Ka Wah Bakery Corporation
“The egg tart is FOR REALS flakey, buttery, and overall the best egg tart I have ever tasted.”
“Diagonally across the street from the Eldridge Street Synagogue is my favorite bakery in Chinatown.”
“The sponge cakes are super soft and moist with just the right sweetness so don't let those plain looking buns fool you.”
Ka Wah Bakery Corporation
Price range.
$ Price range Inexpensive
4 reviews
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TL:DR Cheapest Chinese bakery in Chinatown by far. No frills (what does "frills" even mean).
When you walk in chinatown and you see these non English speaking people working in construction, delivery, restaurants, warehouses, etc (the invisible decoration of your Chinatown stroll), do you wonder where they get their coffee and non western buns for breakfast? If you do, I can tell you right now that this tiny hole in the wall is a prime example of what is supplying the working people of chinatown. You come here from 6:30am-9:30am and you'll see a cramped space of people quickly yelling orders and leaving the place. You have 3 women probably over the age of 50 serving the crowd in chaotic efficiency.
You do not come here for the best or to be treated fairly. You come here because you need to. Get your coffee and whatever bun or pastry you want and get out. It's probably the cheapest bakery in chinatown at this point, and for the regulars who come here those 10-25 cents make a difference. You want to be treated like a VIP, go to Per Se because even the regulars are treated like cattle here. They want you in, and they want you out.
After the morning rush, you're allowed to be a person again though and you can probably take a little more time looking at their baked goods than the 5 seconds you're allowed in the morning.
I come here mainly because their coffee is the cheapest and on top of that it taste pretty good for mass produced drip coffee. But also if you are broke as f@ck and want a starter course in chinese pastry, you can literally get one of everything in this place and you'll probably spend less than $20.
If you don't speak fluent cantonese, mandarin, or one of the three women's chinese dialects, you better be fluent in pointing. good luck in leaving this place with your pride intact.
20oz drip coffee, milk tea, or cold brew (iced coffee) ($1.20) get: you tell them coffee and the size. they will pour a splash of cream and 2 spoons of sugar if you don't say anything. otherwise say something. the more customizing you need, the more you should learn one of their languages or concede to go to starbucks.
mini egg tarts (2 for 70 cents) get if fresh: I once asked for one and they were like you gotta get two…you know you are cheap when the cheapest bakery in chinatown tells you you're being cheap.
egg tart (don't know but it's cheap) get if fresh: that smell you smell walking in the door? yea that's some egg tart
wife cake (low po bian) get: you know what…i'm going to stop cause otherwise this post will just be a long list of traditional southern chinese baked goods and experiences I had ordering them from here, which could just end up being a huge blog that I can minorly monetize.
They have very fresh bakeries… Egg tart for .60.. huge sponge cake for 0.60.. everything is almost less than a dollar… Fresh winter melon, red bean bun… I was hesitating on what to get.. At last my friend got an egg tart and I bought the huge sponge cake.. yummy!! Egg tart was pretty good… the crust was crispy and the egg (or whatever you call) is really soft and not too sweet… Perfect.. My friend just love it..
Sponge cake was pretty normal.. a little oily but not too bad.. the lady that served me was kinda rude.. but not too bad… at least I got a good deal..
I am surprised they do not have lots of reviews… the place looks old.. Come on ppl… head to Ka Wah!! 🙂
God, could this bakery be any greater? My grandma and mom both buy pounds of pastries here, and I grew up loving them. I still remember when their pastries were 0.40 and I would spend less than a dollar after school on bakery snacks.
Ka Wah is a hole in the wall besides some employment agencies, and across from a 99cents store. But it really is a hidden gem.
My favorite here are the individually wrapped sponge cakes. They're the greatest tasting things. Light, moist, and fluffy. And at only 65 cents, how can you go wrong? The egg custards are absolutely fantastic, and so are the coconut tarts. The drinks such as tea, coffee, and nai cha (milk tea) are to die for. I'm drooling just thinking about this place.
If you're in the neighborhood, definitely stop by this little hole in the wall. You won't regret it. For less than $5, you could get dessert for you and 4 friends, literally.
This bakery is probably the oldest one around and hasn't changed one bit. It looks old and not as pretty as the other bakeries in Chinatown, BUT they have like the best stuff. Trust me on this. I love everything they make. AND their prices are probably the lowest in the area.