I was excited when The Bay Area Night Market reached out to me about meeting with a few of their vendors ahead of their two day event! It was really great being able to try some of the food and drinks that will be available and support local businesses. The Bay Area Night Market will be on July 13 and July 14, 2018 at NewPark Mall. You can purchase tickets on their website. Though I only met with a few vendors, there are over 30 vendors making an appearance at the event! There will also be demos, performance, and music. A portion of the proceeds will go towards the Asian American Donor Program, which works to get (primarily) Asian Americans on to the bone marrow registry list, because it is so difficult to find a match. I’m really excited to eat my way through the market and support a good cause!
Bubbly Teahouse
Bubbly is out in East San Jose in a large plaza. It’s a little hidden since you have to walk more into the plaza/outdoor mall space but it’s worth it! It’s a minimalist boba shop with a lot of comfy seating and space to even play video games. While Bubbly may be known for their pretty bottles (I was enamored with them too), their tea and boba is top notch. I like that the drinks come in reusable bottles and the designs change often depending on the time of year. You can even upgrade your drink to get even cooler looking bottles.
I kept it classic and got the Bubbly Me. It’s made with a special oolong milk tea and flan. I decided to substitute the flan with black pearl boba. The tea was so flavorful! I wasn’t expecting that but it was delicious. I noticed that they didn’t ask me about my sugar or ice preferences (which has become increasingly the norm), but they know what they’re doing. My tea wasn’t very sweet but it didn’t need to be – it would just be masking the rich flavor of the tea. I also tried the Lychee Freeze (jasmine milk tea, lychee syrup, lychee bits, boba) and the Malibu Sunset (jasmine green tea with strawberry syrup, mango syrup, lychee syrup and aloe vera. The Lychee Freeze had those strong floral notes of the jasmine milk tea which works really well with the lychee. It also didn’t need extra sugar because it’s naturally sweet! The Malibu Sunset was a lighter fruit tea which had so many flavors. The mango and the lychee stood out the most to me, which made me really like it – and I’m not even a lychee fan!
They also have a few other fun confections such as the My Cinderella, a whimsical ice cream dessert! It comes with one flavor of your choice (I chose mint chocolate chip), Oreo bits, chocolate chips, Pocky, jelly beans, sprinkles, and a halo of cotton candy around the cone. I literally ate this for breakfast and it was awesome!
Crumbwich
I wasn’t sure what to expect when I tried Crumbwich’s Silvanas, but I should’ve expected tastiness!Ā At first glance, this Filipino dessert reminded me of a cross between a colorful macaron and an ice cream sandwich. The flavored buttercream is sandwiched between 2 cashew meringue cookie wafers dusted with cookie crumbs. Theyāre meant to be enjoyed right out of the freezer since it keeps the buttercream from totally melting.Ā Currently, they can be found at Sinceretea and Oakridge Mall – both in San Jose.
From left to right, they are: Ube (Purple Yam), Tropical Mango, Pandan, and Oreos Cookies n’ Cream. They’re crunchy when you bite into and, and of course, very crumbly! But then that buttercream hits you and gives you a burst of flavor! They’re pretty light to eat so I could easily see someone eating a few of these and not realizing it! My favorites were the Ube and the Pandan. I really think the more traditional flavors a lot of fun and more unique – I’m always really excited to try new flavors. I’ve had Ube as ice cream before and Pandan in Vietnamese green waffles, so I already knew they would be great as a dessert – I just don’t get to have them enough!
Crumbwich is also branching out and creating new desserts, like mochi muffins! I’ve had them at Third Culture Bakery before, but it’s exciting to see them available in different parts of the South Bay. These will be introduced and served at the Night Market as well and in both flavors! The left is the original and on the right is chocolate.
I really enjoyed the chocolate one! Mochi has such an interesting texture in baked goods – it’s chewy, but I surprisingly enjoy it. I also think it’s a great vehicle for other flavors, so the chocolate tastes really rich. I can’t wait for more people to try them out at the market!
Petit Pot
I love pots de crĆØme. They would often be a dessert item at my old workplace and it’s soĀ good. It’s French pudding-custard, but it’s better because it’s richer, it’s creamier, and lighter. I also had some at the Wizarding World of Harry Potter (butterbeer flavor, of course) and that was just delightful. So, I was really excited to try multiple flavors of puddings!
Though French in origin, Petit Pot is made in California (South San Francisco, to be exact) and sold at retailers nationwide. They have a handy dandy store locator on their website, so you can find a location near you! If it’s not available in your area, they also ship nationwide. I’m glad that they’re available in larger chain grocery stores like Safeway versus just Whole Foods.Ā They use high quality and organic ingredients and use reusable jars to promote sustainability, but itās also affordable.
I tried the Dark Chocolate, Salted Caramel, and Madagascar Vanilla.Ā They were all so good – but I think my surprise favorite was the Madagascar vanilla! With each bite you can tell that all of the ingredients they use are real. It doesnāt have an artificial taste to it at all. The dark chocolate is rich and velvety (just as they describe), with some bitterness because well, itās dark chocolate. The salted caramel is more of a burnt caramel, you get the salty and the sweet and that smoldering flavor – just like how it is when you cook caramel sauce. The vanilla is very light but very rich – you can even see the flecks of vanilla in each spoonful. I like that none of these are too sweet; they’re just right. I also like the jar size because it’s a perfect snack or dessert. Yes, I totally eat pudding as a snack.
I cannot wait to try what else will be out there at The Bay Area Night Market! I’m also currently running a giveaway on my Instagram page, with the winner winning 2 two-day tickets to the market! Be sure to check it out and enter – it’s so easy!
bay-food.com 