Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

Sweet-Filled Asian Confections Beckon You at Pangea Bakery Cafe

I tried acupuncture for the time recently. I was told that it would alleviate pain and help make me as relaxed as a wet noodle. Yeah, not so much. Unless, that is, you call relaxation 30 minutes of jolting pain and a practitioner snapping at you like a piranha: "You're too sensitive! Stop being so sensitive!"

Fortunately, the office was in Kearny Mesa, home to many of San Diego's tastiest Asian eateries. My plan was to treat myself to a steaming, healing bowl of pho at Mignon Pho & Grill on Convoy, but on my way there I was sidetracked by a sign: Pangea Bakery Cafe.

I was still steps away from entering Pangea when the sweet smells of yeast, butter and vanilla beckoned me. Pangea's space is airy, inviting and pristine. Yet the glass cases that house scores of delectable confections wrapped in cellophane are wrapped with yellow glass coverings, casting a sallow yellow glow on the food. Look beyond it. Get up close and personal with the confections.

Pangea offers a wide variety of Asian and Pan-Asian baked goods including Hawaiian, Chinese, and Taiwanese specialties. I like going in the morning between 8-10am when they're busy transferring the freshly baked goods from the oven to the shelves. The staff, who couldn't be kinder, will happily answer your questions and offer samples.

http://sandiegoreader.com/users/photos/2012/apr/25/23469/

The last time I was there, one of the managers had just taken these Cream Buns (pictured below) out of the oven and generously offered me one. When you bite into one of these golden saucers your teeth sink into the pillowy soft, dough revealing a pool of warm, mildly sweet cream.

http://sandiegoreader.com/users/photos/2012/apr/25/23465/

A few minutes later the manager removed a tray of shiny golden spheres from the oven (pictured below). He told me that they're called Date Yolk Pastries, and inside of each one, you'll find a sassy, sweet mashed date filling.

http://sandiegoreader.com/users/photos/2012/apr/25/23466/

Yet of all, the sweet-filled wonders I enjoyed that day, my favorite were the Taro Mochi Poluo Buns. When you pull apart the crackled, sugary dough, you discover an appealing mauve-hued taro paste that is more savory than sweet; it's sort of like a mild potato flavored filling. One bite brought me instantly back to the Big Island of Hawaii where taro buns are ubiquitous and delicious.

http://sandiegoreader.com/users/photos/2012/apr/25/23467/

And because I really, really like taro buns, I bought a package of Taro Biscuits for the road. Like oversized marbles, these purple-swirled doughy bites are chewy, mildly sweet and ideal with a hot cup of Chinese black tea.

http://sandiegoreader.com/users/photos/2012/apr/25/23471/

So next time you're in Kearny Mesa, consider treating yourself to Pangea Bakery Cafe, though I'd skip the acupuncture.

Pangea Bakery Cafe 4689 Convoy Street, Suite 100 Kearny Mesa, CA 92111 858.560.0688 Please visit Pangea's website for more details.

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all

Previous article

La Clochette brings croissants—and cassoulet—to Mission Valley

Whatever's going on with this bakery business, Civita Park residents get a decent meal

I tried acupuncture for the time recently. I was told that it would alleviate pain and help make me as relaxed as a wet noodle. Yeah, not so much. Unless, that is, you call relaxation 30 minutes of jolting pain and a practitioner snapping at you like a piranha: "You're too sensitive! Stop being so sensitive!"

Fortunately, the office was in Kearny Mesa, home to many of San Diego's tastiest Asian eateries. My plan was to treat myself to a steaming, healing bowl of pho at Mignon Pho & Grill on Convoy, but on my way there I was sidetracked by a sign: Pangea Bakery Cafe.

I was still steps away from entering Pangea when the sweet smells of yeast, butter and vanilla beckoned me. Pangea's space is airy, inviting and pristine. Yet the glass cases that house scores of delectable confections wrapped in cellophane are wrapped with yellow glass coverings, casting a sallow yellow glow on the food. Look beyond it. Get up close and personal with the confections.

Pangea offers a wide variety of Asian and Pan-Asian baked goods including Hawaiian, Chinese, and Taiwanese specialties. I like going in the morning between 8-10am when they're busy transferring the freshly baked goods from the oven to the shelves. The staff, who couldn't be kinder, will happily answer your questions and offer samples.

http://sandiegoreader.com/users/photos/2012/apr/25/23469/

The last time I was there, one of the managers had just taken these Cream Buns (pictured below) out of the oven and generously offered me one. When you bite into one of these golden saucers your teeth sink into the pillowy soft, dough revealing a pool of warm, mildly sweet cream.

http://sandiegoreader.com/users/photos/2012/apr/25/23465/

A few minutes later the manager removed a tray of shiny golden spheres from the oven (pictured below). He told me that they're called Date Yolk Pastries, and inside of each one, you'll find a sassy, sweet mashed date filling.

http://sandiegoreader.com/users/photos/2012/apr/25/23466/

Yet of all, the sweet-filled wonders I enjoyed that day, my favorite were the Taro Mochi Poluo Buns. When you pull apart the crackled, sugary dough, you discover an appealing mauve-hued taro paste that is more savory than sweet; it's sort of like a mild potato flavored filling. One bite brought me instantly back to the Big Island of Hawaii where taro buns are ubiquitous and delicious.

http://sandiegoreader.com/users/photos/2012/apr/25/23467/

And because I really, really like taro buns, I bought a package of Taro Biscuits for the road. Like oversized marbles, these purple-swirled doughy bites are chewy, mildly sweet and ideal with a hot cup of Chinese black tea.

http://sandiegoreader.com/users/photos/2012/apr/25/23471/

So next time you're in Kearny Mesa, consider treating yourself to Pangea Bakery Cafe, though I'd skip the acupuncture.

Pangea Bakery Cafe 4689 Convoy Street, Suite 100 Kearny Mesa, CA 92111 858.560.0688 Please visit Pangea's website for more details.

Sponsored
Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

San Diego cartoon postcards for 2013 - what & where shall we draw?

Next Article

Cafe 976 - Anomaly in Peebs

Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

This Week’s Reader This Week’s Reader