Freeport Bakery (Land Park): Pastry Edition
food: 4.5/5
experience: 2.5/5
overall: 4/5
Freeport Bakery is one of Sacramento's most beloved bakeries. Why? I dunno. It's small and family-owned? I guess? People just go here. There's almost always a line no matter what time of day but it moves fast. They can be a bit snobby here to be honest. The interior is rather small but they do have outside seating which offers a nice view of the light rail and Curtis Park's own McDonald's.
On to the goods.
Danish: 4/5
I mean, danishes are danishes. The best part is obviously gonna be the filling. They got apricot, cherry, mixed berry, and plain cheese. I got me a mixed berry. It's only got a thumbprint's worth of jam inside and a small circumference of cheese. The cheese is very cream-cheesy in flavor, as opposed to tasting more like custard. The fruit tastes alright I guess. I just wish they put more filling.
Bear claw: 4/5
Bear claws are always good and theirs passes. The almonds on top are sweet. But again with the filling! Freeport, stop skimping on the filling. It's what the people want.
Custard wheel: 4.5/5
A more savory pastry, the flavor resembles a croissant with a bit of custard and raisins. Pretty good, especially if you're craving something more doughy than sweet.
Pumpkin scone: 5/5
I didn't try Starbucks' pumpkin scone but I can rest assured this one is better. It's really sweet but not too sweet and they got the pumpkin flavor down.
Pumpkin muffin: 4.5/5
Not the best pumpkin muffin I've had (that honor goes to La Bou) but still a contender. It doesn't have that hard muffin top I like but the flavor is still good, reminiscent of pumpkin pie filling. Make sure to save that sweet cheesecake filling for every bite.
Brotchen (right): 4/5
This is some sort of bread product made out of French bread, even though I looked it up and it's actually German in origin. So yeah it just tastes like French bread. Good, if chewy, but you can get the same quality at Sprouts.
Pizza ring (left): 4.5/5
Okay it's basically a pizza bagel, not sure what's with the hesitation to call it like it is. It's pretty much just the French bread with a tomato-cheese topping. They also put cheddar cheese in the middle. They have a microwave there so throw this in there and you got yourself a pseudo-slice of pizza.
Cinnamon crisp: 5/5
A crispy, crunchy cinnamon roll and I think it's actually glazed with honey instead. Even better.
Regular brownie (right): 3.5/5
Also comes with frosting for 25 cents more (no thanks). Definitely not the best brownie I've had. It's not very moist, more crumbly. Just got plain ol' walnuts in there with chocolate. Tastes like something you make from a mix.
Cream cheese brownie (left): 4.5/5
Somehow more moist than the regular brownie. Maybe a bad batch? Anyway, it's basically the same but it has a swirl of cream cheese on top adding a yummy twist to the flavor. It doesn't have nuts in it, I don't believe.
Butternut tea cookie (left): 5/5
A buttery, moist yet crumbly cookie with nuts and a strong powdered sugar presence. I don't detect any butternut squash but it's delicious nonetheless.
Coconut macaroon (right): 5/5
I wasn't gonna get this since it seemed like a rip-off (over two bucks for a lump?) but this is fantastic. Basically a thick, moist Girl Scout Samoa cookie. Definitely for the coconut lovers out there.
Chocolate croissant: 4/5
I know I am giving it a 4/5 but this is not the best croissant I've had. Much better is to be had at La Bou. The main thing for me was the chocolate filling. Tastes good in the microwave.
Almond croissant: 5/5
Hard to screw up an almond croissant and they don't. Plenty of almond filling spread inside, almonds and powdered sugar on top, plus I think the actual croissant is made with almond extract (if I'm not mistaken). Perfect.
Morning bun: 4/5
Basically just a sugar-glazed croissant. It's fine, if that's what you're looking for.
Jalapeno cheddar pretzel: 4.5/5
They have many different varieties of pretzel but they're all the same pretzel base that is found in this pretzel. It's got a nice doughy flavor and interior but it's not quite as good as a mall pretzel.
Quiche: 4.5/5
Not technically a pastry but made with a pastry shell so... kinda? There's vegetarian quiche and quiche lorraine with ham. This is the ham one, which also has onions. It's pretty good and the crust is nice and buttery but the thing keeping it from a 5/5 is you have to microwave it in their 90's-era microwave which makes the crust not so flaky.
Cinnamon snail: 5/5
A cinnamon roll, essentially. And like most cinnamon rolls it's good. Got the gooey cinnamon sugar interior and the doughy roll, plus a little sticky frosting for good measure. Make sure to stick it in their wonderful non-rotating microwave for the best texture.
Fruit pocket (top): 4/5
Eh, it's kinda just a shortbread-like cookie. It's decent, simple. Apricot or raspberry filling, both about the same.
Marzipan heart (left): 5/5
Yum. It's like a crumbly, more flavorful version of shortbread, with raspberry filling. I believe it has almond extract in it as well. Similar to this is the sun and moon cookie which is also made with marzipan, but has apricot as well as raspberry filling.
Almond horn (right): 4.5/5
I love almond anything basically so this is good too. It's chewy and it's got the chocolate on the ends, with a decent amount of almond extract flavor. Not an overpowering amount.
(top left to bottom right)
Cranberry scone: 4/5
So their scones I am not as big a fan of because they don't have that typical crusty texture on top. It's more the texture of a biscuit. Actually the flavor is reminiscent of biscuits as well. They're good, still, because they're scones, but they're not as fun to eat since you can't really break off the top. Cranberry is decent I guess, just not as fruity as I'd like. The cranberries aren't too sweet.
Raspberry scone: 4.5/5
Raspberry I prefer to the cranberry if we're going with red fruits. Raspberry in general is sweeter and there are big chunks of raspberry in here. The raspberry flavors the rest of the scone whereas the cranberries do not.
Blueberry scone: 4/5
An "in-store special", which I guess means you can't order it. Blueberry scones, like blueberry muffins, are a classic. You really can't go wrong. I also like the sugar crystals on top. Still, it's no raspberry scone.
Chocolate chip scone: 5/5
I thought this would be a basic chocolate chip but they put melted chocolate all over it which just makes it all around amazing.
Apricot scone: 5/5
A different flavor of scone you don't see very often. It's a nice change and it works. Tangy yet sweet.
They also have raisin scones but bo-ring. Jay-kay I'm sure they're good. But also boring.
Nutella twist: 4/5
It's a basic flaky pastry dough with Nutella swirled in. Kind of like a flat cinnamon roll but with chocolate. Tastes a lot better warmed up so the filling gets all melted and sticky.
Coffee cake: 5/5
When isn't coffee cake good? It's got the cinnamon brown sugar and nut crumble on top, a moist texture and cinnamon swirled throughout.
Focaccia: 5/5
This comes in a few flavors: tomato, pepper, and herb & garlic. Garlic is always the best choice so I went with that. You may not think to come to a bakery for focaccia but I promise you this is some of the best I've had. There's just enough garlic and herb in there and the flavor is on point. The garlic one has whole cloves of garlic in it so I suggest that one. It also has a layer of crusted cheese on top (bottom?) and a bit of tomato so yeah, best bang for your buck.
Biscotti (with chocolate) (top): 5/5
The actual biscotti is pretty good but really get the chocolate dipped one because I think the chocolate enhances the flavor (my dining partner thought the opposite though). The chocolate accentuates the anise flavoring and almonds. It's not a very tough biscotti; it's got a bit of a chew to it. Meaning it's fresh.
Rugalah (bottom): 4.5/5
Only available Fridays and Saturdays. This is a Jewish pastry. They have cinnamon walnut raisin and chocolate chip so of course I got chocolate chip. I'm sure the cinnamon raisin is equally good but so is this. You can really taste the shortening which personally I like.
Linzer cookie: 4/5
Similar to the marzipan heart in theory but this one's made with almond flour instead of marzipan and almond extract, with the same raspberry filling. It's got a whole-wheat shortbread flavor to it. Not bad.
(top left to bottom right)
Banana nut chocolate muffin: 4.5/5
Tastes like homemade. Rich banana flavor, plenty of chocolate chips, and some nuts thrown in there for a hearty flavor.
Black bottom muffin: 5/5
It's a chocolate cupcake with cream cheese filling, let's be honest. And it's great.
Bran muffin (with blueberries): 5/5
I'm a sucker for a good bowel-moving, hearty-tasting bran muffin. And I feel sorry for the gluten intolerant who never get to enjoy them because you just can't replicate bran with rice flour. This is super moist, wheaty yet slightly sweet. Just the perfect balance. The muffin itself is like a 4.5 but the blueberries bump it up to a 5. You can also get it plain or with cream cheese. I would've got cheese but that one was sold out. Sadface. Blueberry is still awesomeness though. Makes for a healthy breakfast, with that antioxidant and fiber combo.
Blueberry muffin: 5/5
Another super moist, delicious muffin with the best kind of topping, a buttery sugary crumble. Oh man that topping is so good. This may actually be the best blueberry muffin I've ever tasted. It tastes like it has some sort of extract in it, almond or something. Whatever they did they did it very well.
They also have apple spice muffins which are only available in the fall, much like their pumpkin muffins and scones. Damn. Missed 'em.
(clockwise from top left)
Triple chocolate cookie: 3.5/5
Meh. It's fine. It's a chocolate cookie with chocolate chips and walnuts. It's good for what it is but it's nothing outstanding. It's more expensive compared to the other drop cookies below.
Oatmeal raisin cookie: 4.5/5
A nice mix of raisins, oatmeal and cookie. It's a solid oatmeal raisin. Nothing special, but good.
Chocolate chip cookie: 4/5
Crisper than I'd prefer personally (I like a chewy chocolate chip). It's just alright in terms of flavor. You could make just as good ones from a mix.
Peanut butter cookie: 3.5/5
You can also get this with chocolate chips but I wanted to keep it simple so I could taste the flavor more. The plain peanut butter is quite thin. It's on the crispy side because of that. Once again, you could make just as good ones from a mix at the store. Not impressed with this one.
Apple pinwheel: 2.5/5
Pretty damn lame. It's a flaky pastry - which is sadly the best part - with apple filling. I don't know if it's from old apples or if it just isn't sweet enough but this shit does not work for me. Whatever their apple filling recipe is they need to change it. Definitely not getting any apple pies here based on this alone.
Chocolate shortbread cookie: 4/5
Eh, it is what it is. A chocolate dipped shortbread. It's not the best shortbread I've had but it's not bad. It's fine. It's whatever.
Challah: 4/5
Only available Fridays and Saturdays because of Jewish reasons I don't know. Challah is an eggy bread, very eggy and very fluffy. Freeport's is pretty good. I'd compare it to Portuguese (or Hawaiian, same thing) sweet bread but not nearly as sweet. Same base and texture though. For reference the picture makes it appear larger than it is: the loaf is about as big as a somewhat tall dude's bicep.
Mini fruit tart: 4.5/5
Definitely one of the better fruit tarts I've had. The custard is creamy and slightly sweet and the actual tart is crisp, slightly buttery and also slightly sweet. Minus points because most of the berries on top are strawberries and I can't eat those. Otherwise a solid fruit tart.
Lemon bar: 4.5/5
Lemony sweet, tastes as a lemon bar should. A thick layer of lemon... fudge? I dunno. Topped with powdered sugar. Nothing out of this world but it's definitely not bad.
Oh and don't think I forgot about the desserts. They sell them whole and by the slice, thankfully, since a whole cake is damn expensive here (anywhere from $35-65!). Unfortunately they're only open til 6:30 and my dinner hours are well after that (can't be eating dessert for brunch, come on now). They also have mini "hand pies" to eat like calzones. The dessert review will have to wait for another time if at all.
One thing that really peeves me about Freeport Bakery: I can't count the number of times I've been here, with several hours left until they close (sometimes even at 9am), where they've been sold out. Of simple things, like fruit tarts, croissants, etc. This is just poor planning on their part, and to be blunt, it's cheap. Better to have excess and throw it out and not lose customers than to turn people off because you don't have what they want in stock. So come early, get the table scraps, or don't come at all. Because of that I don't really go here anymore.
experience: 2.5/5
overall: 4/5
Freeport Bakery is one of Sacramento's most beloved bakeries. Why? I dunno. It's small and family-owned? I guess? People just go here. There's almost always a line no matter what time of day but it moves fast. They can be a bit snobby here to be honest. The interior is rather small but they do have outside seating which offers a nice view of the light rail and Curtis Park's own McDonald's.
On to the goods.
Danish: 4/5
I mean, danishes are danishes. The best part is obviously gonna be the filling. They got apricot, cherry, mixed berry, and plain cheese. I got me a mixed berry. It's only got a thumbprint's worth of jam inside and a small circumference of cheese. The cheese is very cream-cheesy in flavor, as opposed to tasting more like custard. The fruit tastes alright I guess. I just wish they put more filling.
Bear claw: 4/5
Bear claws are always good and theirs passes. The almonds on top are sweet. But again with the filling! Freeport, stop skimping on the filling. It's what the people want.
Custard wheel: 4.5/5
A more savory pastry, the flavor resembles a croissant with a bit of custard and raisins. Pretty good, especially if you're craving something more doughy than sweet.
Pumpkin scone: 5/5
I didn't try Starbucks' pumpkin scone but I can rest assured this one is better. It's really sweet but not too sweet and they got the pumpkin flavor down.
Pumpkin muffin: 4.5/5
Not the best pumpkin muffin I've had (that honor goes to La Bou) but still a contender. It doesn't have that hard muffin top I like but the flavor is still good, reminiscent of pumpkin pie filling. Make sure to save that sweet cheesecake filling for every bite.
Brotchen (right): 4/5
This is some sort of bread product made out of French bread, even though I looked it up and it's actually German in origin. So yeah it just tastes like French bread. Good, if chewy, but you can get the same quality at Sprouts.
Pizza ring (left): 4.5/5
Okay it's basically a pizza bagel, not sure what's with the hesitation to call it like it is. It's pretty much just the French bread with a tomato-cheese topping. They also put cheddar cheese in the middle. They have a microwave there so throw this in there and you got yourself a pseudo-slice of pizza.
Cinnamon crisp: 5/5
A crispy, crunchy cinnamon roll and I think it's actually glazed with honey instead. Even better.
Regular brownie (right): 3.5/5
Also comes with frosting for 25 cents more (no thanks). Definitely not the best brownie I've had. It's not very moist, more crumbly. Just got plain ol' walnuts in there with chocolate. Tastes like something you make from a mix.
Cream cheese brownie (left): 4.5/5
Somehow more moist than the regular brownie. Maybe a bad batch? Anyway, it's basically the same but it has a swirl of cream cheese on top adding a yummy twist to the flavor. It doesn't have nuts in it, I don't believe.
Butternut tea cookie (left): 5/5
A buttery, moist yet crumbly cookie with nuts and a strong powdered sugar presence. I don't detect any butternut squash but it's delicious nonetheless.
Coconut macaroon (right): 5/5
I wasn't gonna get this since it seemed like a rip-off (over two bucks for a lump?) but this is fantastic. Basically a thick, moist Girl Scout Samoa cookie. Definitely for the coconut lovers out there.
Chocolate croissant: 4/5
I know I am giving it a 4/5 but this is not the best croissant I've had. Much better is to be had at La Bou. The main thing for me was the chocolate filling. Tastes good in the microwave.
Almond croissant: 5/5
Hard to screw up an almond croissant and they don't. Plenty of almond filling spread inside, almonds and powdered sugar on top, plus I think the actual croissant is made with almond extract (if I'm not mistaken). Perfect.
Morning bun: 4/5
Basically just a sugar-glazed croissant. It's fine, if that's what you're looking for.
Jalapeno cheddar pretzel: 4.5/5
They have many different varieties of pretzel but they're all the same pretzel base that is found in this pretzel. It's got a nice doughy flavor and interior but it's not quite as good as a mall pretzel.
Quiche: 4.5/5
Not technically a pastry but made with a pastry shell so... kinda? There's vegetarian quiche and quiche lorraine with ham. This is the ham one, which also has onions. It's pretty good and the crust is nice and buttery but the thing keeping it from a 5/5 is you have to microwave it in their 90's-era microwave which makes the crust not so flaky.
Cinnamon snail: 5/5
A cinnamon roll, essentially. And like most cinnamon rolls it's good. Got the gooey cinnamon sugar interior and the doughy roll, plus a little sticky frosting for good measure. Make sure to stick it in their wonderful non-rotating microwave for the best texture.
Fruit pocket (top): 4/5
Eh, it's kinda just a shortbread-like cookie. It's decent, simple. Apricot or raspberry filling, both about the same.
Marzipan heart (left): 5/5
Yum. It's like a crumbly, more flavorful version of shortbread, with raspberry filling. I believe it has almond extract in it as well. Similar to this is the sun and moon cookie which is also made with marzipan, but has apricot as well as raspberry filling.
Almond horn (right): 4.5/5
I love almond anything basically so this is good too. It's chewy and it's got the chocolate on the ends, with a decent amount of almond extract flavor. Not an overpowering amount.
Cranberry scone: 4/5
So their scones I am not as big a fan of because they don't have that typical crusty texture on top. It's more the texture of a biscuit. Actually the flavor is reminiscent of biscuits as well. They're good, still, because they're scones, but they're not as fun to eat since you can't really break off the top. Cranberry is decent I guess, just not as fruity as I'd like. The cranberries aren't too sweet.
Raspberry scone: 4.5/5
Raspberry I prefer to the cranberry if we're going with red fruits. Raspberry in general is sweeter and there are big chunks of raspberry in here. The raspberry flavors the rest of the scone whereas the cranberries do not.
Blueberry scone: 4/5
An "in-store special", which I guess means you can't order it. Blueberry scones, like blueberry muffins, are a classic. You really can't go wrong. I also like the sugar crystals on top. Still, it's no raspberry scone.
Chocolate chip scone: 5/5
I thought this would be a basic chocolate chip but they put melted chocolate all over it which just makes it all around amazing.
Apricot scone: 5/5
A different flavor of scone you don't see very often. It's a nice change and it works. Tangy yet sweet.
They also have raisin scones but bo-ring. Jay-kay I'm sure they're good. But also boring.
Nutella twist: 4/5
It's a basic flaky pastry dough with Nutella swirled in. Kind of like a flat cinnamon roll but with chocolate. Tastes a lot better warmed up so the filling gets all melted and sticky.
Coffee cake: 5/5
When isn't coffee cake good? It's got the cinnamon brown sugar and nut crumble on top, a moist texture and cinnamon swirled throughout.
Focaccia: 5/5
This comes in a few flavors: tomato, pepper, and herb & garlic. Garlic is always the best choice so I went with that. You may not think to come to a bakery for focaccia but I promise you this is some of the best I've had. There's just enough garlic and herb in there and the flavor is on point. The garlic one has whole cloves of garlic in it so I suggest that one. It also has a layer of crusted cheese on top (bottom?) and a bit of tomato so yeah, best bang for your buck.
Biscotti (with chocolate) (top): 5/5
The actual biscotti is pretty good but really get the chocolate dipped one because I think the chocolate enhances the flavor (my dining partner thought the opposite though). The chocolate accentuates the anise flavoring and almonds. It's not a very tough biscotti; it's got a bit of a chew to it. Meaning it's fresh.
Rugalah (bottom): 4.5/5
Only available Fridays and Saturdays. This is a Jewish pastry. They have cinnamon walnut raisin and chocolate chip so of course I got chocolate chip. I'm sure the cinnamon raisin is equally good but so is this. You can really taste the shortening which personally I like.
Linzer cookie: 4/5
Similar to the marzipan heart in theory but this one's made with almond flour instead of marzipan and almond extract, with the same raspberry filling. It's got a whole-wheat shortbread flavor to it. Not bad.
(top left to bottom right)
Banana nut chocolate muffin: 4.5/5
Tastes like homemade. Rich banana flavor, plenty of chocolate chips, and some nuts thrown in there for a hearty flavor.
Black bottom muffin: 5/5
It's a chocolate cupcake with cream cheese filling, let's be honest. And it's great.
Bran muffin (with blueberries): 5/5
I'm a sucker for a good bowel-moving, hearty-tasting bran muffin. And I feel sorry for the gluten intolerant who never get to enjoy them because you just can't replicate bran with rice flour. This is super moist, wheaty yet slightly sweet. Just the perfect balance. The muffin itself is like a 4.5 but the blueberries bump it up to a 5. You can also get it plain or with cream cheese. I would've got cheese but that one was sold out. Sadface. Blueberry is still awesomeness though. Makes for a healthy breakfast, with that antioxidant and fiber combo.
Blueberry muffin: 5/5
Another super moist, delicious muffin with the best kind of topping, a buttery sugary crumble. Oh man that topping is so good. This may actually be the best blueberry muffin I've ever tasted. It tastes like it has some sort of extract in it, almond or something. Whatever they did they did it very well.
They also have apple spice muffins which are only available in the fall, much like their pumpkin muffins and scones. Damn. Missed 'em.
Triple chocolate cookie: 3.5/5
Meh. It's fine. It's a chocolate cookie with chocolate chips and walnuts. It's good for what it is but it's nothing outstanding. It's more expensive compared to the other drop cookies below.
Oatmeal raisin cookie: 4.5/5
A nice mix of raisins, oatmeal and cookie. It's a solid oatmeal raisin. Nothing special, but good.
Chocolate chip cookie: 4/5
Crisper than I'd prefer personally (I like a chewy chocolate chip). It's just alright in terms of flavor. You could make just as good ones from a mix.
Peanut butter cookie: 3.5/5
You can also get this with chocolate chips but I wanted to keep it simple so I could taste the flavor more. The plain peanut butter is quite thin. It's on the crispy side because of that. Once again, you could make just as good ones from a mix at the store. Not impressed with this one.
Apple pinwheel: 2.5/5
Pretty damn lame. It's a flaky pastry - which is sadly the best part - with apple filling. I don't know if it's from old apples or if it just isn't sweet enough but this shit does not work for me. Whatever their apple filling recipe is they need to change it. Definitely not getting any apple pies here based on this alone.
Chocolate shortbread cookie: 4/5
Eh, it is what it is. A chocolate dipped shortbread. It's not the best shortbread I've had but it's not bad. It's fine. It's whatever.
Challah: 4/5
Only available Fridays and Saturdays because of Jewish reasons I don't know. Challah is an eggy bread, very eggy and very fluffy. Freeport's is pretty good. I'd compare it to Portuguese (or Hawaiian, same thing) sweet bread but not nearly as sweet. Same base and texture though. For reference the picture makes it appear larger than it is: the loaf is about as big as a somewhat tall dude's bicep.
Mini fruit tart: 4.5/5
Definitely one of the better fruit tarts I've had. The custard is creamy and slightly sweet and the actual tart is crisp, slightly buttery and also slightly sweet. Minus points because most of the berries on top are strawberries and I can't eat those. Otherwise a solid fruit tart.
Lemon bar: 4.5/5
Lemony sweet, tastes as a lemon bar should. A thick layer of lemon... fudge? I dunno. Topped with powdered sugar. Nothing out of this world but it's definitely not bad.
Oh and don't think I forgot about the desserts. They sell them whole and by the slice, thankfully, since a whole cake is damn expensive here (anywhere from $35-65!). Unfortunately they're only open til 6:30 and my dinner hours are well after that (can't be eating dessert for brunch, come on now). They also have mini "hand pies" to eat like calzones. The dessert review will have to wait for another time if at all.
One thing that really peeves me about Freeport Bakery: I can't count the number of times I've been here, with several hours left until they close (sometimes even at 9am), where they've been sold out. Of simple things, like fruit tarts, croissants, etc. This is just poor planning on their part, and to be blunt, it's cheap. Better to have excess and throw it out and not lose customers than to turn people off because you don't have what they want in stock. So come early, get the table scraps, or don't come at all. Because of that I don't really go here anymore.
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