History

As mentioned on their website, Paris Baguette originally opened with one shop in Korea. They have now grown into a franchise with 1,700 locations in three different countries, and they only have seven locations in in California, one of which is here in Northern California on El Camino in Santa Clara.

What They Do:

They combine elements of Asian and French baking and the result is very elaborate, unique creations. They bake breads, pastries and cakes daily, and although it’s not mentioned on their site I’ve read reviews about their amazing shaved Hawaiian ice.

I’m looking forward to sharing my review with you all. I’ve also come up with a new way to review bakeries. In my mind there are three different reviews I would give a bakery. If the bakery is really good I’ll say, “It’s scrumdiddlyumptious.” I loved watching Willy Wonka as a kid. If the baked good need improvement I’ll say, “

Watch out for my next post: My Review of the Paris Baguette

Until next time,
Nicole (Coco)

This Podcast was created for  a project in class that required the use of music and time constraints. The Podcast is an interview I conducted with an expert on cakes. I felt that this interview would create more credibility and it tied in with my overall project really well. In the Podcast I used rubber banding of the music so that it would be easier for the listener to hear the voices of the interview. It is a good idea to add music into Podcasts because it creates an overall package, and listeners tend to be attracted to the music so they stay focused on the subject. Podcasts are also a great way to add audio to a web site when you want to inform your customers about your company.

This movie was created to show all  the different bakeries I have visited as well as the bakery items I reviewed. This movie created by using a series of pictures. I took the pictures into photoshop, edited them and then imported them into the Windows program, Movie Maker. I then added music and transitions to make the movie flow smoothly. I used transitions that allowed the slides to open scrolling from the left or from the right. In the slides with text I opted for the text to enter flying from the right or left.

Sunrise Bakery is known for its Mexican baking style. They are a family-owned bakery and bake everything fresh daily at 3 a.m. They offer some of the favorites that are popular in Mexico like Pan Dulce (sweet bread) and Tres Leches (milk cake). They offer an array of products including cakes for any event, cookies, pasteries and more. If you’re looking for great desserts at very low prices; this is a wonderful place to go. The staff is very friendly and there is so much to choose from. I was able to buy three different bakery items for only $2. If you’ve cut back your budget, but you still need to satisfy your sweet tooth, you can get a cookie for only 25 cents. Below are the items I purchased. Starting from the left is a jelly roll, butter creme pastry and pan dulce.

Sugar Butter Flour is located at 1875 S. Bascom Avenue, Campbell Ca 95008. Inside the Pruneyard shopping center.

Sugar Butter Flour’s mission, as mentioned on their website, is to provide the finest quality desserts and pasteries at the lowest prices. They bake their items fresh daily and they do not use any preservatives because they feel it contaminates the taste of the food.

Now, for the part you’ve been waiting for…

Sugar Butter Flour has an array of delicious desserts that go great with any occasion. They sell all kinds of cakes, including wedding cakes and flourless cakes. Some of the cakes they offer are: Duo Chocolate Mousse, Flourless Chocolate Raspberry Mousse, Chocolate Opera Cake, Tiramisu cake, Fresh Fruit Tart, White Chocolate Lemon Cake, Carrot Cake, Classic Cheescake with Raspberries. They offer individual desserts as well which include: Pear Almond Tart, Key Lime Mousse, Creme Brule, Hazlenut Napoleon, and Toffee Walnut Tart. They also have some very scrumptous cupcakes: Red Velvet Cupcake, Marble Cupcake Pina Colada Cupcake; including custom cupcakes for any event. Click here to check out their custom cupcake designs. Some of their other products include cookies/bars and personal pasteries that go great with coffee or tea.

This cafe/bakery is owned by master pastry chef and chocolatier, Pascal Janvier, and his wife, Nicola Janvier. Fleur de Cocoa is a hidden treasure within the heart of downtown Los Gatos. This small, but quant french cafe is easy to miss in the sea of shops that line N. Santa Cruz avenue. As I entered the cafe the smell of chocolate consumed me and a feeling of warmth came over me. The whistling of the espresso machine and a small child pleading with her mother to buy hot chocolate was really quite comforting. The first thing I could see was the amazing display of chocolate. There is level after level of delicious extra dark chocolate, grey tea infused ganache, coffee praline, passion fruit white chocolate ganache, and tahitian vanilla bean caramel. A petite box of these elegant chocolates will cost you $27.50.

As mentioned before, Janvier is a master pastry chef and he bakes all his pastries fresh daily. He uses the best ingredients and he refuses to use artificial flavors and preservatives that might diminsh the intergrity of the pastry.  It can be difficult to select just the right pastry because there are so many different pastries to choose from. There are breakfast pastries, individual-sized desserts, tartes, pastries and cookies. Breakfast pasteries are the most popular, but don’t let the name fool you pasteries can be enjoyed at any time of the day.

441 Saratoga Ave, San Jose, CA 95129 and 170 S. Market St. Suite 110, San Jose, CA 95113

Bijan and his family have been serving the local San Jose community since 1986. Bijan Bakery & Cafe is a french bakery that makes dazzling cakes, scrumptous pasteries and fluffy, flaky croissaints. Bijan prides himself in using the best ingredients imported from Europe. Almost all of the baked goods are made of butter, and there is no trans fat or preservatives used in any of his creations.

Some of his desserts and pastries include: Cheesecake, EClairs, Tiramasu, Chocolate Sachertorte, Biscottis, Butter cookies dipped in chocolate and much more.

Bijan is also very well-known for amazing wedding cakes. Each cake is designed with your special day in mind, and Bijan’s wedding cakes can be customized to fit your every desire. Cake samples are also available during your planning apppointment so that you can get the right to taste to go along with that special look.

“Take a number, please.”

You must take a number if you want to be served at Bijan Bakery & Cafe. They found that the best way to serve customers is to have each customer take a number. I’m telling this to you now because it is not obvious when you go into the bakery that you need to take a number. After your number is called one of the patrons at the bakery is there for all of your bakery needs. He or she can whip up a hot chocolate or a latte to go along with your tasty bakery treat. A drink is recommened to enjoy your drink, either for dipping purposes or just for the enjoyment of having something to wash your bakery item down.

Ahhhh. More refreshing desserts from the lovely Icing on the Cake. Every customer seems to really enjoy the cupcakes, so I decided it would be best to sample more cupcakes as the next two items from the bakery.

The second item from the bakery is called Banarama. I’m about to tell you why that name is SO appropriate for this cupcake. First I’ll start with the overall evaluation.

Aroma: smells like freshly baked, homemade banana bread.

Presentation: It looks like a simple, generic cupcake. The cupcake itself is a regular size 3 and 1/2 ounce cupcake. On top, is a dallop of cream-colored frosting covered in sprinkles.

Taste: My first bite was full of the cream cheese, banana frosting. The sugary sweetness of banana was overwhelming and the creaminess of the cream cheese was amazing. The cupcake tasted like dry banana bread and I wish it had walnuts. The frosting complemented the cupcake very well because it added moisture to the overall cupcake.

Price: $2.75 each