Bakery:
Uncle Tetsu
400 S Baldwin Ave Spc M15
Arcadia, CA 91007
Hello and Welcome to another episode of Restaurant Reviews!
Today's post is a little different as we're not taking a look at a restaurant, per se, but rather a small but extremely popular bakery specializing in Japanese Style Cheesecakes.
ABOUT THE BAKERY
Uncle Tetsu is a small bakery located in the food court of the Santa Anita Mall in Arcadia, CA.
Their menu is limited and includes things like coffees, teas, and cheese tarts, but their signature dish is their famous Japanese Cheesecake.
Uncle Tetsu originally opened their bakery in Japan in 1990, but after gaining immense popularity (particularly in China), they have now opened more than 70 stores across the globe including China, Malaysia, Singapore, Cambodia, Philippines, Canada, and the US.
The location we visited today is actually only 1 of 2 bakeries currently existing in the USA (the other being Hawaii). Due to the limited number of stores, the Uncle Tetsu bakery at this location is extremely popular and often has long lines that can last up to 45 min on busy weekends.
THE PROCESS
While waiting in line, you can observe the entire process of the cakes being made:
1. The batter for the cheesecakes are first prepared by the employees in the back kitchen.
2. The batter mixture is then handed to another employee who places the cakes in these ovens to bake.
3. After done baking, the cheesecakes are taken out of the oven and branded with the Uncle Tetsu Logo.
4. They are then finally packaged into small boxes and handed to the purchasing customers.
THE PASTRIES
1. Japanese Style Cheese Tart
Description:
Japanese style tart with a cheese custard made from milk, eggs, sugar, and cream cheese.
Review:
When we got to the cash register, we saw a little sign that seemed to be promoting their cheese tarts so we decided to give it a try before tasting their signature Cheesecake. At first glance, the cheese tart had a tantalizing golden glow on the custard and was actually considerably large in size. The custard had a soft and creamy texture and was pleasantly sweet with a surprising punchy 'cheesy' flavor from the cream cheese. The crust of the tart was surprisingly not that dry, like other tarts tend to be, and matched really well with the creaminess of the custard.
The flavors and textures of the cheese tart kind of reminded me of a Taiwanese style egg tart but with more richness like a classic cheesecake typically has. Even though this place is all about the cheesecake, their cheese tarts are also good enough to make a trip here worth it.
Result:
Very good texture and flavor and absolutely worth picking up! 9.5/10.
2. Japanese Style Cheesecake
Description:
Souffle like cheesecake made from eggs, butter, flour, sugar, cream cheese, and heavy whipping cream.
Review:
If you've never had Japanese cheesecake before, the texture and flavor profile are almost completely different from that of a traditional cheese cake. Although there is still that sweet cream cheese flavor, Japanese cheesecakes are considerably lighter and have a texture that is more like a souffle or sponge cake.
It's very difficult to consistently get that perfect cotton-like texture but Uncle Tetsu seems to have their technique down to a science. Their cakes are soft and fluffy and because there isn't an overwhelming richness like you typically get in a traditional cheese cake, it's easy to scarf down a whole cake in one sitting. Even if you're not a big fan of sweets, I'm sure you'll still appreciate the quality of these Japanese cheesecakes.
Result:
Uncle Tetsu truly is the best in the business when it comes to Japanese Cheesecake.
If you've never had the opportunity of trying this Japanese specialty, I highly recommend you go and try it. 9.5/10.
OVERALL RATING
Japanese Cheesecake has been sort of a trendy dessert over the past year and I've been seeing them mentioned pretty extensively in the media and YouTube. However, not many bakeries seem be able to create and sell this style of cheesecake which makes Uncle Tetsu that much more special.
Their cheesecakes are always made fresh and they manage to produce consistency in their flavors and textures despite the relative difficulty of mastering the technique required to produce Japanese cheesecakes. There's a reason there's always a line here, but its their cakes' addictive, unique flavor that keeps me coming back for more again and again.
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