Of Macau Egg Tarts, Hong Kong Tofu Flower and Black Sesame Puree!

No worries man. Unless one is of Macanese origin, the Portuguese diaspora may be lost upon most Asian Americans ( I happen to have an relative from Macau who told me about Portugal Imports a few years back).

Portugal Imports is a gem. If you give them a 20 minute warning during the week or a morning phone order, they may be able to bake your order fresh so they’re still warm when you arrive. Due to volume, they can’t accommodate this on Saturday. Closed on Sundays.

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Much more expensive than the US ones ?

Probably around the $0.80 to $0.90 mark per tart.

Haven’t tried it but will definitely put it on my list and report back

Update 3:

As we were visiting Sam Woo BBQ, we ended up doing a bang x bang to get some delicious Desserts out in the SGV. :slight_smile:

V P Tofu (Revisit)

Hot Soy Bean Pudding with Ginger Syrup - “Tofu Flower”:

This seriously has to be one of the best bargains for tasty Desserts in the SGV. :slight_smile: V P Tofu’s Tofu Flower is served hot, with the delicate, airy, silky texture of their fresh, Housemade Silken Tofu perfectly matched with a lightly sweet-spiced Ginger Syrup. :blush:

Their Small size is plenty and it’s just $1.50. :slight_smile:

We were bummed they sold out of their Sweet Black Sesame Puree early today (sorry @paranoidgarliclover), which made us really sad (it is so good!). :cry:

V P Tofu’s fresh-made Tofu Flower is still as delicious as always. You can also pick up various size bottles of their fresh, Housemade Soy Milk as well (which tastes of the Soybeans and has a more robust flavor than most of the commercial versions of Soy Milk on the market).

(Cash Only)

V P Tofu
237 S. Garfield Ave.
Monterey Park, CA 91754
Tel: (626) 572-9930

Jim’s Bakery (Revisit)

And just a few minutes away is Jim’s Bakery, so we wanted to see if we could catch them when they released a fresh batch of Egg Tarts.

Egg Tart:

Their standard, traditional Egg Tart is lightly warm, with the cashier saying this batch was made a couple hours earlier. It still tastes fresh and has the familiar, classic Egg Custard taste. :slight_smile:

Po Tart:

This one looked slightly overcooked and was also only barely warm, darn. Like before, their Po Tart is creamier and rounder than the standard Egg Tart, so it depends on which style you like more. When it’s barely warm it tasted just OK compared to the previous visits.

Follow-up visit:

But on a follow-up visit (same time as our last visit to Sam Woo), we arrived around 2:00 p.m. and they just finished a fresh batch of their Po Tarts! :open_mouth: We ordered one immediately.

Po Tart:

It might be hard to see in these photos but the Jim’s Bakery Po Tart was piping hot! It was so fresh out of the oven I had to let it sit and then blow at it a few times to cool it down enough to even bite into it. :slight_smile:

And that first bite…

I can see why @TonyC was so enamored with Jim’s in a post a while back. There’s the fragrant, hot, flaky outer pastry crust, and it gives way to this hot, almost molten, incredible Egg Custardy filling! :heart: Wow! It tasted nothing like the usual Egg Tarts that have sat around a while. It was like eating a piping hot Flan or something with a flaky crush. So good! :blush: This was $1.50 well spent. :wink:

Even when it’s warm, the Egg Tarts are pretty enjoyable, so hopefully you’re able to stop by Jim’s when they make a fresh batch (either first thing in the morning, or throughout the day). Be sure to ask them if they just made a fresh batch. They might have some in the back even if they have a few left up front in the case from a previous batch.

Jim’s Bakery
400 S. Atlantic Blvd., #200
Monterey Park, CA 91754
Tel: (626) 573-5757

Kee Wah Bakery (Monterey Park)

While we usually stop by the Kee Wah Bakery on Valley Blvd., this time we decided to try their Monterey Park location to see if the Egg Tarts were better or worse in comparison.

Signature Crispy Egg Tart:

Kee Wah has 3 types(!) of Egg Tarts, and they were down to a few of their Po Tarts at this location (and they said it had been maybe 3 hours since a batch), so we decided to try their Signature Crispy Egg Tart this time.

This was much more flaky, almost like a variation of the Puff Pastry in a Mille-feuille. The filling was the standard Hong Kong Egg Tart filling, an even, lightly egg-y, lightly sweet filling, but their outer crust was what made it stand out.

One of these days we’ll be able to finally try Kee Wah Bakery’s Egg Tarts when they arrive fresh out of the oven, but until then, even at slightly warm temperatures for $1.60, their Signature Crispy Egg Tarts are a nice way to finish an afternoon in the SGV.

Kee Wah Bakery
729 W Garvey Ave.
Monterey Park, CA 91754
Tel: (626) 281-2680

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Do you have Golden Gate Bakery in SF on your to do list? Still my favorite egg tart of all time

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Hi @JeetKuneBao,

I did, until the last 3 times we went, they were closed. :expressionless: :cry: It was sheer coincidence but it felt like they were going on vacation (extended) just to avoid us visiting! :stuck_out_tongue: :laughing: :frowning: So we gave up.

Also @beefnoguy has been saying it’s not as good as before, so it fell off my list.

Seems like they’ve been on ‘vacation’ since 2014…:grimacing:

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http://www.is-the-golden-gate-bakery-open-today.com

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The fact that someone felt compelled to create this website is all I need to know to refuse spending one red cent at this establishment.

Wow. Wow! I am a huge huge fan of ginger, so much so that I used to make my own fresh ginger syrup for ice cream and to be stirred into tea. To get it on fresh tofu? I’m in!

Fingers crossed we can get the black sesame treat as well.

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Cool. I’m still going to spend my money there. Worth every penny to me.

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Thanks @thechez5. :slight_smile: Yah I have that link bookmarked. :wink: It saved us an Uber ride over the 2nd and 3rd visits, but they were still closed the entire time we were out there visiting. :cry: One day!

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Thanks @Happybaker, hope you like it. :slight_smile:

Note that on weekends, V P Tofu can sell out by 1:30 or 2:00 p.m. depending on the fluctuation of customers. We showed up once around 2:30 or so and they still had plenty, but on a few occasions by 1:30 or 2:00 p.m. they were sold out of everything! :frowning:

I’m guessing weekdays are easier?

And remember if you order the Sweet Black Sesame Puree, ask them for some (free) Coconut Milk topping. Enjoy! :slight_smile:

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Agree it’s not the same since the original baker died.

Hi @chandavkl,

Oh wow, sorry to hear! When did this happen? :frowning:

Okay Chowseeker1999, we’ll focus on weekdays and? Getting there midday at the latest!

Thank you for the extra info!

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i recall when happy bakery was the standard for egg tarts 25 years ago (i used to pick up a dozen and take them on the plane when i flew back east for the holidays). it was a sad moment when it burned down. i heard it reopened somewhere to the east on valley, but i never found it. has anyone else here done so, and if so, are their tarts still the same?

Actually not quite true, Golden Gate Bakery is still pretty decent from a recent visit since I made that comment (the line was short at the time but still ended up waiting 30 mins as it was during the Chinese New Year Parade) and very good for SF. The puff pastry crust recipe has changed notably compared to 10+ years ago (they say the original chef passed away and nobody really learned the puff pastry ropes properly from him), but other than that the center is still very good. But locals have mixed opinions that stem from diminishing returns and the wait being not worth the hype. It’s subjective in the end, but I haven’t found other options that are anywhere as good. Consume same day for best results, but if reheating, toaster oven only and don’t let it sit more than one day overnight (two days is pushing it, do-able but integrity changes exponentially by then).

The biggest setback is the price which has shot up a lot (over $2 each now, I forget what it is exactly but $2.15 to $2.30 each is best guess).

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