster quality meat, lackluster flavor.  I didn't care for this.  I think this is a fairly traditional Polish stew.*.

The pasta was literally just basic penne with tomato sauce.  The flagship restaurant on site is an Italian restaurant, so I somewhat expected more from the pasta offering. *+.

Polendusice (?) / Potato.

The next night, for the meat and carbs we had ... this.

The first dish was ... a mystery.  The word it was labelled with, "Polendusice", doesn't translate to anything in English from Polish, and I can't find it anywhere.  I later asked about it and was told it was pork tenderloin.  It was ... not very good.  Tender, but not great flavor in the pork, and it didn't seem very high quality. The brown gravy tasted like from a jar.  *+.

The potato wedges were ok, not great, clearly not freshly fried, but they had good seasoning, and there were tasty sauces to dunk them in.  **+.

Pickles, Olives, Condiments night #1.

I liked the mixed pickles.

The first night had just mayonnaise and "burger sauce" which I didn't try.  The next night though this was bbq sauce and garlic aioli, both of which were tasty.  The garlic aioli was particularly flavorful.  ***+.

Tartines with turkey, salad fixings,
charcuterie, cheese, fruit, nuts.

Most nights had some kind of crostini or tartine, basic salad fixings, and cheese and cold cuts.

I didn't try the turkey open faced tartine.

The salad station was mixed leaves, tomatoes, and cucumbers.  Nothing special, but not bad.  Nice to have some vegetables.

I also tried a few things from the charcuterie platter, including an ok rillettes style product.  

Eh.  **.

Cheese Platter.

I tried a few things from the cheese platter, not knowing what any was exactly, and didn't care for them either.  One looked really promising, grilled, halloumi-like, but I hated the flavor.  From my later research on Polish food, I think this was grilled oscypek (which I confirmed when I saw it at breakfast too).  I later learned (from the excellent description cards at breakfast), that the one that looked like Gouda, but then surprised me with its different taste, was Amber cheese, an aged yellow cheese.  **.

The next day at breakfast, at the restaurant (review coming soon!), I found many of these same items, with labels, which was much more helpful.

Sandwich offering day 2.

The second day this area had a tortilla with cheese (cream?) and cucumber instead of the tartine, which I didn't try.

Tartines with Egg Paste.

Next, another tartine, this time with "egg paste".  I tried this one.

The crostini base was overly crispy.  The egg paste, e.g. egg salad, was fine.  Yay for a little more freshness from tomato and arugula too.  **+.

The next night had a similar item, but on softer baguette slices.

Mushroom & Cabbage Strudel?

The second night had this item, with no label.  I think it was a mushroom and cabbage filled strudel? There may have been leeks too.  The mushrooms were the kind that taste like from a can sadly.  I really couldn't tell if it was leeks or cabbage, but, there was some kind of very cooked down vegetable in there.  Not particularly well seasoned.  The pastry on top was flaky, but was entirely raw on the bottom.

Just not very good. But yay pastry? *.

Canape with Fish Paste.

Did not like this either, very fishy odd taste to the paste. *.

Burrata Salad.

The salad selection the first night was burrata. Again, given the Italian restaurant on site, I had high hopes for the burrata.  The restaurant, and the casual rooftop bar, both feature burrata preps on the menu.

It was ok?  Not as ripe and oozing cream as I'd like, but it tasted fresh.  The drizzle of olive oil and maybe pesto was a decent compliment.  Eh to beets, but that's just my preference.  **+.

Macaroni Salad with Chicken.

The next night the salad was "macaroni" (as labelled) with chicken.  It was just some basic corkscrew pasta with tomatoes and slices of chicken.  Not particularly good. **.

All Day Snacks.

Every day, all day, had some kind of coated peanuts.  I became addicted to them.  Super crunchy shell, flavorful coatings (different color/flavor every day, these were paprika I think?  Other days had orange bbq? ones and green wasabi? ones), all with a peanut inside.  Highlight of the lounge.  I adored these.  Why do we not have them in the US?  *****.

Sweet

So the drinks, the savory food, not really netting the Sheraton Grand Krakow lounge any points in my book.  But you know how much I value good desserts, and here, they shockingly did deliver on some items.

Cake / Filled Croissant.

During the day, a few sweet bites are available.

I tried the filled croissant, it seemed to be filled with some kind of jam.  It was a darker style pastry dough, like it was trying to be wholesome and healthier?  Not much buttery flavor.  Vague fruity filling.  Not very good.  **.

Nutella Donut.

The next day, during the late morning/afternoon, there was a nutella filled donut, the same kind that Marriott hotels have worldwide in their breakfast buffets, and I do kinda like.

Other days had other fillings.  Many of which I hadn't had before at other properties, such as Biscoff or white chocolate, both of which were great.  I do like these, in their own way, but when in Krakow, if you want a donut, I highly recommend going to get an actual Polish donut, even if you just go somewhere like Dobra Pączkarnia.  ***+.

Banana Cake.

In the evening, the afternoon cake was back, but more dressed up this time, with a little cream and dried apple slice.  I did not try this.

Nut Cake.

Another night it was nut cake, that I also didn't try.  Again very dressed up.

Chocolate Cake with Pistachio.

One night, the cake offering was much better looking: chocolate cake with pistachio.  This wasn't really "cake" though, it was VERY rich, and very excellent, flourless chocolate cake style cake.  

So dense, so rich, so chocolatey, so very very good.  Consistency, texture, flavor, all done really well.  It had a fantastic crispy base as well.  I wanted whipped cream to lighten it, or some fresh strawberries or raspberries, but it really was excellent.  ****+.

Brownies.

The second night the other option was brownies, that I didn't try.

Cheesecake.

My final night it was the cheesecake, the same offered in the cafe downstairs, or served in the restaurant, for 40PLN.  Literally same item as the display case in cafe.  Very big slices.

It was good cheesecake.  Ricotta style I think, some lemon to it.  Tasty crust.  ***+.

Tiramisu.

"Mascarpone | savoiardi | cocoa."

Every night also had some kind of pudding.  This thrilled me, as I adore puddings (hence why my blog has a label devoted to pudding reviews!).

The tiramisu was fabulous.  Truly fabulous.  Great actual amaretti flavor from the biscuits on top, well soaked moist but not mushy ladyfingers within, thick rich cream, notes of coffee and chocolate.   Probably the best tiramisu I've had in many years.  I'd gladly get this again.  ****+.

Tiramisù Classico is on the menu at the restaurant for zł 43.

Mascarpone with Peach.

The next night, I was delighted to see another type of pudding-pot, as I just adore puddings in general.  Mascarpone sounded good to me.

It was ... ok-ish.  The base of the jar had the peach, which honestly somewhat reminded me of baby food puree.  Like applesauce, but, peach.  I love fresh peaches, but I wasn't really into this.  There was a lot of it.

Above that, the mascarpone.  It was thick, rich, not very sweet.  It had a strange bitter aftertaste.

The berries on top were fine.

I really wanted to like this more than I did in practice.  *+.

Vanilla Cream with Raspberries.

Another day, another cream.  This one didn't say mascarpone, but I think it was.  And again, there was something just not ... right about it.  Such an odd aftertaste.  "Raspberries" were just goo in the base. Did not like. *.

Panna Cotta with Apple.

Another night, the pudding offering was even more appealing to me: panna cotta!  I even have a label on my blog just for this particular type of pudding, so, clearly a favorite of mine.

It was good.  Well set.  Rich.  Strong cinnamon flavor.  Sweet enough.  I didn't really care about the apple compote or little cookie on top, but the panna cotta was good.  I did want a touch of whipped cream to complete the deal, but it wasn't needed.  ****.

The restaurant has a version of this on their menu too, although that one has rosemary.

Apple Crumble.

And finally, my last night, apple crumble.  (Side note: they really seem to like using amaretti cookies for garnish.  They made no sense here.  I also was not into the tart cherry-apple thing on top).

But the apple pie filling was good, a mushy style with thin sliced apples, but well spiced, and good.  The crumble topping had no clumps, but good flavor and sweetness level, added some texture.  I really wanted it warm with ice cream, but it was good.  ***+.

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