Bad Bakers (Natomas)
food: 4.5/5
experience: 3.5/5
overall: 4.5/5
Formerly Starbread Bakery, Bad Bakers has homes in both Natomas and Roseville. They're a Filipino bakery and their specialty is something called señorita bread (Spanish bread) along with a nice-sized selection of delicious specialty doughnuts. It's a little spot hidden away in a strip mall by Natomas Marketplace but, when Corona virus isn't making everyone sick, it's sometimes got a line out the door. So get there early.
First up: the doughnuts.
From top left down, top right down:
S'morgasbord: 4.5/5
Kronut with grahams, chocolate pieces, and marshmallows plus chocolate drizzle. The chocolate pieces are the best part for sure.
The B.O.C. (Breakfast of Champions): 5/5
Deefinitely the favorite, an old-fashioned topped with rice krispies and candied bacon plus maple frosting. I'm a sucker for maple bacon doughnuts. Especially bacon.
Couch potato: 4/5
Interesting combo. A kronut with chocolate and potato chips. It works.
Movie time: 3/5
Just a frosted yeast-raised but with chocolate drizzle and a popcorn kernel. There's some other miscellaneous stuff on top too. Down at the bottom in terms of favorites. Recommend getting a chocolate shot inside to make it better.
Shorty cake: 3.5/5
Also one of the least favorite of this bunch, just tastes like a frosted yeast doughnut again (which it is). Would be good with a cheesecake shot. But it's a doughnut so it's still really good.
Walter White: 5/5
A close second favorite. An old-fashioned topped with coconut and frosting. Old-fashioned is my favorite kind of doughnut and I love me some coconut.
More specialty doughnuts...
Top left down to top right down:
Cinnamon toast crunch: 4.5/5
Not one of their regular menu items I don't think. Cinnamon Toast Crunch is the best cereal ever (sorry, Cocoa Pebbles stans) so when I saw they had a doughnut with this stuff on top I had to get it. Also comes with flamed marshmallows, weirdly enough. It works though.
Coconut mocha mochi: 4.5/5
Pretty sweet. Emphasis on coconut. The mocha is there but it's kinda overwhelmed by sugar. Still, sugar is delicious, and so is this doughnut. I don't know why it's called a mochi doughnut. I guess because they're shaped like balls? Uhhhh.
Cinnamon bitso: 5/5
A cinnamon sugar yeast doughnut essentially. I don't know what a bitso is but that's my interpretation. Tastes like there's some other spice in there too, like a pinch of nutmeg or something. It's really good. Also comes in plain sugar.
Joy ride: 5/5
Named after Almond Joy, this one has dark chocolate frosting, coconut, and almond. It's an old-fashioned so it's nice and hearty. Chocolate, almond, coconut... the perfect flavor combo, and why Almond Joy is arguably the best candy bar out there.
Bananarama: 5/5
Lotta stuff going on here. Maple frosting, some crunchy stuff, but mostly the banana which really makes the cake. Or kronut, shall I say.
Cookie craving: 4/5
Pretty simple, a yeast-raised doughnut with glazing plus some Oreo crumbles on top. Nothing special but I do like yeast-raised.
And the remainder of the doughnuts (and a couple cookies for good measure).
Calico (top left): 5/5
A chocolate cake with chocolate frosting, white chocolate chips, and a crumpled Butterfinger on top. Chocolate chocolate chocolate. Yes yes yes.
Lemon cruller (top right): 3.5/5
Not a fan of lemon personally but I'll give it the benefit of the doubt. Even then it's pretty basic. It's got the right texture and flavor of a cruller but the frosting is just uber artificially sweet.
Cream cheese filled bitso (bottom right): 5/5
You already know I love this one so as soon as I saw it came with filling I had to try that version. And yes, it's still delicious.
Chocolate chip cookie (bottom left): 5/5
This is no ordinary chocolate chip. They put marshmallow cream in there too. I don't know how they came up with this but it definitely works in their favor.
Macadamia cookie (bottom middle): 5/5
Once again an already-delicious flavor is made even better with the addition of marshmallow cream in the middle.
Not pictured: the elusive green tea mochi doughnut. I've heard they carry it but it's been mysteriously sold out every morning I went to get one. They also have bundt cakes (lemon and blueberry) but it doesn't seem they make them every day so I didn't get to those either.
Meh. Bundt cake is just plain old cake. Not much new you can do with it.
As mentioned, you can get "flavor shots" (strawberry, chocolate, Bavarian creme, dulce de leche/caramel) which are just fillings injected inside the doughnuts. They also have "plain janes" which are the basic doughnuts (old-fashioned, cruller, yeast-raised) with frosting and no toppings that are cheaper. And they have some vegan doughnuts (blueberry cake) but they're made with soy so I avoided that shit, natch.
Bad Bakers makes several flavors of señorita bread. Several fillings, rather. I tried all but the strawberry (strawberry allergiez). At a buck each you can't go wrong.
The first ingredient is love. Dawwww. I'm not gonna rate them because they all keep it 100 but I'll give a rundown. The cream cheese is creamy and sweet and nice in its simplicity - like an upgraded version of a cheese danish. The apple tastes like apple pie. Of all the "tropical" flavors (guava, mango, pineapple), mango is my personal favorite, but they're all nice in their own way. Guava as a fruit in general, I've found, is neither underrated nor overrated. It's rarely used because it's just not that great, but it's nice for something different once in a while. Anyway. The hazelnut/Nutella is just sweet. The bread itself is even better than it looks in pics. It's doughy and has that pull-apart texture. The perfect blend of doughy and sweet. Kinda like sweet bread but denser. And you have to microwave it to get the full effect. Man you just gotta try these yourselves. The ingredients are simple but done masterfully.
Next to all the rolls on the shelves are the ensaymadas which come in regular and cinnamon. Cinnamon is always the better option if it's available.
It's like a fluffy señorita roll but slightly less doughy, topped with sweet cream cheese and cinnamon. The cinnamon really makes it better so I insist you get that version. Take my advice though: do not heat it up or the cream cheese will melt and slide off. Live and learn.
There are some other random hot pastries at the end of the doughnut shelf. Figured I may as well so I got those too.
The hot dog is rolled up in a señorita roll and baked, and it has cheese inside as well as some crusted on top. It's pretty decent. Like 4ish/5. But the empanada man. This is some good shit. Buttery shell plus savory ground meat filling with a few veggies sprinkled in there. Easily a 5/5.
I'm not too impressed with the prices for these doughnuts at $2.50-$3 apiece for the "fancy" ones. I've had gourmet doughnuts and these are just doughnuts with toppings, lezbehonest.
Keep in mind even though this is a literal hole in the wall, the line is usually out the door even when it's "not" busy (especially after social distancing came into play). So come early (I'm talking within a couple hours of them opening) if you want dibs on the filled señorita rolls. The doughnuts are there all day but those rolls sell out before P.M. hits.
experience: 3.5/5
overall: 4.5/5
Formerly Starbread Bakery, Bad Bakers has homes in both Natomas and Roseville. They're a Filipino bakery and their specialty is something called señorita bread (Spanish bread) along with a nice-sized selection of delicious specialty doughnuts. It's a little spot hidden away in a strip mall by Natomas Marketplace but, when Corona virus isn't making everyone sick, it's sometimes got a line out the door. So get there early.
First up: the doughnuts.
From top left down, top right down:
S'morgasbord: 4.5/5
Kronut with grahams, chocolate pieces, and marshmallows plus chocolate drizzle. The chocolate pieces are the best part for sure.
The B.O.C. (Breakfast of Champions): 5/5
Deefinitely the favorite, an old-fashioned topped with rice krispies and candied bacon plus maple frosting. I'm a sucker for maple bacon doughnuts. Especially bacon.
Couch potato: 4/5
Interesting combo. A kronut with chocolate and potato chips. It works.
Movie time: 3/5
Just a frosted yeast-raised but with chocolate drizzle and a popcorn kernel. There's some other miscellaneous stuff on top too. Down at the bottom in terms of favorites. Recommend getting a chocolate shot inside to make it better.
Shorty cake: 3.5/5
Also one of the least favorite of this bunch, just tastes like a frosted yeast doughnut again (which it is). Would be good with a cheesecake shot. But it's a doughnut so it's still really good.
Walter White: 5/5
A close second favorite. An old-fashioned topped with coconut and frosting. Old-fashioned is my favorite kind of doughnut and I love me some coconut.
More specialty doughnuts...
Top left down to top right down:
Cinnamon toast crunch: 4.5/5
Not one of their regular menu items I don't think. Cinnamon Toast Crunch is the best cereal ever (sorry, Cocoa Pebbles stans) so when I saw they had a doughnut with this stuff on top I had to get it. Also comes with flamed marshmallows, weirdly enough. It works though.
Coconut mocha mochi: 4.5/5
Pretty sweet. Emphasis on coconut. The mocha is there but it's kinda overwhelmed by sugar. Still, sugar is delicious, and so is this doughnut. I don't know why it's called a mochi doughnut. I guess because they're shaped like balls? Uhhhh.
Cinnamon bitso: 5/5
A cinnamon sugar yeast doughnut essentially. I don't know what a bitso is but that's my interpretation. Tastes like there's some other spice in there too, like a pinch of nutmeg or something. It's really good. Also comes in plain sugar.
Joy ride: 5/5
Named after Almond Joy, this one has dark chocolate frosting, coconut, and almond. It's an old-fashioned so it's nice and hearty. Chocolate, almond, coconut... the perfect flavor combo, and why Almond Joy is arguably the best candy bar out there.
Bananarama: 5/5
Lotta stuff going on here. Maple frosting, some crunchy stuff, but mostly the banana which really makes the cake. Or kronut, shall I say.
Cookie craving: 4/5
Pretty simple, a yeast-raised doughnut with glazing plus some Oreo crumbles on top. Nothing special but I do like yeast-raised.
And the remainder of the doughnuts (and a couple cookies for good measure).
Calico (top left): 5/5
A chocolate cake with chocolate frosting, white chocolate chips, and a crumpled Butterfinger on top. Chocolate chocolate chocolate. Yes yes yes.
Lemon cruller (top right): 3.5/5
Not a fan of lemon personally but I'll give it the benefit of the doubt. Even then it's pretty basic. It's got the right texture and flavor of a cruller but the frosting is just uber artificially sweet.
Cream cheese filled bitso (bottom right): 5/5
You already know I love this one so as soon as I saw it came with filling I had to try that version. And yes, it's still delicious.
Chocolate chip cookie (bottom left): 5/5
This is no ordinary chocolate chip. They put marshmallow cream in there too. I don't know how they came up with this but it definitely works in their favor.
Macadamia cookie (bottom middle): 5/5
Once again an already-delicious flavor is made even better with the addition of marshmallow cream in the middle.
Not pictured: the elusive green tea mochi doughnut. I've heard they carry it but it's been mysteriously sold out every morning I went to get one. They also have bundt cakes (lemon and blueberry) but it doesn't seem they make them every day so I didn't get to those either.
Meh. Bundt cake is just plain old cake. Not much new you can do with it.
Bad Bakers makes several flavors of señorita bread. Several fillings, rather. I tried all but the strawberry (strawberry allergiez). At a buck each you can't go wrong.
The first ingredient is love. Dawwww. I'm not gonna rate them because they all keep it 100 but I'll give a rundown. The cream cheese is creamy and sweet and nice in its simplicity - like an upgraded version of a cheese danish. The apple tastes like apple pie. Of all the "tropical" flavors (guava, mango, pineapple), mango is my personal favorite, but they're all nice in their own way. Guava as a fruit in general, I've found, is neither underrated nor overrated. It's rarely used because it's just not that great, but it's nice for something different once in a while. Anyway. The hazelnut/Nutella is just sweet. The bread itself is even better than it looks in pics. It's doughy and has that pull-apart texture. The perfect blend of doughy and sweet. Kinda like sweet bread but denser. And you have to microwave it to get the full effect. Man you just gotta try these yourselves. The ingredients are simple but done masterfully.
Next to all the rolls on the shelves are the ensaymadas which come in regular and cinnamon. Cinnamon is always the better option if it's available.
It's like a fluffy señorita roll but slightly less doughy, topped with sweet cream cheese and cinnamon. The cinnamon really makes it better so I insist you get that version. Take my advice though: do not heat it up or the cream cheese will melt and slide off. Live and learn.
There are some other random hot pastries at the end of the doughnut shelf. Figured I may as well so I got those too.
The hot dog is rolled up in a señorita roll and baked, and it has cheese inside as well as some crusted on top. It's pretty decent. Like 4ish/5. But the empanada man. This is some good shit. Buttery shell plus savory ground meat filling with a few veggies sprinkled in there. Easily a 5/5.
I'm not too impressed with the prices for these doughnuts at $2.50-$3 apiece for the "fancy" ones. I've had gourmet doughnuts and these are just doughnuts with toppings, lezbehonest.
Keep in mind even though this is a literal hole in the wall, the line is usually out the door even when it's "not" busy (especially after social distancing came into play). So come early (I'm talking within a couple hours of them opening) if you want dibs on the filled señorita rolls. The doughnuts are there all day but those rolls sell out before P.M. hits.
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