Manzano European Bakery

This is a European-style bakery located on the ground level of the mall, not far from The Bay. They offer a good variety of cakes, pastries, and other treats. During my visit, I had their Hazelnut Roll, Orange Ricotta Cake, Pumpkin Cheesecake, Tiramisu, Chocolate Truffle Cake and Lemon Tart. The cakes, while not mind-blowing, were nevertheless all quite tasty. Their prices are also extremely reasonable. This is definitely a place that's worth checking out if you're at the mall and craving some sweets.

Hazelnut Roll ($2.99):
3.5/5
This was a piece of sponge cake enclosing cream, and contained pieces of hazelnuts inside. The cake itself was quite tender, albeit just a tad on the dry side. The cream was light and quite sweet. I really enjoyed the pieces of hazelnuts, which lent a great texture and fragrance.

Orange Ricotta Cake ($2.99):
3.5/5
This was layers of orange-flavoured sponge cake sandwiching ricotta filling. The cake was quite tender, albeit a tad on the dry side. It had a nice flavour of orange that was not too overwhelming or artificial. I did find the ricotta filling to be just a bit on the gummy side, but still enjoyable.

Pumpkin Cheesecake ($3.49):
3.5/5
The cheesecake was of the softer, fluffier variety. It was creamy with a nice bit of spice, and was filled with cranberries, which provided tartness. I did find it to be a tad on the bland side, and the crust was also a bit gummy.

Tiramisu ($3.99):
4/5
The cake had a wonderful fragrance of coffee/liquor, and was light and luscious. I did find the lady fingers to be a bit on the dry side; I would have liked them to be a bit more soaked/soggy.

Chocolate Truffle Cake ($3.69):
4/5
The cake was filled with chocolate mousse that's studded with chocolate shavings, and was coated in chocolate ganache. The mousse was fluffy and creamy, and had a fantastic bittersweet flavour. I did find the chocolate to be just a tad waxy, but still very enjoyable.

Summary:
Food: 3.5/5
Price: 4.5/5
Service: N/A
Overall: 3.5/5
Recommendations: Tiramisu, Chocolate Truffle Cake

The bakeries around the Metro area are mostly Chinese, with the exception of Manzano. I was craving some Western styled sweets today, so while shopping, my friend and I came by for an afternoon snack.

The bakery is a small shop, but there's a small designated seating area outside. We got three items to share. First was a slice of Blueberry Yogurt cake. This has layers of spongecake, whipped cream, yogurt and gelee, topped with some more whipped cream and a blueberry. This was pretty good, not overly sweet and the yogurt was very smooth. (4/5) Next was the Pear Torte. In comparison, this was a lot sweeter. We thought the pastry was also a bit dense. (3/5) The lemon pistachio biscotti was so fragrant with the hint of citrus, but the texture was slightly too soft for a biscotti. (3.5/5)

Food: 3.5/5 | Service: 4/5 | Value: 3/5 | Ambiance: 3/5

Overall, goods aren’t too pricey and they have a good variety of tasty treats! It’s pretty awesome to have a European bakeryy at Metrotown.

Best sandwiches I have ever had, makes subway and Quiznos taste terrible

Manzano European Bakery relocated at Metrotown closer to The Bay. They have lots of baked goods, cakes, and sandwiches. What is good about this bakery is that they have gluten-free items as well! Chocolate Croissant was not very crispy on the outside, it was pretty limp and doughy. I left the croissant in the bag for a while, so the chocolate drizzle on the top broke off. When I was biting into it, the chocolate drizzle kept cracking off, so it would end up all over my shirt. The inside has a decent amount of chocolate. Some places but in one chocolate stick, but they have two! Overall, I thought it was alright, but nothing mind-blowing. Chocolate Chip Cookie ($1.49) is the best thing to get here! At least in my opinion because I've been buying these cookies since I was a little kid. It was always a treat to get these since it's so huge and the chocolate center is always the last thing I eat. Theres lots of chocolate chips in the whole cookie and then the huge one in the middle. Words