Yoonie L.
Yelp
Angie's Bakery is a Filipino bakery tucked away in a small strip of businesses on Holland. I was on my way back from an event by the Oceanfront and took the opportunity to make a quick pit stop before heading home. I have been eyeing their goodies on their Yelp page and recently saw the Ube Lattes on Instagram.
The shop must have been recently renovated because it was very clean and new looking. It was a bit crowded inside and keep in mind, a bakery crowded at 4ish on a Sunday afternoon is a sign of success. I heard people were waiting for the freshly baked Pandesal and cheese breads. What's a few more minutes for freshly baked goods right out of the oven. It took awhile for me to be taken care of, with a few customers in front of me and the others who had already paid and waiting, so by the time it was my turn, the Pandesal had come out so I definitely got some of those and I managed to get a few other things. The display case wasn't really all that full, but keep in mind, this was 4pm on a Sunday afternoon, so I just need to go earlier next time!
My haul included:
Ube Pandesal - sold by 1/2 or full dozen, so I opted for 1/2 a dozen since this was my first go. I have heard Pandesal so many times and have never actually tried one. Why? No idea, but there is a first time for everything! They are a bright purple and came fresh out of the oven and so cheap! I think it was about $2-3?!
Super soft and they keep for a few days. Just pop it in the microwave fo 15 seconds. They taste like a really good dinner roll. I was told by a few Filipino friends that Filipinos usually eat them for breakfast with either butter, a slice of cheese or even liver paté.
Chicken/Pork/Coconut/Ube breads - these were the similar pandesal dough but with these individual fillings! They were so good! The chicken and pork were large chunks and had a sweeter taste to them. The coconut was not my fave though, but honestly, I don't really like shredded coconut, but I was just curious and you just have to try new things (or keep trying). The Ube was my fave. It reminded me of the Korean steamed bun with the ppat (the red bean) filling. The filling was a similar texture and the ube was slightly sweet. Super delicious!
Bibingka - Ok, so to my Filipino friends, why have you been holding out on me with these Bibingkas?! I LOVED LOVED LOVED this cake. I looked up recipes and it looks like they are rice flour based cooked with coconut milk ( I have no problems with coconut milk, it's just the shreds that are funky to me), but this cake was bouncy and dense and had some really good chunks of cream cheese that had baked and then solidified again to add some texture to the bite. I should get a whole cake/pie next time!
Ube Ensaymada - Another fave discovery! This is a large (size of my hand) sweet bread type of bun with ube mixed into it for a marble effect, but it is distinguished by the butter and straight up white sugar sprinkled on top (ok, maybe more like dipped). I was told days after I had already eaten it that I should have warmed it up so the butter melts on top! Ugh, next time.
Obvi, this was a pretty good haul, so I ate these items during the course of a few days, but if you want to heat anything up, 15 seconds in the microwave will do the trick.
Unfortunately, I did not get the Ube latte which was one of the purposes of my visit, but it was just too busy and it looked like only one person made them and plus, it was also late in the afternoon. As soon as I paid though, a customer who had been waiting got her THREE ube lattes and of course, I immediately regretted it! I'll just have to go back!
Notes for my next visit: try their pepp and/or cheese breads, Ube Bibingkas (they were out last time) and definitely that Ube Latte!
Get your carb fix here and stay safe, Friends!