Popped Corn

Yes, I have a snacking problem.  Yes, popcorn is my ultimate vice.  No, I don't mean microwave popcorn (I basically hate it), or for the most part, movie theater popcorn (e.g. AMC Theaters, its just too fake tasting, and makes me feel awful afterward).  The popcorn I love is fresh kettle corn, the kind you get at the farmer's market or state fair (my favorite is from a tiny vendor in New Hampshire, Howl'n Good), or "gourmet" artisan small batch fresh popcorn merchants that make it in a variety of flavors.  In a real pinch, I'll try assorted grocery store brands (and if I have to go that route, Angie's Boomchickapop is my current acceptable solution).

My never ending quest for awesome popcorn in fun flavors lead me to Popped Corn, a brand based in Minnesota. 

"Here at PoppedCorn, we are passionate about bringing you high quality, locally made popcorn and fudge. We pride ourselves in having many unique and delicious flavors that are great for any occasion. Whether you are coming in for a snack or a gift, we want to make sure we put a smile on your face."

I haven't visited in person, but I was able to order online.  I focused on popcorn, both sweet and savory, although they have fudge too.  For just the popcorn, they have, I kid you not, 67 different flavors (!!!).  All flavors are available in 7 different sizes, ranging from mini (3 cups) up to party size (320 cups!).

I wasn't particularly impressed by the website, as it lacked most information I wanted.  Only a handful even had descriptions, even when flavors aren't entirely obvious, e.g. "Southwest Jalapeño" ... what's in that? Or what about "mac & cheese" ... how does that compare to the other cheese flavors?  There are no ingredients listed on the website for anything.  No nutritional info nor allergens either.  I still don't know, as the bags themselves didn't have any further info.

I had mixed feelings on my popcorn bounty.  The base popcorn itself was good: it was quite fresh, large size fluffy pieces, all well popped (no duds!), very well coated and seasoned.  I tried both sweet and savory offerings.  But most of the flavors I found to just be ... too much.  I'm all for strong flavors, I'm all for really well coated pieces, but most of these were hard to eat more than a few handfuls (of a single flavor) at a time.  As I'm someone who likes to eat popcorn in quantity, this cramped my style.  My solution of course was to mix and match flavors together, to balance each other out, but it did detract from my base enjoyment of this popcorn.

Savory

Since they make sooo many flavors, both sweet and savory, I won't enumerate your options here, but, they range from all your basics like salt, butter (two kinds, "Buttery" or "Movie Theatre Butter" ... no idea the difference, as again, no details provided), different types of cheese (orange cheddar, white cheddar, fiery cheddar, mac and cheese, etc), potato chip inspired flavors (salt & vinegar, bbq, sour cream & chive, etc) and then then fun ones like dill pickle (or hot pickle), pizza, and more.  There are also some blends.

I tried 10 (!) different savory flavors.  Most were good but not exceptional.  My biggest complaint is that a number of the flavors just didn't deliver the expected flavor, e.g. "spicy + hot" or "fiery" flavors were more like ... mild heat on the finish, and only if you ate a ton of it.  I wanted MORE flavor.  But the pieces were all well popped, well coated in seasoning, and the popcorn seemed quite fresh.

Also, just to note: after an initial taste test of all the flavors, I packaged up and vacuum sealed each of the bags (individually), and somehow my labels fell off, so I had no idea which was which.  As I opened each bag, it was an adventure of guessing which I had, based only on the taste and color.  I decided to make it extra fun by not looking up the list of flavors I had decided to order, to really see how well my blind taste testing would work, and only looked up the list afterwards as I tried to match them for this review.

Parmesan + Garlic.

This was the lightest of the flavors I tried.

It was still quite cheesy, but more on the normal realm of very cheesy popcorn, not as over the top nearly unbearable as the orange cheese flavors (read more below!).  My brain tasted what seemed more like white cheddar than the sharpness I associate with parmesan, but I can believe it was indeed parmesan.  The cheese level was good, very easily addicting. 

The garlic however was nearly absent. I maaaaybe could get a tiny bit on the finish if I tried really hard, but this really was just a cheese flavor with a touch more savoriness to it.  Which was fine, but if you are expecting some lovely garlic breath after it, you won't find it here.

This was most successful of the cheesy flavors in terms of actual enjoyment, and ability to down a whole bag in one sitting.  I'd get it again, even though it lacked the garlic. ****.

Southwest Jalapeño.

Now time for some spice.

I really wish they gave the ingredients, or at least a description for this one.  It was ... different, and I still can't pinpoint the flavors.  What is "Southwest" flavor anyway?

I don't think I really liked it though.  The jalapeño did give it a real kick, but there were a lot of other flavors going on.  Savory, zesty, but somewhat muddled?  Vaguely cheesy, but not actually cheesy.  Maybe like sour cream?  The pieces were extremely well coated in the seasoning, and it just was kinda too much.

I ended up mixing this with 1/3 plain sea salt popcorn + 1/3 caramel corn, and together with those elements to mute it (the former) and compliment it (the later) it worked, but as served, this was really **+ for me, and not a flavor I'd get again.

Hot Pickle.

My first of the many orange dusted flavors.  This is where things started to get a bit complicated.  I thought, from looks, that this would be a cheesy flavor, or perhaps bbq.  But the very first bite and I knew it was far, far more complex than that.  It was certainly a savory flavor, that veered in the direction of cheesy, but more like sour cream, or just some kind of creamy dairy component.  It also had a mild heat, not a jalapeño style with kick, but more subtle, that built with time.  And a bit of herbs on the finish, which were amplified by my visual inspection that had little flecks on the pieces.  

"Buffalo wings", was pretty much what came to mind, dipped in ranch or blue cheese.  But ... not quite.  It was a confusing flavor.  I believe that it was actually the hot pickle, although I didn't taste pickle exactly.  I'm not quite sure what expected hot pickle to taste like anwayy.

The pieces were well coated in the seasoning, and it really was quite rich.  I found myself wanting a sweet or plain component to balance it, like a Chicago mix with caramel corn balancing the cheese, or perhaps a kettle corn.  Overall, it was definitely a fascinating, and complex flavor, but I probably wouldn't get it again.  ***.

Southwest Hot Wing?

Next up, another orange one with little flecks of green, and another that looked like it would be cheesy, but I think wasn't.  I don't know which flavor it was, but I *think* it was the Southwest Hot Wing as it was dark orange, very well coated in powdered orange seasoning, with some little green flecks.  It had no real spice to it, but the green flecks were there. 

Was it the "Spicy + Hot Cheese" just not actually spicy? The "Fiery Cheddar" but not actually fiery?  But neither of those had the herb specs in my photos I took before diving in, so it couldn't be those.  It looked the most like the Southwest Hot Wing but ... I guess it just wasn't really hot?  I don't know.  It had to be one of those, and the only real flavor I could identify was cheesy.  Which makes me think it was likely fiery cheddar, just lacking fire?  Although again, it had herb flecks, and that one doesn't.

Regardless, it was good savory popcorn, cheese (?) level high, base popcorn quality high, and I enjoyed it (although like all the orange flavors, I wanted to cut with either plain or caramel corn ...).  ***+.

Sour Cream & Chives.

Next up, Sour Cream & Chives.

This one, much like the previous, had lots of little flecks of herbs.  It tasted herby, although not strong in the onion/chive flavor exactly.  This one, again, much like the previous, had a sorta creamy dairy component to it, which I had called "more like sour cream" with the previous flavor, and in this case, was definitely sour cream.  And again, like the previous, the pieces were extremely coated in the seasonings, and as a result, were really quite rich.  I just couldn't eat more than a couple small handfuls at a time ... or mix it with a sweet flavor, which I did of course.  

This flavor was pretty true to what they were aiming for, although the chive wasn't super strong, sour cream & herb definitely was.  A decent flavor, but, as with the others, suffered from being too much.  Low ***, and another I wouldn't get again.

Barbecue.

Next, another potato chip style flavor: barbecue.  Easier to identify as it was more red in hue.  And once I took a single bite, it was quite clear.  Yes, yes, this was barbecue.  All the essences of barbecue, very well captured in this.

When it comes to potato chips, barbecue are generally my goto, so this was a flavor I was really quite excited for, and I'll admit, a first for me in popcorn form.  I loved it.  It had a great smokiness to it, mesquite style.  Lots of savory barbecue spices.  Well coated pieces.  Like all the flavors, it was kinda a lot in quantity, and I liked to mix it with plain if eating a lot of it at a time, but this was no question my favorite.  Loved the flavor, the smokiness in particular.  Very true to the flavor I'd expect from it.  I'll gladly get it again. ****.

Mac N' Cheese.

Now for the real cheese flavors.  All the orange ones with no flecks.  At least this one I did have properly labelled.

Well, this was a cheesy flavor.  No doubt.  Like all the other flavors, very very covered in the coating.  But if you gave it to me and asked, "what flavor is this?", would I say, "Oh! I know this!  It is mac and cheese!"?  Yeah, no, no I would not.  It was cheesy, and it wasn't quite one clear type of cheese, e.g. I wouldn't confidently tell you it was cheddar or gouda or anything like that either, but I'm not sure what was supposed to be "mac and cheese" exactly about it.  If anything, maybe it did taste a bit like Velveeta?  Which I guess is a vague Kraft brand processed cheese flavor, so, sure, that is what some majority of Americans identify as mac and cheese I guess.

Anyway, I digress.  Flavor name aside, it was good.  Cheesy, so very cheesy.  Like the others, just a bit too much, it hurt my stomach to eat a giant bag full in one sitting, so alas, I either had to mix with another flavor (plain or caramel ...) or just eat more normal human portions.  Perhaps this brand is trying to teach me a lesson?

***+ as it did really deliver in cheesiness.

Spicy + Hot Cheese.

Fiery Cheddar.

Here is where things got the most confusing.  I had two remaining flavors.  "Spicy + Hot Cheese" and "Fiery Cheddar".  They looked identical.  Dark orange, no flecks.  But also, the flavor names pretty much sound the same.  Was "fiery" supposed to be hotter than "spicy + hot" perhaps?  Does "cheese" have a combo of cheeses, not just cheddar?  I don't know.  As no flavors have descriptions on the website, nor ingredients listed, I had nothing to go on.

So how were they?  Both were, well, cheesy popcorn.  Well coated, cheesy, yadda yadda.  Not as Velveeta-like as the previous, more muted neutral cheese.  Good cheese level.  Mild, mild, mild spicy though.  Certainly not "spicy + hot", but even more certainly not "fiery".  Fine, but like the others, extremely rich and well coated, cheesy popcorn that I wanted to mix with another flavor.  ***.

My notes for both bags were identical really.  I never could tell them apart, in looks, in taste, and frankly, even in product name.  Slightly cheese-y, lightly sorta spicy, flavor.  Neither was more spicy than the other.  Neither was more clearly cheddar than the other.  Spicy + Hot Cheese or Fiery Cheddar, take your pick.

Sweet

The sweet flavor lineup is actually even more extensive than the savory.  Here again you have the basics like kettle or caramel (or sea salt caramel or caramel with nuts or toffee almond), and then a slew of fruity flavors (blackberry, blueberry, black cherry, cherry, craisin cranberry, grape, green apple, orange, raspberry, strawberry), chocolatey flavors (regular chocolate, peanut butter chocolate, s'mores, dark chocolate, dark chocolate sea salt, butterfinger chocolate, tuxedo chocolate), and plenty of other, well, just sweet decadent things like white chocolate (plain, or with Oreo, or with pretzel), birthday cake, cotton candy, cheesecake, cinnamon roll, cinnamon toast, or even a "confetti" mix of 18 flavors.

I tried 7 kinds.

Red Hot Cinnamon.

For some reason, when I ordered this, I was thinking cinnamon as in cinnamon rolls, cinnamon and icing and all that, even though it was called "red hot cinnamon".  I had just finished off my final bag of the limited edition Cinnamon Roll Drizzlecorn from Annie's Boomchickapop (that I adore), and I wanted more of that.

It was not that.  It was, well, *red hot* cinnamon.  As in, one bite, and all my brain could think was, "well, I know this.  It is red hots!".  The sweet-spicy cinnamon candies.  A very, very different taste than cinnamon roll and icing.  The flavor was spot on in that regard, and it was a candied style corn.  But so sweet, it was the style that made you very aware of how much sugar was used, and your teeth sorta screamed at you.

I appreciated how red hot candy flavored it was, truly true to the name, but it was just not a flavor I found myself gravitating towards as it was too candied.  **.

Cinnamon Toast.

"A customer favorite, Cinnamon Toast is made with Cinnamon and sugar over buttery popcorn. Delicious and crunchy."

I did have another, totally different, cinnamon flavor in my lineup too.  Cinnamon Toast.  Now, that isn't the same as cinnamon roll drizzle corn either, but I had more hope for this to be what I was craving.  

This one I really, really did not like.  For context, I don't actually like Cinnamon Toast Crunch cereal, but I do like, well, cinnamon, sugar, butter on toast.  This didn't taste like any of those things.  I didn't taste buttery popcorn as the base, just kinda plain.  I didn't really taste cinnamon that strongly, although it was there.  It was sweet-ish but not cloying, not anything like the candied nature of the red hot cinnamon (or others, below), just vaguely a bit sweet.  The cinnamon and sugar were really masked by this really off-putting taste that got even strong as an aftertaste.  I don't know what it was, but I really didn't like it.  It kinda tasted like bad coconut oil.

I tried this a few times, and just truly hated it every time.  I couldn't bring myself to finish it.  *.

Blueberry.

Next up, the brilliant blue blueberry flavor.

This was ... candy corn.  Well, candy popcorn.  Think of the shell of a candied apple (not a caramel apple, a candy apple), and that is what you had covering the pieces of popcorn.  It was very vaguely blueberry flavored I guess, but mostly, just candy flavored.  It tasted much like cotton candy, in that yes, there are different flavors of cotton candy, but mostly, there is sugar.  So.  Much.  Sugar.  And every piece was extremely well coated, so there was just no break from it.  It literally made my teeth stick together to take a big handful.

I liked it, but it was just too much candy.  I needed to make my own mix with some of this and some plain or other savory just to balance it out.  And really, the blueberry flavor was sooo muted.  Fun to try, and of course I finished it, but I wouldn't get this again.  **+.

Birthday Cake.

"Vanilla candy-coated popcorn, covered in White Chocolate and Cake Mix with Sprinkles!"

I thought that I would love this.  I adore white chocolate.  I put sprinkles on everything.  And I do love decadent popcorn.

But ... wow, this made me sad.  It literally hurt my teeth to take a bite.  It was just so far over the top in sweetness that it physically hurt.  I eat a *ton* of sweets, I have a very high tolerance (and love of!) sweet, but this was just ... too much.

It seemed to be a candied base, then covered in white chocolate and cake mix, so it was just sweet on sweet on sweet.  I didn't even taste white chocolate actually, or even cake mix really, just, cloying sweet that was extremely off putting.  The pieces also had a strange texture, sorta soft inside, mushy almost, but more firm outside.

I tried crumbling it up to use as an ice cream topping, but even then, it was just not a taste I enjoyed. *.

Raspberry Lemon Cake.

"Delicious Raspberry Candy-coated popcorn, covered in White Chocolate and drizzled with Lemon-flavored White Chocolate. Sprinkled with wedding cake mix. Perfect for a wedding, party or great snack."

When I ordered, I was drawn to this flavor, but after having the previous flavor, I was far less interested in trying this.  Another one with white chocolate and cake mix that was going to be too much?

This one turned out to be a delight compared to the previous.  The raspberry flavor was reasonably strong, the lemon subtle but added a dimension to it, and it did taste like white chocolate too.  Just a very complex flavor, and although it was sweet, definitely sweet, it just felt like a nice dessert item, rather than cloying as others were.  Definitely not a snack flavor, but, a good element to put on my nightly dessert platter.

Best of the sweet popcorn flavors, no question.  ***+.

Peanut Butter Chocolate.

My final popcorn selection was perhaps one I was most looking forward to.  But ... another one where I wish they gave description!  Because I adore peanut butter and chocolate, both together and separately, but if I had read a description of this, I likely would not have purchased.

Why?  Because it seemed to use caramel corn as the base.  So the pieces were actually covered in fairly thick, sweet caramel corn, and THEN the peanut butter confection and drizzle of chocolate.  The result was a popcorn with only a muted peanut butter flavor, as the caramel corn dominated.  Yes, sweeter than I'd like too, but really, I wanted to taste more peanut butter, and less caramel corn.  I also would have loved for a pop of salt to really accent the peanut butter.  Overall, just sadness, as it was an ok flavor, but should have been so much better. 

**+ because it was still peanut butter and chocolate after all, but a flavor like this, with salted popcorn base instead of caramel corn, would have been a 4 star or more!

Update Review: after having this several more times, I realized what it reminds me of.  Snickers.  A Snickers is a fine candy bar.  A popular one even.  But when I want peanut butter and chocolate, a Snickers is not the candy bar I reach for.  Yes, it has chocolate and peanuts, but, the caramel and nougat are the dominant elements of Snickers, as the same was true here.  Peanuts and chocolate take the backstage to the caramel.  And that's just a shame.

Other

Popped Corn, despite the name, also makes a few other items, mostly fudge and candied nuts.  

Puppy Chow.

"Delicious combination of peanut butter, Chocolate and Powdered Sugar over Caramel Corn and Chex cereal!"

My last item wasn't popcorn exactly, but, puppy chow.  As much as I love popcorn, obviously, my snack of choice 99% of the time, I ADORE puppy chow (or muddy buddies, or whatever other name you know it by).  Now, puppy chow doesn't normally have popcorn, but my mother has certain made versions for me that include it (given her knowledge of my love of popcorn!), so I was pretty excited to try another version of puppy chow with popcorn, the first I'd ever seen in the wild.  However, when I ordered this, I glossed over the fact that it was not just popcorn, but *caramel corn*,  and I hadn't yet tried the previous items to know that I didn't actually care for their overly candied style of popcorn.

This broke my heart.  Ok, let me be less dramatic: this was the most disappointing item I got from Popped Corn, and definitely the most disappointing Chex mix of any kind that I've had.  Such sadness.

Where to start.  Let's start with the extremely low volume of Chex.  Now, obviously puppy chow normally is made of a dominant Chex base, and this is a popcorn company so this was made with a dominant popcorn base, but there was very, very, very little Chex.  Perhaps 5 pieces in my entire bag.  There were no other mix-ins, no pretzels, nothing.  Just mostly popcorn.  Boo on the low amount of Chex.  (The Chex that was there was fine, well coated, although sooo sweet from the abundant powdered sugar).

Now let's get to the popcorn base.  Sigh.  I truly, truly do not understand why they would use caramel corn for the base of this.  There version is just too candied, too sweet on its own, and it entirely dominated the other coatings, just as I felt with the chocolate peanut butter flavor above.  Puppy chow is supposed to be all about the great peanut butter flavor, with a slight undertone of chocolate, and I literally tasted zero chocolate in this (and didn't see it either) and barely, barely tasted peanut butter.  I only tasted the trace amounts of peanut butter on the Chex pieces, the popcorn pieces were just cloying sweet caramel corn that was too sticky and made my teeth hurt, covered in waaaay too much powdered sugar.  Again, I like sweet things, powdered sugar is always an essential part of the puppy chow coating, but this was just over the top clumped on.  Such a thick layer of powdered sugar.  All you could taste here was sugar.

So putting it all together.  Heart broken because it contained so few Chex.  Heart broken because it didn't taste like peanut butter.  But even once I adjusted to those things, and thought of this is powdered sugar coated caramel corn (!), it just genuinely was not enjoyable - the caramel corn hurts the teeth to eat with its extreme candy layer, and the sweetness level was over the top to the point that it literally made me heart race within a few minutes of eating a bunch of it.  Biggest disappointment, and not an item I'd ever get again. *.

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Arsicault Bakery

I love baked goods.  Any regular reader of my blog certainly knows this.  And yet, in its 9 years of existence in San Francisco, getting constant accolades of having the best croissants in the city, I never had anything from Arsicault Bakery.

Until now.  Finally.  I still haven't been there myself, as I was treated to goodies by a co-worker who was visiting from Australia and I sent him there on a mission.  He came back victorious, with 3 items for me to try.  He also had the ham & cheese croissant whilst he was there picking up the sweets, which he declared the second best he'd ever had, after the one from Lune Croissant in Melbourne (which is definitely more famous for their croissants even than Arsicault).

But back to Arsicault.  Yadda yadda, best croissants in SF.  The year they opened, Bon Appétit named Arsicault its best new bakery in the US.  Their first location is in the Inner Richmond, not an area nearby nor one I frequent at all, and is known for always having lines.  Even now, 9 years after opening, they have daily lines.  They have a second location near Civic Center that opened in 2020, definitely more accessible to me, but also not an area I frequent much.  And thus, yes, I somehow never had Arsicault, a fact that causes anyone who knows me to say "Wait, how is that possible?!".  (Side note: as of March 2025, they just opened a third location, in Mission Bay, which does definitely increase my likelihood of finally going in person).

Anyway, Arsicault is very well known for the croissant.  The basic plain butter croissant has won all the awards.  Fans also say the almond croissant is the best they've had had, and they rave about the slightly more unique chocolate almond croissant.  Along the these goodies, they offer a few other daily pastries (chocolate croissant, the aforementioned ham & cheese croissant, several scones), along with cookies and quiche.  The Civic Center (McAllister) location actually has the considerably bigger menu (it is a bigger space, and has a full coffee bar too), offering even more pastries (including turnovers, galettes, additional flavors of kouign amann), breads (both savory loaves and more fun items like the less commonly found bostock), and even sandwiches.

I got to try three items, none of which were my very top tier of ones I want to try (which, if you are curious and/or want to bring them to me sometime, are the chocolate almond croissant and the kouign amann), but all were quite good, and I'll now make more of an effort to seek them out.

Apple Turnover. $7.

The first item my visitor got was a slight wildcard for me, the apple turnover.  Not an item I've ever heard mentioned from Arsicault, and interestingly, the most expensive baked good on the menu.  Yes, it was large but all their pastries are.  Offered only at the McAllister location.

The puff pastry itself was really quite good.  It was buttery, rich, flaky, well laminated.  Different from the croissant dough, less airy, and the butter level seemed higher, or at least, I tasted more richness.  I was genuinely surprised by how good it was, given how ordinary it looked.  **** pastry.

Apple Turnover: Cross Section.

Inside was the apple filling.  It wasn't stuffed particularly well, with a fairly large air pocket on one area, but tons of filling in the other sections.  There were some small cubes of apple, a bit softer of a style than I'd like, plus some goo, more akin to a thicker apple sauce than more generic donut filling goo.  Very lightly spiced.  It was ok overall, but I did wish for perhaps more cinnamon, and the apple pieces to be either bigger, or a bit more al dente.  Good, but not great filling.  High *** filling.

This was good at room temp (and honestly, the pastry so good it was hard to stop to wait to heat some up), but even better warmed up and paired with a salted caramel swirl gelato.  **** overall, surprise second favorite item.

Blackberry Bostock. $5.75.

I've probably only had about 10 or so bostock in my life.  They aren't particularly common on menus, and I'm not sure why.  People love french toast, people like twice-baked croissants, why not bostock?  They are kinda the marriage of the two.  Arsicault offers these in two flavors at the McAllister location, apricot or blackberry.  My guest selected blackberry.

It was a good item - thick slice of brioche, lightly crisp on the exterior, slight soak of sweet syrup, then a layer of blackberry jam covering the entire top, and a big round of frangipane topping it off.  Lightly dusted in powdered sugar to seal in the sweetness a bit more. It had some flaws though - it wasn't quite as moist as others I've had, I missed having some slivered almonds on top for extra crunch, and the base brioche did seem a bit overdone (too dark). The other elements were all done fine, and the amount of jam was just right.  Good, but not exceptional.  My least favorite of the items I tried, but still high ***+.  Best warm and with ice cream I suspect.

My favorite bostock to date though is still from Neighbor Bakehouse, where I found the cinnamon almond bostock to be truly exceptional.

Blackberry Almond Hazelnut Croissant. $6.75.

And lastly, a croissant!  The item I was most anticipating.  He selected another blackberry item, the blackberry almond hazelnut croissant.

This had a *lot* going on.  First, the excellent croissant itself.  Flaky.  Buttery.  Messy in all the right ways.  Clearly, top notch croissant.  No question.  **** (or higher?) croissant.

I also loved the lightly crispy frangipane on top, somehow more chewy and flavorful and more successful than on the bostock.

Blackberry Almond Hazelnut Croissant: Cross-Section.

Then, the filling.  There was (the same?) blackberry jam as on top of the bostock, plenty of it, making it really quite a fruity treat, and fairly sweet. Then frangipane (like on top of the bostock, but this was mostly inside, so it was softer, gooeier, and not crisped up).  I think both the almond and hazelnut components were in the frangipane?  The decadent fillings, the amount of them, and sweetness level, definitely made this eat more like a dessert than a morning appropriate pastry, or even afternoon tea treat.

Overall, this was a journey to eat, with every bite slightly different, and equally joyous.  It was a massive pastry, definitely best for splitting, particularly if you are getting a trio of items!  My favorite.  ****.

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Mom's Munchies

My little niece recently became both gluten and dairy free (definitely not by choice!).  As she takes after me (and really, most of my family), she has quite the sweet tooth, and this instantly became the hardest part of adapting: finding decent gluten-free and vegan desserts, that she would eat, AND that the rest of us might be willing to eat her discards.  Although I generally don't think vegan and gluten-free dessert items are particularly good, I always enjoy trying new things, which brought me to this brand, Mom's Munchies. 

"Real Ingredients. Amazing Taste. It's That Simple."

Mom's Munchies is much like other brands of its nature, founded by a woman who was diagnosed celiac, couldn't find any tasty treats, and thus, created her own.  They make cookies, bars, bites, and some cakes, and can be found in Whole Foods and other speciality stores.

Chocolate Truffle Cake.

"A decadent, healthy treat made with nutritious ingredients. A layer of nutty crust with a creamy melt-in-our-mouth truffle center, topped with 99% dark chocolate ganache."

While these look, and sound, decadent, they are really quite healthy, made from cashew butter, unsweetened almond milk, and almond meal as the first 3 ingredients, with walnuts and organic coconut oil rounding them out, definitely not what you normally think of as ingredients in cake nor truffle.  They are sweetened with agave, and yes, have cocoa, but otherwise, are a considerably more healthy option.  That said, they aren't a low fat health food by any means, which you'd expect given the nuts and coconut oil.  A single very small cake is 340 calories / 28g fat, and each small cake is considered 2 servings (e.g. 1/2 piece is a serving - which is a bit ridiculous given how small they are).

Anyway.  How were they?  Bleh.  These tasted far, far too healthy to me.  

The base layer almost looked like a nutty brownie.  The main body looked like a creamy mousse. The top a decadent ganache.  It looked so good!  

But ... although there was some chocolate obviously, I mostly tasted fairly bitter cashew butter and almond, with coconut oil leaving a coating and aftertaste in the mouth.  I tried each layer individually, valiantly trying to find one layer that tasted decent, but every single one let me down considerably.  There was no getting past the strong bitter and nut dominance.  So, decent textures, great look, very poor taste, at least for me.  Even whipped cream and fresh fruit couldn't save this for me. *.

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Go Natural

Update Review, 2024

Baked Muesli Slice

Baked muesli slices are available in 5 flavors: yoghurt cranberry strawberry, yoghurt apricot, apricot, golden oat, and triple choc brownie.

Yoghurt Cranberry Strawberry.

"This wholesome baked muesli slice made with real fruit pieces and Australian oats coated in yoghurt will stop those belly rumbles in their tracks. Enjoy a delicious, satisfying, on-the-go snack and let your taste buds thank you later!"

What an interesting product.  It is a soft baked, quite thick, bar, with a few bits of texture from oats and fruit.  Along with the cranberry and strawberry, there is also a mix of fruit puree (apple, pear, plum) and fruit juice (elderberry) that formed the fruit bits throughout.  The result is something that almost eats like a muffin or breakfast bread (although more crumbly), just given how thick and soft it is, not more like a granola bar, as I was expecting.  I really liked the texture.  

The bits of fruit added great pops of slightly tart and slightly sweet.  It was all covered generously in a thick "yoghurt" coating that was sweetened.  It didn't taste too fake, although it clearly wasn't wholesome yoghurt.  I liked it too.

Overall, this was a product that ate really well, and definitely tasted berry flavored.  ****.  

But, it didn't actually remind me of muesli as the product line implied, and although it sorta targets a healthy market, at nearly 450 calories, and only 4.4 grams of protein ... it is not really what I think of as a "snack".  I found 1/2 or 1/3 made for an appropriate mid-morning snack for me.

Original Review, 2017

I just found this review in my unpublished drafts.  I was confused though, I could have sworn I had published this.  And then I realized that there are two companies, both of whom make similar snack bars, with nearly identical names: Be Natural (which I did review before, and enjoyed) and Go Natural.  Be Natural is from Australia, and ... so is Go Natural.

As you might have guessed, they try to make more natural, healthy snacks.  Their tag line is "Goodness Tastes Better".  They are gluten-free.

They make a number of product lines, including packaged nuts and seeds, savory spicy snack bars, fruit and cacao bars, and nut based bars, including an entire section of macadamia based bars.  I tried several bars while in Sydney.

Nut Delight

"The goodness of nuts in the original healthy snack bars."

Nut Delights come in a lot of varieties, all based around nuts and seeds, with different fruit mix-ins and coatings.   I know I tried other varieties, but I seem to only have notes on the simple classic Fruit & Nut Delight bars.

Fruit & Nut Delight.

"Our Fruit & Nut Delight combines almonds, walnuts, peanuts, sultanas, apricots, and apple sweetened naturally with Australian honey."

This was a classic granola bar.  Chewy style, kinda sticky, loaded with lots of different nuts and fruits.  I give them credit for having so many types of nuts and fruit in it.

The honey was a different touch than most granola bars, a lovely sweetness.  I liked it more than most granola bars, but it was still just a granola bar, and, it had a bitterness to it on the aftertaste that I didn't enjoy. **+.

Macadamia Selection

"Naturally indulgent Australian-grown macadamia bars."

Macadamia based bars are their own line, again with different mix-ins, and different coatings.

Macadamia Dream.

"Our Macadamia Dream is the perfect natural indulgence. Luxurious Australian-grown macadamias are lightly roasted to enhance their richness, then sweetened with fragrant Australian honey and smothered in a creamy yoghurt coating. Dreamy!

This was very, very sweet.

And almost good.  Almost.

I like macadamias.  I like honey.  But this had way too much honey flavor.  It totally masked the macadamias, and, macadamia and honey is a bit of a strange combination in the first place.

  

Then there was the coasting.  What was it? Sweet yogurt? White chocolate?  I’m not sure.

I really didn’t care for this after more than one bite. *+.

Read More...

Jane the Bakery

In 2011, a new cafe opened in Pacific Heights, right on Fillmore St.   I couldn't wait to visit, even though not a convenient location for me.   Knowing me, you likely suspect they had some epic dessert on the menu, or amazing baked goods, but actually, my reason for seeking it out had nothing to do with food.  I know, shocker!  It was actually for the coffee I made my first venture, and more specifically, for a barista that I knew from his previous post, who was now working at Jane.  His obsession with quality and brewing techniques produced some of the best cups of coffee I've ever had, and with Jane offering up a variety of brewing methods, I knew I was in for a treat.

Fast forward a bit.  I went to Jane several times during that first year, always for the coffee, but I remember enjoying some treats as well.  The cafe seemed to flourish, with looong lines, and raving reviews about everything from the coffee to the savory lunch items to the baked goods.  Success was fast, and a second location opened two years later.  And 3 years after that?  A full bakery opened as well.  

"At Jane we bake everything in house - pastries, breads, cookies - if it's baked we bake it. Everything is baked fresh each day."

Let's just say Jane takes the bakery program seriously, with a separate head baker for each specialty (bread, pastry, viennoiserie).  And their products are good.  Very, very good.

At this point, you may suspect that the owner, founder, a baker, someone was named Jane.  The best I can tell, um, no Jane was involved.  I don't understand the name, but I know it stands for quality.

Pastry Boxes.

I got to know Jane very well a few years after those initial visits, when a group in my office added Jane to their regular catering rotation.  Every third week or so, we'd get HUGE boxes of items from Jane.  Boxes and boxes of them, filled to the brim.  Let's just say, over the years, I have had the chance to try nearly every item on Jane's bakery menu.  

Spoiler: some of these are definitely worth going out of your way for.  And if you ever spot a Jane box in your office ... RUN towards it, as fast as you can.

Large Assorted Pastries. $85.

"4 each: cinnamon roll, fruit muffin, bran muffin, citrus brioche, banana bread, chocolate chip coffee cake."

We always had a huge lineup, including assorted muffins (with a separate box of vegan,  gluten-free  offerings), banana bread, coffee cake, brioche, and of course, cinnamon rolls.

Jane also makes scones, croissants, danishes, morning buns, oat cakes, tea cakes, and biscuits, which we often had as well. 

I ... tried everything in this box, and subsequent ones.  And, for the most part, I really liked it all.  The kouign amann are among the best I've ever had, the healthy birdseed muffins and breakfast cookies became my surprise favorites, and the muesli I'm more than willing to go out of my way for.  The muffins, scones, croissants, twists, cakes, etc are always interesting, and a unique aspect is that while the items don't always look, nor sound, particularly remarkable, they all have really nicely done bases, and texture contrasts between the interior and exterior that I really appreciate.  They are items that "eat well" if you know what I mean.  

Even though I got Jane goodies regularly for years, I never grew sick of them, as seasonal offerings kept constant new additions to the lineup.

Muffins

Jane makes a wide variety of muffins, including seasonal fruit muffins (strawberry, blueberry, blackberry, raspberry, cranberry, or mixed berry), hearty muffins, and even vegan, gluten-free options.

I've tried many (yes, even the vegan/gf ones), and was pleased with nearly all of them.

Raspberry Muffin. $4.

Jane always has a fruit muffin on the menu, but it changes with the seasons.  You never know what kind of muffin it is, as they always look the same on the outside, dusted with plenty of powdered sugar.  The first one I tried was raspberry, 

The raspberry muffin was not much of a looker, besides that it was quite large.  No visible fruit on top, and even once I cut into it, I didn't really see fruit.  To be honest, it wasn't a particularly "fruit forward" muffin.

But it was a good muffin.  The top was really crispy in an awesome way, I appreciated the powdered sugar on top, and the base muffin flavor was quite good, even if it had minimal raspberry.

After taking just a slice to try it, I quickly claimed the rest of the muffin.

****.

Cranberry Muffin. $4. (June)

Another morning I eagerly grabbed a whole muffin, after learning that they were good last time.  The muffin looked to be bursting with fruit, I suspected blueberry or other seasonal summer berry (as it was June), but ... it turned out to be cranberry.  Doh.  Not my fav.

The muffin was still good form - crispy top, very moist inside, sweet flavor to the insides, and loaded with juicy berries, but, cranberries are not really what I like.

***+.

Blueberry Muffin. $4. (July)

I never know which variety the muffin will be, until I dig in, as they are never labelled, and never have visible fruit.

As always, the top was crispy, I liked the powdered sugar, and the base flavor was lovely, a slight tang, and very moist and fluffy.  It was certainly a sweet muffin though, almost more trending towards cake, particularly with the additional powdered sugar on top, so it sweet muffins aren't quite your thing, this might not be for you.

Blueberry Muffin: Side Profile.

And what was in it?  

Blueberries.  Juicy little pops, but, like many of the Jane muffins, not really loaded down in berries.  I would like more fruit, but, the fruit that was there is good.

***+.

Blueberry Muffin (August 2019).

I had a blueberry muffin again few weeks later, and loved it just as much, if not more, as before. 

Fabulous crispy top, light moist base with complex flavor, and of course, berries.  I could imagine pairing with fresh berries, and ice cream or whipped cream to easily transform into a dessert item. ****.

Update (September 2019): I had another, and again just loved it.  The flavor to the base, and the crispy top, really set this apart. ****.

Update (November 2019):  Again.  <3.  This is such a great, sweet, fluffy, moist, muffin. ****.

Update (Jan 2020): I think the allure of these is fading.  Still moist, still fluffy, but the flavor isn't very compelling nor complex.  ***.

Update (Feb 2020); Yeah, I'm over these.  They are good, but, not quite what I want for breakfast, if I want sweet, I prefer the iced cinnamon roll, and if I want hearty, I adore the birdseed muffin.  They are good for dessert later in the day, with ice cream or whipped cream, but, I find they don't hold up as well as I expect. ***.

Birdseed Bran Muffin $4.

Eventually, I moved on from the sugar coated fruit muffins, and I tried the "birdseed bran" a smaller, less lofty, far healthier looking muffin.  I'll admit that I was skeptical on this one.

But I really liked it too!  A dense, hearty muffin, nice bran flavor and texture, and a sweetness that clearly came from something other than just sugar ... molasses?  The oats and seeds on top added tons of crunch and interest.

Birdseed Bran Muffin: Inside.

Inside was dried fruit - raisins, both golden and regular, and I believe dried apricot.  The dried fruit was all quite plump, and I liked the texture and sweetness it added.  Yup, I even appreciated the raisins!

I don't always go for the less sweet, heartier muffins, but I enjoyed this quite a bit.  I think it would be great warmed with some jam or butter too, but it was good enough just at room temp.  One of the best healthier muffins I've ever had.

****.

Birdseed Bran Muffin #2.

I'm really glad I discovered these muffins.  Everyone else seems to reject them, always the last to remain, always plenty left even at the end of the day.  I'm happy to take the rejected muffins, as I know just how they good they are.

And, I do enjoy the hearty muffin from time to time.  Warmed up with a touch of butter, they go nicely with a cup of coffee in the morning, on the rare days I'm not craving sweets.  A dollop of jam can accent the dried fruit inside, but isn't needed.  I've also had one sliced and served cold alongside a salad, and it really helped augment the meal.

I'm always happy to take these! ****.

Vegan, Gluten-Free Banana Blueberry Muffin.

After many months of adoring Jane muffins, I finally tried a vegan, gluten-free muffin.

I waited until these were clearly just the rejects, as I am not vegan, gluten-free, nor do I like banana baked goods, so this was not a particularly compelling muffin for me.  These had a very different look from the regular muffins, with pearl sugar replacing the powdered sugar, and big juicy blueberries visible on top

It ... was probably ok, if you like banana.  Which does not describe me.  For me, the banana was far too pronounced, although I'm sure it added moisture.  At least this was not a dry, cardboard-like gluten-free muffin.  The texture wasn't bad, although it did not compare to the regular fruit muffin.

The blueberries were as good as they looked, juicy, lovely pops of flavor, but, the banana just dominated this one too much for me.

**+.

Vegan, Gluten-Free Banana Raspberry Muffin.

I'm not sure why I tried another variety, the next month, featuring raspberry.  I think I like Jane's regular fruit muffins so much I still wanted to give them hope.

But ... again, it tasted like banana.  I don't like banana.  And it was pretty dry.  Did not like anything about it.

**.

Vegan GF Pumpkin Muffin.

When I grabbed this, I thought it was my favorite birdseed muffin, given the pumpkin seeds on top.  I wondered why it was in the special gluten-free box ...

But it turned out to be a vegan, gluten-free, pumpkin muffin.  Not what I was going for, but I still tried a chunk before handing off to a gluten-free friend.

I loved the pumpkin seeds on top, and the muffin was actually pretty good.  It was clearly not a normal muffin ... it was dense, almost like a bran muffin, except that, well, it wasn't bran.  Slight pumpkin flavor.  Crispy top that I liked, not moist exactly, but, not dry.

Overall, a nicely done muffin, and if I didn't have other things (e.g. a kouign amann!) right there, I certainly would finish it.

***.

Poppyseed Muffin (2024).

I got this muffin at an event, where I saw the box of pastries was from Jane the Bakery, and immediately dove for a muffin, not knowing what kind it was exactly.  It looked from a distance like the birdseed muffin that I enjoy so much, but it didn't turn out to be.  Nor was it their regular seasonal fruit muffin.  Instead, it was poppyseed.  Very poppyseed, tons of seeds throughout that added great crunch.  I think I may have detected some almond extract, but I'm not sure if that was just my mind playing tricks on me, as I associate both with poppyseed muffins.  It was a nicely moist muffin, with a lightly crispy almost-struesel top.  Sweet but not too sweet.  

A good muffin, but you need to be really in the mood for poppyseed, which I wasn't really at the time.  ***.

Breakfast Buns / Cakes

Next up, other morning appropriate items, like cinnamon rolls, morning buns, and coffee cakes.  The kind of items that you feel a bit guilty grabbing at 8am as the first thing you eat in a day, but make for a perfect treat around 10am with an additional cup of coffee ... 

These items tend to go fast, clearly they call out to my coworkers as the perfect grabbable treats as they dash between meetings.

Cinnamon Roll.

I started with the item that, looks aside, was most likely to be up my alley: a cinnamon roll.

The cinnamon roll didn't actually look very special.  The glaze looked a bit hard, as did the entire thing, really.

But it was quite good, I ended up liking the crisp exterior, and inside was perfectly moist.  The cinnamon-sugar filling was noticeable but not too spiced, and the sweet glaze complimented everything well.

Overall, a very good cinnamon roll, and I wished I had time to warm it up, as I'm sure it would be even better that way.

***+.

Cinnamon Roll #2.

So, when another box of pastries with cinnamon rolls showed up, I decided to do just that.

It was, as I suspected, even better warmed up, and even better when topped with a scoop of coconut gelato, candied pecans, and drizzled with salted caramel.  Yes, I made myself a fabulous dessert from this!

***+.

Cinnamon Roll #3.

I had another the *next* time they arrived, and did warm it up, but found it not as exciting.  I still liked the glaze, but the base itself was more boring than I remembered.

I've had these again several times since, and the glaze really is my favorite part.  It is, the, uh, "icing on the cake"?

And some days, a big chunk of this, with plenty of icing, is just a lovely treat.  ***.

Citrus Morning Bun.

The morning bun was ... boring in comparison.  The dough didn't have any particular loftiness, there wasn't much flavor to it, and it just seemed kinda dry.

Well coated in cinnamon and sugar though.

I would not get this again.

Update: I tried another batch, when there was an abundance and someone cut a few up, and ... yeah.  Very much not my thing, just kinda dry and boring.

**.

Chocolate Chip Coffee Cake.

Then it was time to try the coffee cake, never my first choice, but I did have a cup of coffee in my hand ... what choice did I have, but try the breakfast cake?

Jane makes several coffee cakes: plain, fruit, cinnamon streusel, or, as we had, chocolate chip.  The slices are ... generous to say the least.

Much like the cinnamon roll, I wasn't that impressed by the outward appearance of it.  Sure, it had lots of chocolate chips and tons of powdered sugar on top, but it looked like ... well, I guess just kinda boring coffee cake?

But like nearly every item, it was the textures and contrasts that drew me in once I tried a small slice.  I went back to claim a full slice soon after.

The top was crisp, the inside moist.  The streusel and chocolate combination on top was a good one.  The base flavor was good, not quite plain.

Overall, a really quite good slice of coffee cake.  I'm curious to try the fruit versions as well. ****.

Update: I tried this again another time, and wasn't quite as into it.  I did like the chocolate chips on top, but the base was more boring than I remembered. ***.

Blueberry Coffee Cake.

This was a unique coffee cake.  Really, I'd just call it a crumble cake.  Moist, lemon blueberry cake base, much like a muffin, sweeter style than normal for breakfast, but not quite decadent dessert cake.  No spicing to it like a coffee cake, but the lemon was strong, and the blueberries abundant and juicy.   It was also an entirely different form compared to the sliced chocolate chip version.

As I don't care for lemon, the lemon ruined this for me, but I did like the crumble top, and the berries. ***.

Croissant Base: Croissants, Danishes, Tarts, Kouign Amann

Jane's lineup of croissant products is quite extensive, and are well regarded among those who rate "the best" croissants in the city.  All use traditional laminated croissant dough, but they come filled with many things.  Jane makes the standard offerings of chocolate, twice-baked almond, and ham & cheese croissants, but they also have a Louisiana hotlink croissant if ham & cheese is a bit boring, a buckwheat chocolate croissant to jazz up the standard chocolate croissant, a buckwheat almond croissant to up the ante on the regular almond croissant, etc, and then a slew of fascinating savory options, like a "brunch croissant" with a fried egg on top, and a smoked salmon and everything spice version.  Seriously, the croissant line up is pretty impressive.

In addition to croissants, Jane offers danishes, tarts, twists, and kouign amann, all of which use the same croissant pastry base.  I've tried many of these.

This is where Jane's goodies really shine, in both quality and uniqueness, particularly of some of the unexpected savory items.

Traditional Croissant. $3.50.

The traditional croissant is a fairly standard execution, flaky messy exterior, moist, well laminated layered interior.  Not particularly outstanding, but certainly not bad.

***.

Almond Twice Baked Croissant. $5.

Next up, the almond twice baked croissant.

I have this problem with twice baked almond croissants.  I always think I like them, and then ... rarely do.  I need to get it out of my head that I like these.

I think it was a fine pastry, exactly as intended.  Topped with frangipane and sliced almonds, powdered sugar, crispy on top and crispy on the edges, as it was twice baked.  Kinda spongy inside, but generously filled with frangipane.

I've realized I just don't like the twice baked style though, so this isn't Jane's fault, it is mine.

**+.

Ham & Cheese Croissant.

I moved on to the fairly standard ham & cheese croissant, the perfect pairing alongside a light salad for a lunch.

The croissant was decent, like the others, flaky enough (e.g. messy), and was quite sizable.  The herbs on top added a further savory element.

Ham & Cheese Croissant: Inside.

The inside was the interesting part, well filled.  Seemingly decent quality ham, and I could taste both it and the cheese easily.

A decent ham & cheese croissant, but not particularly remarkable.

***.

Spinach & Feta Scroll. $5.

I moved on to more creative offerings, like the Spinach & Feta.

This one certainly looked exciting, although I knew that savory pastries and danishes aren't usually my favorite, I didn't know what this one was when I tried it.  I was drawn in by the scroll design.

It turned out to be filled with spinach and feta, which, was a pretty big strike for me, as I don't really care for feta.  Ooops.

I liked the sprinkle of sesame seeds on top, it was nicely made, but, not for me.  My partner loves these.

** for me, ***+ from him.

Savory Vegetable Flat. $4.

The savory vegetable flat was very lovely, but I didn't try it, knowing it was unlikely to be for me.  Kudos to Jane on the presentation though.

Seasonal Special: Cranberry Mascarpone (?). January 2020.

I moved on to sweet options.

I took this one with NO CLUE what it was, but, it was a new shape, and certainly looked like a sweet danish, so I was eager to try.

The pastry was similar to the croissants and savory danishes I had tried - good quality, layered, nicely laminated, crispy.  Not the best I've ever had, but solid.

I liked the icing drizzle too, sweet and satisfying.

Seasonal Cranberry Mascarpone (?): Inside.

But of course, I cared about the fillings.  I could see a berry filling, that turned out to be a generous amount of cranberry compote.  It was tart, but sweet, and a lovely seasonal offering.

The sweet fruit was balanced nicely by the layer under it - it seemed to be mascarpone perhaps?  It might have just been a cream cheese custard, but the flavor seemed more unique.

I really liked both fillings, and they complimented each other nicely.

Overall, a nice pastry.  Not something I'd go seeking out in particular, but quite satisfying.

***+.

Seasonal Twist: Vietnamese Coffee. $5.

This one was a looker as well!  I had no idea what kind it was, just labelled "seasonal twist", but it turned out to be Vietnamese Coffee, twirls of croissant dough wrapped with a cold brew filling, complete with bits of coffee beans for crunch, and topped with pearl sugar.

Not being one for coffee flavored items (I really like coffee, just not coffee flavored things, not really sure why), I handed this off to a friend once I identified the flavor (not chocolate or black sesame as I hoped!), but it was a fairly stunning item.

***.

Seasonal Twist: Olive Tapenade (November 2019). $5.

Uh ... this one took me by surprise.  I thought it was a sweet item.  It was not.  It was savory.

Imagine my surprise when I bit in to something that I thought was chocolate, cherry, and pistachio, to find ... olives and olive tapenade.  Doh.

The pastry was flaky and decent, but it is hard for me to really give this a ringing endorsement, as I really don't care for the strong taste of olives, particularly when it was so unexpected.  But if you like olives ...

**+.

Seasonal Twist: Passionfruit Chocolate Popcorn? (December 2019). $5.

Another month, another ridiculous seasonal twist, and another one I had no idea what it was when I grabbed it.  All I knew is that I saw caramel corn on top (YES!!!) and what were clearly little chocolate pearls, so at least I knew it was certainly a sweet option.  It also turned out to be a total surprise ... uh, it was passionfruit!

I did love the sticky, sweet caramel corn, and of course, I snatched up all the extra caramel corn in the box that fell off the others.  I appreciated the chocolate, and the slight crunch from the crispearls.

Underlying all that though was kinda mediocre croissant pastry, and ... yeah, passionfruit goo.  Chocolate and passionfruit were a really odd combo for me, and the caramel corn made no sense with it either.

I warmed it up and enjoyed the pastry more than way, but I certainly wouldn't get this again.

*** for uniqueness?

Meyer Lemon Poppy Turnover. (February 2020).

"Layers of pastry filled with Meyer Lemon Marmalade and topped with Poppy Seeds."

Yes, yes, I don't like lemon pastries, but this was a new item, and I like to try #allTheThings.  Plus, someone cut one open, so I didn't need to feel wasteful, just taking a small chunk.

The turnover exterior was good, flaky, buttery, above average, better than the croissants.  I did actually really like the crunch from the poppy seed crust.

Meyer Lemon Poppy Turnover: Inside.

And inside, yup, the part I didn't care for, the meyer lemon marmalade, which I liked more than a lemon curd for sure, but was still more citrusy than I prefer.

A unique, well done item, for citrus lovers.

***.

Kouign Amann. $4.

And then ... behold, the mighty kouign amann.  These are also formed from the same base croissant dough, and then ... just transformed into the king of all pastries.  Imho.

I was excited, but still cautious, as I dove in for one of these.  I adore a good kouign amann, but sometimes ... they just slightly disappoint.

This was a good kouign amann.  A very good kouign amann.

The exterior was perfectly flaky and messy, in all the right ways.  Well laminated moist layers within.  Crispy pearl sugar on top.

Kouign Amann: Bottom.

But the beauty of course lay in the caramelization of the base.  Here you can see the bottom, just ... as caramelized as it gets!

This was truly a fabulous kouign amann, and I place only b. Patisserie above it in my rankings.

****+.

Kouign Amann (August 2019).

I got a chance to have another a few months later, and even though I went into it with high expectations, it was just as good as the first.

So crispy and caramelized, it looked quite dark, a few moments longer and it would have been burnt, but it wasn't, it was just caramelized goodness.

Jane has nailed these.

****+.

Kouign Amann: Bottom (August 2019).

I mean, really.  Look at the bottom of this thing.  Perfection.

Kouign Amann (September 2019).

Another month, another perfect kouign amann.

I mean really.  The caramelization.  The flaky layers.  A++.

****+.

Seasonal Kouign Amann: Kumquat Pecan (February 2020).

Um.  Jane's Kouign Amann are already life changing.  And I adore pecans.  So when I saw the pecan on top of this I was already drawn in, but realizing it was stuffed with kumquat nearly made me exclaim with glee.  I had no idea how this would possibly work, but, I was in.

The pastry, as expected, was just insane.  Buttery, sugary, caramelized, flaky, decadent, top notch.  Seriously.  So so very unhealthy, and so very very well done.  And yes, I loved the sugared pecan on top.  Because, you know, a pastry with a fully caramelized bottom, that is coated in sugar on top, clearly *needs* more sugar elements.

 Kumquat Pecan Kouign Amann : Half Section.

And then inside, a fascinating pecan kumquat marmalade like substance.  A bit hard to describe, but, basically tons of cooked down kumquat and chunks of pecan, in a jam-like base.  I kinda loved it, but I kinda didn't like it at the same time.  I liked the kumquat, and I loved the pecan, but it didn't feel quite right inside my kouign amann.  It almost detracted from the glory that was the flaky caramelized layers, and didn't seem to compliment it that well.

I ended up eating the kouign amann around it, and then eating the filling with some ice cream later, and enjoyed it that way, but, I wouldn't want this filling again given a choice.

***+.

Brioche

The brioches are equally impressive as the croissant based items, offered in a huge range, savory and sweet, and often seasonal.

Don't get me started on how much I want to try the salted caramel twist or matcha knot ... but alas, our boxes have never contained these.  Still, I've tried many, many of the brioches, although they tend to look better than they taste.

Citrus Brioche. $4.50.

The first brioche I tried was the citrus brioche, which I didn't know what it was until I read the label on the box.

Well, it looked great, but, I don't tend to like citrus baked goods.

This was actually good, but, the citrus aspect of it, as I expected, wasn't quite for me.  But the item itself was unique, again, crispy exterior, although a bit gooey too from moist sugar, with folds of more moist sweetness (citrus flavored), and a slightly caramelized exterior.  As with all the other items, I found the base flavor good, and I liked the crispy, sticky, sweet combo.   I just wish it didn't taste like citrus.

**+.

Update: I did try a chunk anther time when they showed up, and, knowing it was citrus, I was able to appreciate it much more.  I still would prefer that it not have the citrus, but the crispy caramelized exterior was fabulous, and I almost appreciated the soft citrus insides.

***.

Seasonal Brioche (November 2019).

This was a seasonal item in November, and I'm not quite sure what name Jane has given it, but it was the same signature brioche roll, same shape and style as the citrus, with a plain base.  A bit dry for me, and not particularly special.

Between the rolls was what seemed to be a pumpkin seed spread, and it was garnished with more pumpkin seeds and icing.

I enjoyed the very top, with all the sweet icing and pumpkin seeds, but the rest, like most of the brioche rolls, was just a bit too ... boring.

**+.

Raspberry Brioche.

The next brioche I tried was an entirely different looking item.  It was labelled, so I knew it was a brioche, otherwise I would have never realized it from looks alone.

This was the seasonal raspberry brioche, a brioche round, filled with pastry cream, raspberry jam, fresh glazed raspberries, raspberry powder, and lemon zest, with a ring of streusel around the edges, and a dusting of superfine powdered sugar over it all.

Um, yeah, that is a lot to take in, and I loved the attention to detail this item had.  You got the light fluffy brioche dough, the creamy pastry cream in the center, the raspberry 3 ways (fresh glazed, jam, powder), the balance of the tiny hit of lemon zest, the crunchy streusel ... it had nearly everything.

That said, I found this item only ok.  The brioche was fine, the streusel was crisp and sweet and enjoyable, the fruit was fresh and sweet but ... I somehow wanted it to add up to more than it was.  I found myself actually just wanting more of everything - more cream! More streusel! More fruit!  I think the having it all approach actually took away slightly for me.

Still good, but not my favorite.

***.

Raspberry Brioche (September 2019).

I tried it again a month later, again drawn in by the beauty.

I again liked the crunch from the streusel.  But everything else just fell short.  A boring item, which makes no sense, given the complexity.

***.

Raspberry Brioche (January 2020).

I tried one more time, again drawn in by the looks, but, besides the juicy berries in the center (which I really do love!), this item just isn't for me.

**+.

Nutella Filled Brioche.

Next up, another brioche, and another one that looked entirely different.

At first glance, it kinda looked like a muffin or coffee cake, but luckily it was labelled so I knew it was not only a brioche base, but also that it had Nutella hiding inside.  On top was a full cap of the same streusel and powdered sugar that the fruit brioche had around the edges.

This was my favorite brioche - the larger brioche form factor allowed the light fluffy brioche to shine, and I liked ripping off pieces of it.  So much lighter than a muffin, which is what you want sometime, but more exciting than just a slice of brioche.   It reminded me a little of panettone.  At least to me.

I adored the streusel, crispy, sweet, fabulous, and since the entire thing was coated with it, I was able to enjoy it more.  I liked the contrast of the brioche itself and the crispy top.

And inside, a generous portion of soft Nutella.  Classic Nutella, which is never the most exciting thing to me, but is nice alongside coffee in the morning.

****.

Update: I had another a few weeks later, and was less into it.  The brioche was just ... light fluffy bread, and I was in "eh, I don't like Nutella" mode, so that wasn't interesting to me either. ***.

Perfect Brioche Bite.

Of course, I'm not one to settle for a pastry without whipped cream, so I set about acquiring some whipped cream to really create my "perfect bite" - brioche, Nutella, whip.

This was better, 'natch. ***+.

Seasonal Brioche (December 2019).

Another month, the seasonal brioche was kinda crazy looking, so ... against my better judgement, just given how blah I find these in general, I still tried it.

The dough was again light, fluffy and bo-ring.  The few bits of blackberry didn't really help much to liven it up.

Note to self: it doesn't matter what they look like, you aren't into brioches :)

**+.

Scones

Jane makes a savory and a sweet scone at all times, rotating with the seasons.  Sometimes they are square, sometimes triangle, but always a harder style, not soft biscuits.

The scones I've tried are all fine, above average, but aren't really signature, go-to items.

Sweet Scone: Currant. $3.50.

The seasonal sweet scone the first time I had a chance to try one was ... currant.  Boo.  I dislike raisins and currants for the most part.  Alas, it was winter, not berry season, so, currants it was.

The scone was decent, a crumbly texture, a bit of tang to the base, but not much.  I actually prefer a buttermilk base scone, just so the base is more interesting.  The currants were well distributed, and there weren't too many, so they didn't take over, but did at least provide something quasi-interesting inside, and they weren't too hard, but still ... not my thing.

I loved the generous pearl sugar on top, and these were perfectly cooked, not a burnt edge in sight (soooo often the edges of scones, even from reputable bakeries, are burnt!).

Overall, certainly above average, just not a variety I was excited about.  I spread it generously with clotted cream and jam, and appreciated it much more that way.

***.

I never got to try the citrus scone that came next.

Savory Scone: Cheddar Togarashi. $3.50.

The savory one looked even more exciting.

I took it, not knowing what kind it was, but assuming it was savory, and spying what looked like one of my favorite things: furikake on top!

It turned out to be togarashi, spicy with a kick!  A bit of legit heat to it, in addition to the sesame seeds and seaweed.  Flavorful topping, no question.

The scone itself was savory, cheddar, cheesy but not overwhelming, and studded with spicy togarashi as well.  More kick.  It was a crumbly harder style much like the sweet scone.

Overall this was good, fine for something different, but I prefer Jane's savory biscuit to the savory scone (keep reading!).

***.

Savory Olive (?) Scone (Feb 2020).

Next up, another savory version.  These seemed to be ... olive?  Fine, but not really great.  Not flavors I go for.  I'd love to catch the mushroom gruyere when it is offered again.

**+.

Tea Cakes / Breads

Jane makes all the standard tea cakes (banana, lemon, pumpkin, carrot), plus a gluten-free banana version.  Not generally my thing, so it took me a long time to try them, but I'm glad I finally did.

Banana Bread. $4.

The regular banana bread was ... well, banana bread.

Super thick slices, moist.  But, banana bread is just not something I love anymore (which is sad, I used to love it, I grew up eating it warm with butter or cream cheese melting in, and always really liked it.  And some of my favorite San Francisco brunch memories are of the warn banana bread and cream cheese topping at Universal Cafe ... ).

But these days, just not for me, but I admit this was a quality banana bread.

***.

Gluten Free Banana Bread. $4.

I did try a tiny bite of the gluten-free one as well, and it was actually a bit better than the regular, even more moist.  So if banana bread is your thing and you are gluten-free, this could be for you!

One of my gluten-free colleagues adores this.

***+.

Carrot Bread. $4.

The carrot bread was a nice surprise.

Again, huge, thick slices, quite moist.

It was loaded with shredded carrot for extra moisture, and plenty of nuts to ensure crunch in every bite.  It was sweet, and honestly, was just like carrot cake .... without cream cheese frosting.

It was flavorful enough to eat just as it was, but it also transformed perfectly into carrot cake, when I created a topping of cream cheese mixed with whipped cream - cream cheese frosting in a pinch!

****+.

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Blueberry Pound Cake

After actually liking the other cakes, and after I had a really good blueberry pound cake from elsewhere a few days prior, and so I was drawn in immediately when I saw the blueberry pound cake, even though in general, pound cakes are not my thing.

It was rich, the berries were fine, but, yeah, it was still pound cake ...  still not for me.

***.

Other

Jane makes a slew of other fabulous items, that I'm just calling, um, "other".

Cheddar & Chive Biscuit.

This was a very solid (as in good, not too hard!) biscuit.

Good crumb to it, slight tang to the base, and really quite savory, loaded with plenty of herbs, and plenty of cheese.  

Flavorful enough to just nibble on on its own, but I think it would make an awesome base for a breakfast sandwich with sausage and egg inside, and would be great with gravy ...

***+.

Gluten Free Honey Hemp Bar. $4.

This sorta looked like a healthy granola bar, so I tried to cut off a chunk to try it.  I couldn't.  Literally, I could not cut it.  It was rock solid.  Seriously, rock solid.  Not even a real knife could get through this thing.

So I took a full one, and tried to bite it.  Um, rock solid!  I was worried for my teeth.

It also didn't really seem very sweet (where was that promised honey?) and didn't please me in any way.

This was a real fail for me.

*.

Cookie. (November 2019).

One day, there were cookies in our breakfast assortment.  Cookies.  For breakfast.

I was not opposed.

And honestly, this *was* fitting for a breakfast cookie.  It seemed to be the cookie version of the birdseed muffin, studded with pumpkin seeds and bits of dried fruit, apricot in particular.  It was not a very sweet cookie, nor a very soft cookie, and would never satisfy me for a "real" dessert or treat, but, for a breakfast item, it actually totally worked.  Kinda like a harder, thinner, scone?

I found myself craving these for breakfast, perfect alongside a coffee, and have gotten them many times since that initial discovery, and I enjoy them every time.

****, and a really unique item I didn't even know I needed in my life!

Tomato and Cheddar Quiche.  $6/slice.

Yes, quiche.

I'm definitely not a quiche girl, at all, so I didn't try the quiche itself (it looked lovely, cheese layer was legit!), but I tried the crust.  Because, after all, I do love good pastry!

It was very good crust ... for a quiche.  Quality pie crust, just not sweet like a dessert pie.  If only I liked quiche, Jane makes a variety of flavors, and I think I would likely enjoy it.

**** for the crust only ...

Super Berry Muesli.

"Steel cut oats, cashews, almond meal, flax seed meal, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, millet, chia seeds, salt, cinnamon, maple syrup, coconut oil, vanilla, barberries, goji berries, mulberries."

Jane makes muesli, normally part of their catering setup with yogurt and fresh fruit, or available as a component in their chia pudding parfait in the cafe.  I was thrilled we got it one morning.

This, simply put, was fabulous muesli.  It had a lot going on, no question, and all very healthy items, but I adore it.   Yup, chia seeds, flax seed, almond meal, goji berries ... I mean, really, who *am* I?  

This stuff is fantastic though.  I love the play of textures (so crispy! bits of chewy fruit!), I love the healthy taste even.  It goes fabulously with yogurt and honey and fresh fruit in a parfait, but I find I like it equally well with milk as a breakfast cereal, or even added on top of an ice cream sundae for crunch.  It works well, every way I have tried it.

****+, some of the best muesli I've ever had.  Jane also makes a granola, and I'd love to try that sometime too.

Protip: I discovered that it freezes beautifully, so I can always have a jar on hand in the freezer ...

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