Seoi6 Bakehouse Beijing Road 陸穗 北京路店 (Guangzhou, CHINA) ★★★☆☆

I have made a habit of visiting at least one French pastry shop whenever I visit a Mainland Chinese city these days. Today, Guangzhou (廣州市) was no exception, as I found myself strolling through the heart of Beijing Road pedestrian street (北京路步行街) looking for some heart-warming desserts.

While the streets here were full of Chinese dessert shops, there were a few western-style pastry shops scattered around the side streets.

Hidden on a side street, Seoi6 Bakehouse (陸穗 北京路店) is a French bakery known for its croissants, pain au chocolat, and other baked goods. Social media had teased a small but exquisite selection of pastries, including an amazing yuzu basil tart (羅勒柚子塔), which immediately caught my eyes. So that became my target for the day.

Unfortunately, the elusive yuzu basil tart wasn’t available during our visit. I was told they could attempt to make it right away, but it would take another 20 minutes. So, instead I went with their Mont Blanc (蒙布朗栗子塔) reluctantly.

I decided to grab a seat next to the bakery kitchen and get a sneak peek of what’s coming out next. 😉😉

Iced Thai milk tea (¥22) — Like their pastries, a few of the drinks were also unavailable. I reluctantly (again) got myself a glass of iced Thai milk tea that was both light and watery.

Mont Blanc (¥46) — Having recently returned from Japan, where I sampled more than a dozen Japanese-style Mont Blancs during the holidays, my expectations for this dessert were at an all-time high (I have to admit that Japanese are very passionate about their Mont Blanc).

In the end, the Mont Blanc was disappointing. Underneath the thin layer of chestnut purée was mostly fresh cream, with little structure to speak of. More interesting was the tartlet itself, hidden with a touch of cassis to add a pleasant acidity to the mix. But all in all, an underwhelming dessert that didn't quite hit the mark. At least not for me.

I don’t know why people kept saying that Guangzhou has a pretty low living standard. A Mont Blanc of this quality cost $46 (HK$52) a piece. That’s quite a hefty price for something that didn’t fully deliver on the authenticity or the flavor I had initially hoped for.

Food Rating: 4.9/10

Price: ¥¥¥

Address: 323 Beijing Road, Yuexiu District, Guangzhou, China

广州市越秀区北京路323号

Closest Metro Station: Gongyuanqian (公园前)

Tel: +86 13802727750

Opening Hours: 8:30am - 9:00pm daily

Map: https://j.map.baidu.com/b0/AoaM