Out & About #239 | Caldense Bakery + Summer in the Square Event

Upon meeting new people, one of the first phrases that escape my mouth will be "Oh, you're from ____ ? Do you have any recommendations for food?" - that or "Have your tried ______ ?" anyway.

Regular visitors of this space would already be aware of the fact that I enjoy short adventures, in particular venturing into unexplored culinary territory, regardless whether the result is disastrous or rewarding. That being said, I decided to embark on a journey in search of Portuguese egg tarts.

Macau would be the obvious destination for the best selection, though I had been contemplating the existence of a bakery closer to home that would craft the flaky pastry from scratch (ie. not T&T). A quick Yelp search landed me on Caldense Bakery's page.

In the Shoppers plaza just north of Eglinton and Creditview was the European-style bakery housed in a cozy corner. Parking was abundant (thank goodness!), but somewhat tight in places due to trucks that were stalled for unloading purposes.

The storefront was easily recognizable even at a distance, unlike cafes in Toronto, and consisted of a series of glass windows to allow for a decent amount of natural light to penetrate the interior. Half of the bakery was allocated for plastic tables and chairs, while the remainder was comprised of a cashier and storage area, hot water dispensers, and two large display cases - one for baked, bread-like goods, and the other for elaborately-decorated pastries.

Situated along the walls behind the display cases were small chalkboard menus. Along with an impressive variety of breads and sweets that were baked in-house, Caldense also offered several types of hot caffeinated drinks. 
We took to ordering two of their self-proclaimed (and evidently Yelp user-acknowledged) "Famous Custard Tart", which were priced at $1.30 individually.

Large chunks of bread topped with chewy, fragrant coconut shreds lay by the cashier, While definitely deserving of a purchase, we opted to save it for another visit, and a layered, custard-filled Napoleon-like creation was added to the order instead.

And how flaky they were - the cross sections were even more honeycomb-like that majority of the croissants I've munched on! This is probably an indication of the atrocious amount of butter used its creation process, but the "bubbles" inside were indeed quite a spectacle. 
​Frankly speaking though, the Napoleon/puff pastry was much too sweet for my liking, and the fact that they had topped an already rich item with powdered sugar made the piece even less appealing. But in its defense, the size was well warranted by the amount that they had charged; it retained an almost identical length and thickness to both my hands put together!

The Portuguese Egg Tarts, might I say, were a different story altogether. While heavier and richer in butter than to my standard preferred degree, they were crispy, sweet, and, in short, absolutely heavenly. The tart shells, extra buttery to emphasize flakiness, were chewy and delicious, while the filling was smooth, eggy, and laced with hints of vanilla and satisfying dark spots of caramelization.

The tarts completely took me by surprise, especially since I, a self-confessed picky eater, had entered with low expectations.

Also somewhat unexpected was that there were washrooms located at the back of the bakery. Instead of being a fast-paced eatery whose primary concern was to turn over tables, Caldense provided a more relaxing atmosphere than other Chinese bakeries (even if the furnishings aren't the greatest.)

The Portuguese tarts had been so tasty and I returned later several days to obtain a 4-pack for sharing at home. Unwavering in quality compared to my previous visit, it was still warm and fresh as ever upon their arrival in a grease-soaked paper box.

I also picked up one of the Coconut buns that we had tried previously, and slowly nibbled away at it as breakfast until I became satiated. Both were amazing. 

As with any other baked good though, items such as butter tarts, croissants, and sugary bread should be eaten in moderation. Despite the awesomeness that is properly-made Portuguese egg tarts, each proved to be so buttery that only one could be consumed before feelings of fullness were experienced immediately.

To be honest, I'm not sure where the name "Caldense" hails from. However, my sole method of relating its name to product line(s) would be that the bakery seemingly only retails calorie-dense (and probably carb-dense too) products to customers. They truly are tasty though, so I suppose it can be seen as the rare splurge for the uber health-conscious. Personally, I can envision myself driving up to obtain several for when cravings hit.

Some several days later, as I was running errands in Erin Mills Town Centre, I chanced upon a live performance in the new rotunda of the shopping centre.

Summer in the Centre had brought free frozen yogurt and iced tea samples from Fresh and DAVIDsTEA to the lower level, in addition to Tyler Shaw's performance/fan interaction event at 2 pm.
Families had gathered around the upper level upon catching glimpse of the crowd of tweens gathering near the stage, eventually learning that the Coquitlam-native would be singing his own hit songs and some other popular radio hits. (I actually ended up Googling his name on the spot to learn more about the performer.)

Several mesmerizing acoustic guitar and keyboard performances later, he concluded the show with a group selfie with the crowd and taking individual photos with the fans in attendance.

With only my mobile phone in tow, quality had unfortunately been compromised. Nonetheless, here are the three clips that I captured from afar:

Oddly enough, I found Mr. Shaw to be more visually appealing in person than in his music videos that I later searched up (maybe it's the change in hairstyle?). Music-wise, he's also too talented to remain underrated and appreciated only by the likes of teens pre-bloom.

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