What would you do if you have a full day of free time and sunny weather beckoning outside? To me it sounds like a perfect day to go around the city in search of good food. Before I return to my very strict weight loss diet, I want to have one last hurrah of an interesting food adventure. With a little planning, I decided to seek out my favourite version of pastéis de nata in Toronto.
You're not mistaken. My first stop did not involve any portuguese custard tarts. Since my route today broungt me over to Dufferin Road, I decided to stop over at one of the few Columbian bakeries in Toronto, Panaderia Colombiana. I first learned about this bakery from an article in Toronto Star and it was a delicious detour. The bakery was buzzling with customers looking for a taste of home. As soon as I walked into the bakery, I took a quick scan of what everyone was eating and proceeded with the tried-and-true pointing technique of ordering. It was quite exciting to discover what we ordered...we had a papas rellenas (potato and meat croquette!), empanada de cambray (pastry filled with guava jam), deep-fried pork served with arepas, and a plain bunuelo. Bro and I are both fans of croquette so fist-size ball of mashed potato with meat was a hit. The bunuelo reminded us of a traditional Cantonese fritter for congee. The deep-fried pork was a little fatty but I enjoyed picking out the lean parts to munch with the arepa. The best of the bunch though was the empanada filled with guava jam. Since coming back from a feast of Cuban pastries in Miami, I discovered my love for guava jam. To my surprise, Bro loves the floral taste of guava too.
Columbus Bakery
2931 Dufferin St. (south of Lawrence Ave.), Toronto
(416) 782-4520
Our first stop for pastéis de nata was Brazil Bakery & Pastry Ltd. My first impression was how resilient the pastry was. I had a hard time tearing it apart. The custard was more gloopy than expected and tasted a little artificial to me. Brazil has many variations of tarts, one of which was an orange curd filling. It was pleasantly citrusy and a good departure from the usual custard filling. Other fillings available include almond, coconut, cherries, etc.
Brazil Bakery & Pastry Ltd.
1566 Dundas Street West (West of Dufferin)
(416) 531-2888
Walking eastward along Dundas Street West brought us to the heart of the Portuguese community in Toronto. Nova Era has a few locations around the city and this particular one has a nice large seating area for customers to enjoy the pastries. The pastry of their pastéis de nata was crispy and shattered with every bite. The custard tasted of fresh eggs and vanilla. It was my over-all favourite today. Bro enjoyed a meat patty with a "crust" made with mashed potato and (what else) deep-fried. I was interested in the cod fritter however...perhaps another day.
Nova Era Bakery
1172 Dundas Street West (West of Ossington), Toronto
(416) 538-7700
Across the street from Nova Era is Caldense Bakery, another Portuguese bakery with a few locations in Toronto. The custard of these tarts was alright with a nice smooth texture but the bottom of the pastry was underbaked. The taste of raw dough was faintly detectable and that is a big no-no in my books for pastries. Bro ordered a tart filled with a transparent golden filling. I thought it was pineapple but it was squash. Who would have guessed? It looked very intriguing with subtle flavour.
Caldense Bakery
1209 Dundas Street West (West Of Ossington), Toronto
My last stop of the day was Venezia Bakery. This bakery has a homey vibe with two motherly ladies patiently explaining to me the different pastries available in the display case. I really want to like this place but unfortunately the pastéis de nata here was also slightly underbaked.
Venezia Bakery Padaria Portuguesa
114 Ossington Avenue (North Of Queen), Toronto
(416) 537-2914
If you have suggestions for awesome pastéis de nata around the greater Toronto area, I would love to learn about them!