Google
Their Berks st brick and mortar finally opened up in fishtown and it exceeded expectations.
I am an avid (home) baker and self-admittedly incredibly judgmental when it comes to baked goods (and food in general). Essentially, why buy it, when I can make something better?
My first visit was around 10:30am on a Thursday, surprised they didn’t closed their doors. I check it out and see there’s only one pastry left - The lemon orange blossom water basque (burnt) cheesecake. Basque cheesecake happens to be one of my favorite desserts but plenty, if not most places, butcher it. Manna’s cheesecake nailed the texture perfectly- silky smooth, custardy center with a firm, but creamy and moist exterior. the orange blossom water adds intrigue and elegance that no one else is doing is doing in this city. Since they did such an incredible job at nailing the texture, it was impossible to put the spoon down which is extraordinary because other basque cheesecakes are so dense, sweet and rich that you feel weighed down after a few bites. I only stopped because I needed to have a friend try some of it, knowing she’d be obsessed with the flavor. I haven’t bought a better slice of basque cheesecake elsewhere.
The cheesecake influenced me to return the next day to see if I could try something else. On day 2, I managed to snag the last raspberry cardamom bun. And just the cheesecake, this is the best cardamom I’ve ever had.
The pastry was tender and moist but had an enjoyable toothsomeness. The little touch of granola-esque crumb added a little texture, and the generous amount of salt to balance out the sweetness was ethereal.
Even the lattes are stinking good. They’re using a wonderful bean with beautiful acidity, fruitiness, and aroma that is on par with the best coffee shops in the city like persimmon (persimmon is still my favorite coffee shop.)
Chef saif clearly has done his research and honed in on the small details on what pushes a good product into extraordinary. These flavors and textures rival if not exceed some of the best baking in New York City and SF.
The only reason why the atmosphere is 4/5 is that it’s clear that they didn’t do much to the Essen space other than add more seating - there is no decor right now other than brown paper. a bakery doesn’t “need” decor, but its generic atm. I eagerly anticipate they’ll continue to update the space so that it develops its own bespoke middle eastern charm. they don’t seem to have an option of “dine-in” plateware so all pastries are handed over in a paper box.