a whisk and a spoon

85 degrees vs Breadtop

Not long ago, after a mediocre Spanish dinner on Liverpool Street, we turned the corner onto George and passed by a beautiful display window belonging to 85 degrees.  We’d passed on the flan at the restaurant and since the bakery was still open, of course we went in.  It was a tough descion, but we settled on a slice of tiramisu and chocolate napoleon to bring home.

Unfortunately, these looked much better than they tasted.  That is to say, they pretty much had no taste.  If I was blindfolded, I probably wouldn’t have known the napoleon had chocolate in it.  And I should have realized (silly me) that the tiramsu wouldn’t have much going on, because the sponge layer was clearly not soaked in coffee or booze.  The cake was very bland and the filling was kind of gelatinous. 

I will not go back to 85 degrees, but it did make me wonder about the desserts at Breadtop, across the street in World Square.  The next day I went over there and bought a much more promising looking tiramisu and a chocolate eclair.  Notice that each tiramisu has a goofy little label!

And the winner is…Breadtop!  The tiramisu tasted slightly boozy and had a nice texture.  And the eclair was filled with lots of real cream.  Good, because I like Breadtop…their Japanese white bread is perfect for PB&J.