Gerald S.
Yelp
I promised the wife that I would search for and find a special cake or other exemplary baked good for the centerpiece dessert of our Spring Festival celebration this year. With good friends visiting from her homeland (China), I had no choice. After a lunch meeting in Norristown yesterday, I decided to see what I could find there. Fear not!
Eli's Bakery Cafe was only minutes away on W. Marshall Street with strong reviews, so I drove over to take a look.
I was blown away!
Eli's is an amazing Mexican bakery with enough space to have large refrigerated displays, wall length 7 foot enclosed pastry shelves, and racks of bread, individual portions of various cakes, rolls and whatever your heart desired that could be baked in their enormous ovens. The skill level of their artisans was off the charts, and obviously trained and well practiced in the bakery arts.
Yes. I was sorely tempted to score many of the delectables I saw, but I was on a mission, and bringing home a large box of sweets and goodies would not be well received at home. So, I focused and found the most attractive work of art I could find - a glazed fruit covered Flan y Chocflan con Fruta super tart. Huge strawberries circled the circumference, while raspberries, grapes and sliced peaches filled the rest of the topside.
The flan was simply remarkable. Made of eggs, condensed milk, evaporated milk and caramel, it was cool and far beyond delicious. It was one of those magical custards that make you swoon when it hits the tongue. Perfect flavor and texture. Not too sweet, you could almost convince yourself it was healthy, too. Truth was; I didn't care! This was one of the best things I had put in my mouth in the past year or more.
We did have a feast last night. About 10 Chinese dishes that filled us as we ate and drank the night away. Yet, the star of the show came from this Mexican bakery half way around the world from the Middle Kingdom.
Eli's made the showstopper. And I was the conquering hero for one night.