Probars

As promised, I'm continuing my Friday series of reviewing assorted types of bars.  This week, I present Probar.  They are not intended to be quick little snack bars, but rather are aimed at athletes, or those needing a full meal replacement option.

Probar offers several product lines: Meal, Core, Fuel, Halo, Bolt.  The Meal line is their classic line of bars, a total meal replacement option.  High in calories, high in fat, balanced with carbs and protein, loaded up with fruits, nuts and seeds.  The Core line is protein bars, with at least 20 grams of protein, filled with strange soy products, flax, and chia seeds.  Fuel is a gluten-free line of fruit bars, enhanced with nuts and chia seeds.  Halo are my favorites, as they are basically just slightly better for you candy bars.  And Bolt are their newest products, fruit based energy chews.

The bars I tried were certainly not light options, but were fairly tasty.  I'm not really sure when I'd use them in my life, but if I was a serious outdoor athlete, I could certainly see their place.

Sweet & Savory: Maple Pecan.

The Sweet & Savory collection caught my eye (it has since been discontinued).  I love my sweets, but I appreciate ones that mix in some savory, or particularly, salt!  My old favorite granola bars are the Nature Valley Sweet N' Salty peanut butter bars.  I just love the mix of sweet and salt!

The first one I tried was maple pecan.  I adore pecan pie, and I grew up eating lots of maple syrup, so this sounded fantastic.  They describe it as "like sitting down to delectable real maple syrup pancakes."  OMG.

The ingredient list for this was rather extensive.  It seemed to contain ... everything!  The base was oats, rye flakes, rice crisps, and brown rice, along with flax seeds, sunflower seeds, sesame seeds, hemp seeds, cashews, and peanut butter, all sweetened with brown rice syrup, dates, and maple syrup.  Apparently there were apples and raisins somewhere in there too.  Then there were chocolate chips and pecans.

So, there was obviously lots of stuff in it, but it came together pretty well.  It was sweet, but fairly balanced.   I did feel like it had a strange bitterness in the aftertaste, from the flax perhaps?  I liked the crunch from the nuts.  The peanut butter flavor was subtle, and the whole thing could have used some salt.  I was impressed with the quality dark chocolate chips.  I didn't taste tons of maple pecan flavor, and wouldn't really say it was like eating pancakes, but for a quick breakfast replacement, it was pretty good.  I probably wouldn't get another though.

Sweet & Savory: Cherry Pretzel.

Since the maple pecan was good, I went for another one from their Sweet & Savory line.  Like the maple pecan, the cherry pretzel bar had an insane number of ingredients, spanning all sorts of seeds, nuts, peanut butter, oats, dried fruits, etc.  It also contained chunks of salty pretzels and tart bing cherries.

It was pretty good, I liked all the crunchy textures, the salt level, and the unexpected tartness of the cherries.  Overall, quite flavorful.  Quite good for a bar!

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I then moved on to the Halo bars, designed to be between meal treats, but more healthy than a candy bar.  They all have the same base of oats, soy protein, hemp seed, flax seed, and brown rice syrup, and then different mixtures of a few extra ingredients: chocolate, peanuts, marshmallow, and graham.  Since the Sweet & Savory bars were good, and these were seemingly going to be more decadent, I expected to like them more, but didn't.

• Rocky Road:  Contains chocolate, peanuts, and marshmallow.  Tasting notes: This was not very good, the ingredient distribution was super weird, with some areas having tons of marshmallow, some having peanuts, etc.  The flavors didn’t come together, the texture was strange, meh.  Sounded good in theory, but wasn't.
• S’Mores: Contains chocolate, graham, marshmallow. Tasting notes: Decent, fairly sweet granola bar.  Chunks of flavorless chocolate.

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Baked Goods from Thorough Bread and Pastry

I was surprised when I first walked into Thorough Bread and Pastry, as I was expecting a classic bakery, and instead it felt like walking into a really cozy coffee shop ... except one with amazing display cases full of pastries, rather than generic, day old muffins and scones, baked off site somewhere.  I didn't actually try any of the coffee, so I can't comment on that part, but if it were in my neighborhood, it seems like exactly the sort of place I'd love to hang out at with friends.  They even have a backyard garden area with tables, that somehow gets an insane amount of sun in the afternoons, and is perfectly shielded from the wind.  What a find!

I was led there of course by LevelUp, since they give a $2 credit.  Prices were actually shockingly good for a real bakery, with large cookies for only 75 cents!  Sure, there were plenty of items that far exceeded my "budget", but overall I was really impressed with the prices.  Unfortunately, they stopped using LevelUp already.

The staff were very friendly, and happy to make recommendations when I was indecisive.  It isn't in my neighborhood, but if I am in the area, particularly on a warm sunny day, I'll swing in for a treat and to enjoy their backyard.

Large Chocolate Chip Cookie.  $0.75.

This was a big cookie.  Not as big as the monster from Quiznos, but bigger than most.  And only 75 cents!  I still can't get over that price.

It was fairly soft, although not as soft as the aforementioned one from Quiznos, nor the chocolate chip versions I've had recently from Back Yard Kitchen or FreshMarket.  It had mini chocolate chips, and tons of them.  I think there were actually too many, as they really were the dominant taste of the cookie.  The cookie dough itself wasn't remarkable, not like the amazing brown butter chocolate chip cookie from Back Yard Kitchen, where the brown butter just took the dough to a whole new level.

Not a cookie I'd get again, but the price was certainly right.

Large Peanut Butter Cookie.  $0.75.

Another large cookie for only 75 cents.  Another great deal.

This was a hard style cookie.  I just don't really like hard cookies.  It had ok peanut butter flavor.  I didn't really like it, and wouldn't get again.

Cinnamon Pecan Scone. $1.95.

This was very good!  Crumbly style, loaded up with tons of chopped pecans.  Slight tang to the scone base, (perhaps buttermilk?), that gave it a really enjoyable flavor.  I smelt more of the cinnamon than I tasted.

I'd get this again, but I want to try more things.  $1.95 was a good price, and the scone was large, but not a monster.  I appreciated the portion size.

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Special Event at RN74

[ Originally posted Jan 18, 2012, moving to blog now ]

Last night, Emil and I attended an event hosted in the private space at RN74.  All in all, it was fabulous.

It was a nice, open, swanky space, with floor to ceiling windows.  They served a selection of cocktails, food in a buffet, passed hors d'oeuvres, and finished with insane dessert platters.

As you'd expect from a Micheal Mina establishment, the hors d'oeuvres weren't your standard crudite, cheese and crackers, or nuts. The classic deviled egg was topped with a marinated sardine. The "cheese and crackers" was a comte cheese mousse on a walnut shortbread. There were no vegetables in sight. The other apps included oysters, chicken liver mousse, braised pork, trout roe shooters, lamb sausages with burgundy onions, etc. The drinks were cocktails composed with a slew of ingredients, usually including fresh fruit.  It was delicious from start to finish.

I hadn't been to RN74 before (which is ridiculous, as it is just a few blocks from my house and has been on my list for ages), so this was a wonderful way to sample a bunch of their offerings (although very little of this appears on the restaurant menu).  I was impressed with the food.  For the most part it wasn't mind blowing, but for food served in volume and as a buffet/passed appetizers it was pretty great.

What I found over and over again, in both the savory and sweet dishes, is that the individual components weren't particularly standout, but when you got a bite composed of all of the pieces together, they worked really, really well. The flavors combined in fantastic ways that I'd never expect. Someone really thought out these flavor profiles. Dishes were very flavorful, and I'd certainly not describe any dish as boring. The most banal thing was the raw oysters, but then again, what can you really do with raw oysters? The execution of the cooking itself was also good, again, impressive for food being done in volume and served in this manner. In particular, the braised meats were incredibly tender and the grilled items had a nice char.

I enjoy events like this because it encourages me to try things I'd never normally order in a restaurant. Or, in a lot of cases, things I wouldn't really try if I had other options. But, I get somewhat irrational when it comes to buffets, (or samples), and I suddenly decide I must try EVERYTHING, even when the ingredients are things I have never liked in my life, or things I'm even allergic to. Like I said, irrational :) But in a lot of cases, this is how I discover new things, or grow to like things I've only had a handful of times. Tonight was no exception - under "normal" circumstances I would have skipped the trout roe, the chicken liver mousse, the lamb sausage, and the braised pork. I came away from this really appreciating liver flavor and not hating a pork dish. Big wins!

I somehow didn't get a picture of my favorite savory dish of the night - a comte cheese mousse on walnut shortbread. It was the first thing I had when I arrived, and I hadn't yet broken out my camera, and when I went for a second one, I was just too excited to eat it to slow down and take a photo. Whoops! Anyway, it was a fabulous creamy mouse on a buttery walnut shortbread. You could certainly get away with serving this for dessert rather than as an appetizer.

If you are looking somewhere to host an event, based on my experience attending one here, I'd certainly recommend RN74.  Not only was the food tasty and the space lovely, the staff were friendly and efficient, completely on top of everything, and never obtrusive.

So, in summary, great space, great cocktails, great food, AMAZING PUDDING DESSERT ZOMG. I can't wait to go actually eat at RN74 sometime!

Negroni - Bombay Saphire gin, sweet vermouth, Campari.

Campari was a sponsor of the event, so they were serving these right at the entrance.  Emil and I both liked this drink ... which is a total shocker, as we don't normally agree on cocktails. Sweet enough for me, bitter enough for him. I really enjoyed the complexity the bitterness added to this. A great way to start the night!

Assorted hors d'oeuvres from the buffet.

After getting our welcome drink, our next stop was the hors d'oeuvres buffet.  It featured a huge raw bar with oysters being shucked in front of us.  Not exactly your standard buffet.

(clockwise from top)

• Trout roe, avocado, bergamot, pistachio shooter: the shooter didn't do much for me - essentially a creamy avocado based mousse with trout roe. This wasn't something I'd ever normally order, or even try for that matter, since it contains one ingredient I'm allergic to (avocado), but I was in "must try everything on the buffet" mode, so I tried it anyway.
• 'oeufs mayonnaise' with marinated white anchovy: The deviled egg, er, oeuf mayonnaise was a standard deviled egg, but the white anchovy on top was a really nice touch. It added a saltiness and a lot more complexity to the flavors. One of my favorite savory dishes of the night (but I do love deviled eggs in general!)
• Marin Miyagi oysters with horseradish and mignonette: The oysters were fine, with a nice brininess, served with horseradish, tabasco, lemon, mignonette, whatever you wanted to put on them. As Emil said, you can get raw oysters anywhere, these weren't anything special.  That said, they were being shucked on the spot though, fairly impressive for buffet food.

Braised beef short rib over horseradish mashed potatoes.

 Next, along came some passed appetizers.

I don't have a full description of this one since it was a passed appetizer and she didn't have a sign, but I think it was their play on beef bourguignon. The mashed potatoes were creamy and had horseradish in them, really perking up the flavor. And the gravy/jus was delicious. This would have been by far my favorite dish of the night, if it had been warmer when I received it, but it was fairly lukewarm. Alas, this is what happens with food at big events.

Braised pork shank, french green lentils, fallot mustard.

Another passed app.  This dish surprised me. I don't like lentils. And I very rarely like pork. Again, something I'd never normally order or try, but I was in try-everything mode.

The lentils on their own were just as nasty to me as lentils always are, but combined into a spoonful with the pork, the flavors really complimented each other nicely. The pork was incredibly tender, very well braised.

Chicken liver mousse, pain de champagne, french prune jam, tarragon.

On the first bite, I really didn't care for this. The pain de champagne was too crisp and made it hard to bite into. The mousse didn't have that great of flavor. But then I had a bite with both the mousse and the prune, and the flavors really combined fabulously. After finishing this, the flavors lingered in my mouth and it really grew on me. I'm starting to really appreciate the earthy, mineral flavors of liver!

Amelie - SKYY vodka, sauvignon blanc, yellow chartreuse, lemon, grapefruit, grapes, sugar.

It was time to take a brief food break, and move on to more cocktails.

This one was my pick.  Sweet, delicious, fruity. Really easy to drink too fast, it was almost like a lemonade!

Grilled merguez sausage, burgundy onions, whole wheat flatbread.

I went back up to the buffet for another round, as they had added heartier dishes.  This was probably my least favorite dish of the evening. The flatbread had a nice char on it and the whole wheat gave it a nice heartiness and flavor. The burgundy onions were also pretty tasty (mmm, onions!). But I didn't care for the sausage. Then again, I've still yet to really find lamb in any preparation that I like.

Masterson - Wild Turkey 101, lemon, rose, mint, sugar.

I told you that last drink was too drinkable.  Time for another cocktail!  (no, there actually were other savory bites in here, I just stopped taking photos at some point, as I just had far too much in my hands!).

This was even sweeter and fruitier than the last.  Delicious.  It inspired me for ... dessert, of which, there was an entire separate buffet!

Dessert platter #1! Passion fruit macaroons, walnut financier, assorted chocolates.

The first dessert platter was a letdown, but mostly just because the selection wasn't really things I like very much in general.

The passion fruit macaroon filling was overly sweet and just kinda blew out your tastebuds.  Or maybe it was the sweet cocktail I was drinking with it.  When they replaced this platter with a new version, it had green tea/sesame macaroons, which were much better, with very complex flavors.

The financier was just kinda buttery and there, the almond topping added a nice texture but was forgettable.  Then again, I'm not sure I've ever found a financier that I've really liked.

I'm not exactly sure what the chocolates were, but I've had a lot of chocolate lately, and these didn't measure up.

Pear tart with whipped cream and cookie.

After the lackluster platter, I moved on to a better looking dessert.  Sadly, it was the worst dessert of the evening.

Tart crust, some sort of filling, poached spiced pears, topped with whipped cream and some sort of cookie thing. The crust, filling, and cookie were all flavorless. The whipped cream didn't really add to it. The only redeeming factor was the pear, which was nicely cooked and spiced. I should have taken Emil's advice and stopping eating this, but I kept hoping it would get better. It didn't!

Vanilla pudding with pistachio streusel and huckleberry.

After the letdown desserts, I moved on to the little pudding shooters.  I love puddings so much my blog has a label for them.  I was excited!

But ... this was the second worse dessert of the evening. I think this was a vanilla (or maybe sesame?) pudding. It was pretty flavorless. The pistachio streusel and huckleberry added flavor, but couldn't really save it.

Chocolate pot de cream with cocoa nibs, salted toffee, and salted caramel whipped cream.

I didn't give up, and moved on to the next pudding.

It was a creamy chocolate pot de creme, with crunchy cocoa nibs, salted toffee candy, and salted caramel whipped cream.

It was just as tasty as it should be!  Chocolate! Salt! Whipped cream! The night was looking up again.

Butterscotch pudding with streusel and some kind of gelee.

And then, the final pudding: butterscotch!  This was amazing. Unfortunately, it wasn't labelled, so I don't know exactly what it was, but my best guess is a butterscotch pudding with a buttery almond streusel. I have absolutely no idea what the gelee was.

The gelee didn't add anything to the dish, but didn't detract either. The pudding was absolutely delicious and the streusel topping was perfection.

I was completely stuffed at this point, but could not resist going back for a second one of these. Even after all the other food, even after sooo much dessert, it was so incredibly good I just couldn't resist. ZOMG.  Dish of the night, hands down.

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Rococo Chocolate

Rococo is a British chocolate maker that I discovered of course at my local chocolate shop.  I was drawn in by their heavy and interesting use of spicing.  They use all sorts of flowers (rose, geranium, violet, jasmine), fruits (persian lime, orange, raspberry, cherry), spices (cardamon, cinnamon), and herbs (basil, mint), to create pretty powerful bars.

They have grown a lot over the years, and now even own a cocoa farm in Granada, which they use to source the cocoa for all of their organic bars (and use some of the beans for the house blends too).

The chocolates I tried were all fine, but tended to sound more interesting than they tasted.

Chilli Pepper Organic Dark Chocolate.

65% dark chocolate from Grenada with Ugandan Birds Eye Chillis.  Tasting notes: Very nice, smooth dark chocolate, but there wasn’t much chili flavor.  Some bites had it on the finish, but not much at all.

Arabic Spices Organic Dark Chocolate Artisan Bar.

Dark chocolate from Grenada, with cardamom, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves.  Tasting notes: Very fudgy, slightly strange mouth feel.  I felt like I was licking a wreath.  Emil says, “It takes like eating Christmas!”  It was intriguing, but these spices were just a bit too much.

Sea Salt Organic Milk Chocolate Artisan Bar.

37% milk chocolate with sea salt.  Tasting notes: This was an incredibly smooth, creamy milk chocolate.  Some caramel undertones, and nice salt level.  I would prefer a dark chocolate, but for a creamy milk, it was quite nice.

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• Christmas Pudding: 65% dark chocolate with "christmas spices", plus raisins and Armagnac.  Tasting notes: Very strong clove flavor.  Chocolate not very smooth.
• Rose Otto: “Rose scented organic milk chocolate with 37% cocoa solids. A luxury chocolate recipe which is intense, balanced, and long-lasting, with strong floral notes”.  Tasting notes: Fairly creamy milk chocolate, very rose flavored.
• Plus Noir Que Noir 100%: “Dark chocolate bar with 100% cocoa solids.”  Tasting notes: obviously very dark, very bitter, smooth, fudgy.  Not my thing, but pretty nice for a 100%.

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El Toyonese

A few months ago, you may recall, I went on a bit of a taco kick.  I was really into the spicy flavors of mexican food, the tactile experience of eating with my hands, and eating in casual environments.  I think it was a response to way too much fine dining and foie gras eating.  Plus, tacos usually come with crunchy chips!

I tried out a number of taquerias and fast casual Mexican restaurants around town, but one taco venue I never visited was ... a taco truck!  How could I have left out this classic slinger of tacos?  I've been to plenty of other food trucks.  It was time to fix that.

So, when El Toyonese was parked nearby, I joined the ridiculously slow moving line to get myself a taco.  The line had probably only 8 or so people in front of me, but it moved at a snail's pace.  It made me really, really appreciate the pace of Pancho Villa that much more!  Seriously, I have no idea what took so long, as it wasn't like they were actually cooking anything there.

Anyway, meh.

Tacos (top to bottom, clockwise): Vegetarian, Carne Asada, Pollo Asado.  $1.75 each.

I have been on a taco kick, but my favorite tacos are grilled shrimp or fried fish.  El Toyonese had neither.  In fact, no seafood was available, just a slew of chicken, beef, and pork options.  None jumped out at me, so I decided to try 3 different ones, to cut my losses and hopefully find something I liked.

Each taco came double shelled, in a totally unremarkable, gummy, corn tortilla.  They got really mushy, really fast, as the liquid from the filling saturated them.  Two shells wasn't enough to protect them.  They weren't good.

Each taco also came loaded with raw white onion and cilantro.  The onion was harsh, sharp, and in huge chunks.  It ruined many bites, and my palate, for the rest of the night.

I started with a "safe" one, the vegetarian.  The sign gave no description as to what would be in it, but I was hoping for grilled veggies or something.  Instead it was just rice, beans, a little salsa, and a lot of the raw onion.  The rice was flavorless and dry.  The beans were plain and also flavorless.  Nothing good here.

Then I moved onto the carne asada.  I would have never known it was beef if I hadn't ordered it.  Not from inspection, nor from taste.  It tasted like ... nothing.  Except more sharp raw onion.

Finally, I went for the pollo asado.  I had basically no hope for this one, as I don't really like chicken, but I wanted to try a variety.  Surprisingly, it was the best.  I finished it in about two bites!  The chicken had a great smokey, grilled flavor.  The salsa added a tiny bit of kick.  There was still way too much of the raw onion though.

The chips, pico de gallo, and sour cream were not actually part of their offerings, I added them on in attempt to spruce up the plate.

At $1.75 each, the price was on par with those of happy hour tacos most places, but there were certainly no frills, no chips or salsa bar included.  I wouldn't ever get more of these.

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Valrhona Chocolate

Valrhona is one of the largest chocolate manufacturers in the world.  They make consumer products like basic chocolate bars (including not just single origin bars, but single origin vintage bars!), but also supply the chocolate for many chocolatiers and the bulk chocolate and couverture for chefs worldwide.  Thus, Valrhona chocolate shows up just about everywhere, and I've reviewed it before when used by pastry chefs (like Terri Wu from Farallon), by other chocolatiers (like Chocolat Modern), and even by ice cream shops (like Scream sorbet).  I'm sure you've had it, even if you haven't purchased a bar directly.

Although they operate a huge scale, the chocolate is high quality.

Grand Crus Tasting Bars

This is a line "made from the harmonious blending of cocoa beans from plantations with exceptional terroirs and chosen for their particular flavor characteristics."

The Grand Crus selection ranges from 33% milk chocolate to 72% dark chocolate.  I've tried a number of the different blends.

Milk Chocolates

Jivara 40% Tasting Square.

Jivara 40%. "Creamy and Chocolatey"

Milk chocolate is rarely what I pick, but, I was given this little square, so I tried it.  It was a smooth, creamy, high quality milk chocolate.  If I liked milk chocolate in general, I'm sure I would have really enjoyed it.  Even not being a milk chocolate lover I was able to appreciate it for its creamy, delicate nature.

Dark Chocolates

Noir Caraibe, 66%.

Manjari, 64%, Madegascar.  "Fresh and Tangy Single Origin Madagascar".

I moved on to a darker chocolate.  This was creamy for dark chocolate, but not very complex, a bit sweet.  Which makes sense, given that it was only a 64% bar.


Tainori 64%, Dominican Republic.

Next, another 64%.  I liked this one a lot more.  It was very smooth, but with a remarkably fudgy finish.  I'm used to chocolate with a strong fudgy nature like this having a thicker mouthfeel, but it had a nice snap to it and was really clean.  Definitely quality chocolate!

Noir Caribe, 66%. "Balanced and Velvety"
Moving up slightly to a 66%.  This was also incredibly smooth, great snap to it.  Slightly sweet, no bitterness.  A very clean flavor.

Guanaja, 70%, South African. "Bittersweet and Elegant".

Moving up another notch to a 70%.  It too was very smooth, and had a great flavor.  It is clear that Valrhona is a quality chocolate maker!

Single Origin Vintage Bars

Valrhona also produces a number of Single Estate Chocolates Bars, and of course, I've tried many of those as well.  They are all 64% cocoa.

2010 Palmira Vintage Bar.

• Ampamakia, 64%, 2012 Vintage, Madagascar. Had a nice bitterness with sweet cherry finish. I liked how you first got hit by the bitterness you expect from a dark chocolate, but then it had the nice sweet finish too it, making it a fairly complex tasting experience.
• Gran Couva, 64%, 2012 Vintage, Trinidad. This one was very smooth and refined, but too much so, resulting in a bar that wasn't very complex or interesting. Sorta like a house wine or coffee, totally drinkable, but boring.  I know that sounds horrible given its status, but, that is how I felt!
• Palmira, 64%, 2010 Vintage, Venezuela. We all liked this.  It had a pleasant bitterness and nice mouthfeel.
• Porcelana, 64%, 2012 Vintage, Venezuela. Apparently made from some of the rarest cocoa beans in the world. Was fairly sweet, with blueberry or plum notes.

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Cookies from Back Yard Kitchen

Back Yard Kitchen is located in the Marina, far outside my normal stomping ground.  But, I was in the area doing some shopping, so I of course pulled up LevelUp to see what was around.

Back Yard Kitchen is a casual sandwich and salad shop, without much seating.  But, I wasn't there to get a sandwich or salad anyway, since when I looked at the reviews, one thing kept coming up again and again ... the cookies!  And you know me and desserts, baked goods, and cookies in particular ...

Cookies, with great reviews, that came in under budget given the initial LevelUp seed money for the venue, so I could try them free ... sold!

The cookies are individually wrapped, in a cookie jar.  Once I ordered one, I was instructed to get my own out of the jar.  It was explained that was part of the fun, reaching into the cookie jar.  I thought this was a really fun quirk.  I went back several times, and enjoyed this little ritual each time.

On every occasion, the staff were really friendly, and unlike pretty much everywhere else I've been, LevelUp worked fine, no complaints.  If I'm in the area and want a cookie, I always stop in.

I've gone back several times since I first wrote this up, to try more cookies.  I've been very impressed with them.  It turns out that they make a big batch of dough, and bake the cookies daily until the dough runs out, and then change types.  This is exciting, as it means they are changing the variety of cookies about once a week.  So many more to try!  I also found out that their pastry chef does the pastries for Per Diem, which I've wanted to try for a while now, and this gives me even more motivation to visit.

Update: On my last visit, I found out that the chef who made the cookies was no longer working there.  And didn't really like the cookie I had that final day.  Sadness.  I'll still go back to see if it was a fluke or not, but I really am saddened by this news, as I loved the cookies so much before!  I will have to track her down at her newest endeavors, as the brown butter chocolate chip cookie was so, so good!

Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookie.  $1.50.

This was a very tasty cookie!  It was incredibly soft, just barely cooked past gooey, which I loved.  It had an intense brown butter taste.  The chocolate chips were standard, but there was a good ratio of chocolate to cookie, not overwhelming.

Overall, one of the best chocolate chip cookies I've had, and I'd gladly get another.  It was a perfect size - bigger than you'd ever make for yourself, but once you start eating it, you are glad it is that large, but it also was not so monstrous that you feel THAT guilty for it.

Great size for the price too.  Would gladly get another if I could!

Spiced Praline Pecan Cookie.  $1.50.

Just like the brown butter chocolate chip cookie, this was nice and soft, almost gooey.  Just perfect.  The size was also the same, slightly bigger then you'd make, but not ridiculous.

The flavor was very buttery and intense, and had some slight spicing to it.  There were a few whole pecan halves distributed throughout.

Overall, this was good, but the brown butter chocolate chip was better.

Pumpkin Spice Chocolate Chip Cookie.  $1.50.

This one was a very different style than the previous cookies.  Smaller in diameter, but much thicker.    It had subtle pumpkin flavor and spicing, and tons of tiny chocolate chips.  It reminded me more of a pumpkin bread or muffin than a cookie, as it was so cakey.  Not really my type of cookie, but it also seemed like something I could almost justify eating for breakfast ... mmm, breakfast cookies!

Snickerdoodle.  $1.50.

You've probably heard me talk about Snickerdoodles before.  Perhaps my least favorite type of cookie. They always just fall short for me.  But Back Yard Kitchen only has one type of cookie per day, and I was there, so I decided to try it out.  This was also the first one I had from the new baker.

It was really crispy.  The style of cookie I just don't like.  I like gooey cookies!  It had some sugar and cinnamon flavor, but meh, really not my thing.  A little burnt around the edges.  My least favorite by far.

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