Valerio’s Tropical Bake Shop
Cheese Flower
Ube Flower
Turon
Kalamay Ube
Hopia Mongo
Cheese Roll
For those making an effort to see some of the city’s ethnic bakeries Valerio’s Tropical Bake Shop on East Maryland Parkway is easily overlooked given a location tucked away next to Seafood City, but with a strong local clientele of Filipino’s frequently filling the small space a first look showed the goods to actually fare quite well, though service proved perfunctory while the haphazard layout is likely to annoy any with even the slightest degree of claustrophobia, OCD, or any sense of Feng Shui.
Cited more than once by the health department for concerns of food handling, but recently implementing standards to prevent such things according to one of the store’s owners, it was around 4:45pm that a visit was made to the bakery and with some items tasted immediately with others preserved for breakfast the next day a total of six items were selected, the total tallying a mere $10.90 with an extra Turon thrown in as a gift, the freshly fried pastry a touch oily on the surface but undeniably delicious as banana presented creamy and molten within.
Having spent some time watching locals make their purchases in order to decide what was best, or at least most popular, subsequent tastes of Valerio’s goods continued to show restrained sweetness amidst soft textures, and although the long loaf was little more than bleached flour with a stick of cream cheese beneath frosting both the ‘cheese flower’ and sibling smeared with purple yam were yeasty pillows packed with natural flavors, a similar dough seemingly featured in several prepackaged bulk items with fillings of red beans, mango, and nuts.
Going ‘off-the-board’ for the rest of the order, neither item selected by any in the line of fifteen before me, those looking for something a bit savory would be well advised to take a look at the package marked Hopia Mongo, each two-bite morsel chock-a-block full of pureed yellow beans beneath a flaky golden shell, and for those who want something truly unique the Kalamay Ube should fulfill any such desires, the tray of dark purple sweet rice offering a flavor not unlike sweet potato pie with a container of toasted coconut adding just enough nuance to keep the taffy-like texture from getting boring with later bites.
THREE STARS: Not as well stocked as some of the Asian bakeries on Spring Mountain, nor some of the other traditional ethic shops like Manan, Valerio’s is a worthwhile stop for those interested in unique Filipino confections with prices that are wallet friendly even if you’re not quite sure whether you’ll love what you buy.
RECOMMENDED: Turon, Ube Flower, Hopia Mongo.
AVOID: Cheese Roll.
TIP: Monday to Sunday, 8a-10p.
WHAT THE STARS MEAN: 5 World Class, 4 Excellent, 3 Good, 2 Fair, 1 Poor
