I read about Bengbeng Sourdough here and was quite intrigued (I am a sourdough fan) that this bakery, based in Kota Bahru does online deliveries of its baked goods.
I created an account on their website thinking that I would be ordering and enjoying their sourdough baked goods but somehow I never placed an order. In fact the discount code I received via email expired as it had to be redeemed within 10 days.
Then I received this email.
Oh! How lovely! Not too long ago they were at Glo Damansara and now they have come to me! wahahahaha!!
So after my scrumptious lunch ........
...........I went over to The Starling in search of Bengbeng Sourdough.
Ah! There you are!
These sourdough artisan pastries do not come cheap, obviously.
I can understand because cultivating the sourdough starter is a labor of love and I also know the amount of work that goes into baking these pastries (anything involving yeast and fermentation) takes loads of time and effort. So I would gladly pay, after all I don't eat these everyday.
My loot.
Oh ya, if you spend above a certain amount you get a complimentary box of tissues and a small pack of facial tissues.
The young chap sounded surprised when I asked for one of each pastry. One of each? And the cinnamon roll too? Yes, I replied. To share with my colleagues. I lied.
I meant to enjoy these at home but I couldn't wait.
This Kouign Amman (my first time eating) was very sweet and very crispy. It was very buttery too. I liked it (although too sweet for me) and it would have been even better heated before eating.
You know I love donuts. This one is on the dense side and since it was already cold, it was a bit hard. Pastries are best consumed freshly baked/fried and once left to cool it is advisable to reheat before consuming.
This donut has a bit of tang (due to the sourdough) and would have been better had I eaten it at home where I could pop it into the microwave.
The rest of the pastries (the three croissants and cinnamon roll) I took home to enjoy.
There is cream topping for the almond croissant.
So.
I was too lazy to heat up the pastries in my air fryer (I don't have a toaster oven) so I microwaved them. Of course microwaving will not crisp up the croissants and I had hoped to make the cinnamon roll soft. But it was still dense and hard.
Tastewise I would say that these Bengbeng Sourdough pastries are good although I was not able to appreciate them at their best.
So if anyone is interested, you can drop by The Starling and try their sourdough loaves and pastries until 11-05-2021.
Bengbeng is an odd name for a sourdough outlet, so Ah Beng! LOL!!! I'm not into sourdough, as a matter of fact, I'm not so into bread.
ReplyDeleteThe owner's name is Beng hence the name of the bakery. I doubt if he is an Ah Beng. LOL!
DeleteNice for them to have customers like you! I think they will taste much better if put into the fryer instead of microwave... more crispy, I guess...
ReplyDeleteYes, better in the air fryer but what to do, me lazy. LOL!
DeleteLol! One of each so sounds like me...hahahaa.... I too have the habit of wanting to try everything.
ReplyDeleteMust try everything hah..hah.. or else cannot sleep!
DeleteI'm a fan of sourdough too though your description of very sweet, already cold, dense and hard does not sound very encouraging but you still found them good overall....hmmmm! I was also tempted to order online when I read about this but after what you wrote, I'm glad I didn't. I certainly would not have expected the need to reheat if I bought them and ate them immediately (like when one got back to the office or home just like any pastries we buy from a bakery). More so when these are expensive artisan pastries (thanks for saving me some money...lol). To say that you need to go home and reheat the pastries first to appreciate them at their best is a no-no for me coz it sounds like they weren't freshly baked (perhaps so after the long trip from Kota Bharu?). I never had to reheat pastries I bought from bakeries (so far) unless they've been left out from morning till night or after they've been refrigerated. P/S: Is that crystalised sugar I see on top of one of the croissants? >_<
ReplyDeleteI would think that the pastries were baked very early in the morning so that they can make it to The Starling by 10am. By then the bakes would have cooled substantially and that affected the texture but not the taste. Usually at bakeries, the goods are displayed in small batches and the rest are kept in a holding area to maintain freshness, hence we can enjoy them at their best right after purchasing at the shop. Unless of course if we are unlucky to buy those slow moving items.
DeleteI don't know how the ones bought online that come all the way from Kota Bahru will be like. But judging from my experience, I would think they possibly could be the same quality as those I bought from the kiosk. Travelling time would compromise on the quality and freshness but they have a following so I guess it must be good maybe after reheating properly.
The two croissants you see here are the almond and lemon which have a glaze, so yes it is crystalized sugar.
Thanks for the review. I hope I can go to starling before 11 may but it is highly unlikely. So sad. I wonder why it is hard because Halodoughnut which is also sourdough Doughnuts is not hard at all even though I put them in the fridge.
ReplyDeleteThese sourdough donuts are not as fluffy as regular donuts so maybe that's why they are hard. Better not venture too far outside as the Coivd-19 cases seem to be going up and up.
DeleteHalodoughnuts are also sourdough donuts but they are not hard.
DeleteHaha. That guy cannot believe you buy and eat all by yourself!! Lol. Nice indulgence. I would love to try but will share with my girl. Dont think I can finish all.
ReplyDeleteI am a big eater LOL!
DeleteIf you like sourdough, have you tried Yin's Sourdough which is located at Damansara Uptown too? I tried their pizza and sourdough bread, not bad~
ReplyDelete