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Monday, 1 June 2015

Bath Bakery - Cornish Original

About

Bath Bakery has a number of bakeries all over - you guessed it - Bath. They sell everything you would expect a good bakery to sell and if you're really lucky they'll sort you out with a bacon sandwich and a cup of coffee to take away with you. If this were a blog about bread I'd strongly recommend that you buy yourself a loaf of the Mexican Chia Bread, but it isn't. So I won't. They also have all the standard pasty options including steak, traditional Cornishand the 'so evil it should be banned' cheese and onion pasty. This time out I opted for a traditional Cornish which will allow me to save the steak for a future post. All of the pastys are made and cooked at their main site and delivered to various branches to be sold.

Price

Erm....I forgot. I'll put it up as soon as I make my next visit. 

The Presentation

A side crimp served in a bag with a clear section so you absolutely can judge a pasty by its pastry. They only come in one size which I would estimate to be slightly larger than a medium. It was cold when I purchased it but if you get there early enough in the morning you might bag yourself a warm one.




First Impressions

This looks like it's going to be crumbly. There's already crumbs on my hands, pre-crumb if you will. The pastry looks a bit yellow too. It's either underdone or going to be super buttery. 

First Bites 

Thankfully, the pastry is cooked fine but it is extremely buttery. And unfortunately there is absolutely loads of it so all I can taste is butter. At this point at least half of the usually glorious inards of this pasty is pastry. It's a bit disappointing to be honest. Eating this pasty is giving me flashbacks to the time I decided I would watch the Matrix sequels.



Half Way

The pastry emanating from the crust has finally disappear and the filling awaits. Hang on. What's with all the orange? Carrot? This is not good. It's made everything taste disappointingly sweet. This has gone beyond the disappointment of the Matrix sequels, it's more like finding out the person you fancy listens to Coldplay. Not in a 'hipster' ironic way either.



Final Crumbs

There was a good chunky knot waiting for me at the end of this pasty but to be honest I've had enough of pastry. I feel like I've eaten enough to cover two pastys. I sort of never want to eat pastry again, which second post in to a pasty blog is not ideal.

Overall Impressions

This wasn't as good as I was expecting or hoping. The pastry was too rich and too thick in places while the filling was too sweet (not in the cool way) due to the inclusion of carrots. It's a shame to have to write any of this because I've also tried their steak pastys which, frankly, make this look like a common pie. 

Final Score

2/5

Monday, 11 May 2015

Darts Farm - Steak Pasty

About

This pasty comes from the excellent Darts Farm near Exeter, Devon. Just a short drive from the M5, most of the goods sold in the farm's shop are either produced on the farm or are from local suppliers. Despite the amazing selection of meat and vegetables available in the shop, the pasties on sale are actually made by Chunks of Devon and then cooked on site. This doesn't make a whole lot of sense to me. There are a range of pasties on sale but as all pasties that don't follow the traditional ingredients list are evil I selected the Steak Pasty.

Price

£2.59

The Presentation

A side-crimped pasty served cold with no hot option. It came in a white paper bag which is a classic look and the least you'd expect from a good pasty seller.



First Impressions

Looks good with a nice golden pastry and it smells amazing. If this pasty was a woman she wouldn't go out with me.

First Bites

Though tasty, it takes quite a few bites of pastry before you get to any filling. It's a bit like a stodgy foreplay but will it pay off? You can never tell with pastry foreplay.



Half Way

The filling is really well seasoned and has a good balance of meat and veg. The meat itself tastes top quality. The pastry foreplay paid off. My jaw hurts but I would do it all over again. Alright, I'll stop now.



Final Crumbs

The pastry is very tasty but I think I would have preferred a bigger knot to finish off. Tell me in the comments section whether you're a 'knot first' or 'knot last' pasty eater.

Overall Impressions

This was a really nice tasting pasty. However, it was disappointing to learn that Darts Farm had bought it from a supplier rather than made it from their own produce. It was well seasoned and the pastry was golden and flakey without filling my beard with crumbs. My only real complaint apart from its origins is that it was a little on the small side and a little thick around the edges meaning I had to eat a lot before I got to the sumptuous filling. Oh stop it.

Final Score

4/5