December 24, 2012
Starbucks, Richmond BC
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Chocolate Caramel Muffin
White Chocolate Macadamia Cookie
Nanaimo Bar
Ginger Molasses Cookie
Oat Fudge Bar
Oatmeal Raisin Cookie
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I took the chance during winter break to sample a few of the items at Starbucks that were not available in the US. There were actually many items that I have never tried before and seeing that there was an extraordinary amount of people at the two locations I went to on Christmas Eve made me even more excited.
The Chocolate Caramel Muffin is a seasonal item, I believe. The chocolate muffin was moist and dense, full of a rich cocoa flavour but not very sweet at all. I could have used a lot more of the sticky and sweet caramel sauce filling – it was that good. I love a good and rich caramel and the bites that had a lot of caramel made my mouth stick but my tongue happy.
The White Chocolate Macadamia Cookie is one of the varieties not seen in the US. The cookie was decently soft but not the softest ever. The white chocolate chunks had a hard but smoother crunch than the large macadamia nuts. Both were great contrast to the cookie dough that was also sweet. This is by far my favourite kind of cookie.
The Nanaimo Bar was my favourite treat when I used to work at Starbucks for a school program. The chocolate layer on top added a slight crunch, contrasting the vanilla custard. The custard was light and very sweet, with a very aromatic flavour. I do not usually like coconut, but the coconut base was divine, not too sweet and with a lot of contrasting textures. This brought me back to the old days when I smelled like coffee all day long.
The Ginger Molasses Cookie was absolutely divine. The ginger flavour was quite strong but not overwhelming due to the sweet molasses. It was the softest cookie ever and quite moist and sticky once bitten into. I loved the sprinkled sugar on top and the texture was just fabulous.
The Oat Fudge Bar was very sweet and fudgy. The fudge was sticky and very sweet but had a good, strong chocolate flavour. It was very rich. The oat part acted as a good contrast to both the flavour and texture. Rough and not very sweet, it definitely made the dessert bearable, or else it would have been incredibly overwhelming with its sweetness.
Finally, the Oatmeal Raisin Cookie was full of plump, juicy raisins. The oatmeal cookie dough was decently sweet and very soft, as is the usual for oatmeal cookies. This was a very generic treat but a good quality one at that.
Starbucks service and quality never really disappoints. I am not a huge fan of the refrigeration of the foods but I guess that is what it takes to keep it fresh.
