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My pick for the nicest little spot to head to when you’re craving a little piece of France while in Toronto! Clafouti makes the best croissants I’ve had here, all freshly baked on premises, and boy do they sell out like hot cakes. Nothing beats a flaky, buttery croissant or pain au chocolat still warm out of the oven. Grab a seat in this tiny quaint cafe if you’re lucky enough to snag one, and enjoy people-walking through the display window… now that’s the way to spend a Saturday morning!

If they’re out of croissants, there’s always their wide array of delicious tarts to pick from. I’m admittedly very, very picky when it comes to tart shells – and Clafouti does them justice. Buttery, tough enough to give some resistance to the fork, and yet nicely crumbly in your mouth. We tried a Mixed Berry tart and a Grappa and Fig tart, and the Mixed Berry turned out to be the better of the two. Got to love their handmade custard too!

Surprisingly enough, their namesake was our least favourite item. The Clafouti – a cherry studded flan if you will, was a little too dry for my liking. Go for their tarts instead!

Clafouti occupies a lovely spot overlooking the Trinity-Bellwoods park, and you may just forget that you’re in North America, even if just for a moment.

Clafouti

915 Queen Street West
Toronto, ON
(416) 603-1935

How do you compress a year’s worth of belongings into two measly suitcases?

2011 Week #15

Location: Toronto

Like all affairs, this one is coming to an end. I’m running out of time, and I’ve barely started to say goodbye to this city. I’m not ready to leave, just yet. Next week, I’ll stroll the streets of Toronto with my trusty DSLR, and take in, for the last time, the sights that these eyes have grown used to over the past months. And, how do I fit all my things into 2 suitcases? I’ll have to figure out soon enough!

xx.

First, my apologies for the terribly off-coloured pictures in this post! I was at Baked during nighttime and the bakery’s really dimly lit so the pictures didn’t turn out very good, but the cakes…

Sweet and Salty

This legendary cake is, hands down, the best chocolate cake that I’ve ever eaten. I’m excluding chocolate cakes that are made up largely or chocolate mousse or chocolate truffle, but rather those that actually have a substantial amount of cake in there. I love chocolate to death, but chocolate cake – not so much. Mainly because they are disappointing 90% of the time – not chocolate-y enough, to sweet, too dry, too crumbly… you name it. So I wasn’t really expecting very much out of this one either, but oh wow. Baked’s Sweet and Salty is to-die-for! It’s quite a simple cake, actually – a dark chocolate cake infused with salty caramel, caramel chocolate ganache, and topped with fleur de sel. Anyone who loves salted caramel will fall for this! What’s really amazing to me is the texture and wonderful moistness of the dark chocolate cake, which tastes like good, real chocolate too. I think part of the trick is the salty caramel, which really seeps into the cake, providing that yummy touch of salt and adding moisture. I’ll say it again – To. Die. For.

Malted Cupcake

In ordinary circumstances, I think I’d have loved the Malted cupcake, but it just paled in comparison to the Sweet and Salty. Malted flavoured white cake with milk chocolate ganache, topped with a malt ball. I wish the taste of the malt was more pronouced, I couldn’t really make it out. Maybe they should put it in the frosting too… mmm malt!

Coconut Cream

My dear foodie partner chose this, but I’m personally not a fan of coconut in cakes, so it was just o-kay to me. I just want more of that Sweet and Salty!!

Sweet and Salty Brownie

Mmmm this is that same sweet and salty goodness, in brownie form! Such a fantastic brownie to boot. I first saw this on Food Network’s “The Best Thing I Ever Ate” and knew I had to make the trip to Baked for it. If you like your brownies ridiculously rich and thick and dense and fudgey (whew that’s a lot of “ands”) like the way I do, if you’re not one of those people who have to share desserts that are “too rich” (is there really such a thing?), you will love this square of delight! Not too sweet as you might fear, and that saltiness really cuts through the sweet and makes it super addictive. Brownie points for this brownie!

The down side to Baked? It’s incredibly hard to get to (well, at least it seems that way to a tourist like myself!). Located in Red Hook in Brooklyn, you’ll first have to take the subway to Smith/9th, and then take a bus from there. All this, for cake! A million thanks to Heather for very kindly driving us there at night – you are just incredible :)

You need to get your hands on some of those sweet and salty goodies from Baked – somehow!

Baked

359 Van Brunt Street
Brooklyn, New York 11231
718.222.0345

It’s like delicious, delicious, orgasm-inducing art.

Gari’s sushi omakase is very possibly my favourite, most enjoyable meal of this NYC trip. I was having the most intense, overwhelming sushi craving and Gari subdued the beast with its utterly delectable morsels of fish (and good lord that foie gras…) draped over slightly-warm sushi rice. This is fusion sushi (spot that avocado and pine nuts?), for sure, and I’m not much of a fusion-lover but they do it with finesse. Ah-mazing.

Plus, I’m now pretty much addicted to the thrill and suspense that comes with omakases. Oh dear.

Sushi of Gari (Michelin 1-star restaurant)

402 E 78th St
(between 1st Ave & York Ave)
New York, NY 10021
Neighborhoods: Upper East Side