I recently got a chance to sample Black Pearl Tarts at an event that I attended and what can I say…read more-- I'm hooked! Everything is tastier when it looks good and is bite sized and this my friend is a check, check and a check! The owner elevates tarts into one sophisticated bite using seasonal ingredients and beautiful flourishes like sprinkled covered marshmallows or edible flowers. If sugar ain't your thing you can check out their savory flavors as well -- sweet potato hummus? Yes please! The crust is hearty and the perfect foil to the sweet, sweet insides. Perfect for cocktail parties and they take orders online so you never have to talk to a human person (sorry, I'm an anti social hobbit who just wants to live on tarts). Definitely check this local business out!

Black Pearl recently provided red wine and fruit compote tarts topped with sweet goat cheese and…read morepoached pears for an event I attended. I was stunned. It's actually worth talking about their appearance before I get to the experience of eating them: On the table, their products look elegant--striking without being intrusive or gaudy. They set a great mood. These are some of the best-presenting tarts I've ever seen. I can't vouch for their full line of products, as the only tart on offer was the Mulled Fruit & Goat Cheese, but it was shockingly well-thought-out: Every texture at play in the tart--firm, crumbly shell; jammy compote; smooth sweet cheese; crisp poached pears--kept its distinct profile throughout the evening. Coming to them later in the night didn't result in a soggy crust, limp fruit or runny compote, and the textures recombining in your mouth were a delight. Of course texture doesn't mean much if it isn't backed up by flavor, and so I saved the best for last. As I mentioned above, it's obvious that everything about this dessert was carefully considered, and considered with excellent judgment, at that. Every element was in balance, announcing itself clearly on the tongue without overwhelming the other notes: The mild cookie-ness of the crust, the deep mulled wine in the compote, the sweet tang of the goat cheese--this was a joy to eat. Full disclosure: Black Pearl is operated by Christina Marie. I do know Christina personally--we have a number of close mutual friends, though I don't know her terribly well. I'm writing this review because Black Pearl is a local start-up whose food really impressed me, not as a personal favor to someone I know.

I went here for the first time a week ago…read more Delicious baked goods and friendly staff. I got a sampling: cinnamon bun, cheese danish, a couple chocolate chip cookies, and some mini muffins. Everything was delicious! Very buttery. Even the day old items were fresh! The staff was very friendly. I don't know they plan to have seating but it's a lovely place. Bright and great energy! And it's a nonprofit. Here's the menu. They aren't open on Sunday.

I chose this place because I could walk to it from my house on Trinidad. Edited to say I love their…read moremission! They are a "non-profit bakery dedicated to selling fresh baked quality food in areas of DC that are barren of healthful food and industry." We stopped by to get a few cookies to take to my daughter at work. It's a pretty bare bones operation - definitely more of a to go spot. Besides baked goods, they offer food. I got the last M & M cookie and 2 chocolate chip cookies. My daughter said the M & M one was good. I confess I ate the 2 chocolate chip cookies the next day. They were chewy and full of chocolate chips. Super yummy! The counter staff person was friendly and helpful. Glad they are in the neighborhood!

I love Ravenhook! I pick up their breads at Eastern Market. My favorites are the seasonal tomato…read morefocaccia, chocolate chip cookies, Pain de Campagne, and the Crostinis. The focaccia is great slightly toasted with mozzarella and tomato sauce. The Pain de Campagne is great toasted with butter and jam or as a BLT. The Crostinis are a must with soup, especially creamy soups. Always get more than one cookie. You will regret only getting one!

What's great about this bakery is that you can place your order online and pick up your order at…read moreyour local farmers' market. I highly recommend doing this because then you can be sure to get exactly what you want since what is at their booth goes fast. One of my favorite things to get is their Asiago cheese bread. My daughter loves their seasonal jam (particularly the raspberry) bars, and I am crazy about their chocolate babka (it's amazing)! Their frosted brownies are oversized fudgy goodness. The items are pricey (but their baked goods are high quality). Be sure to get a punchcard (and remember to bring it each time you come to your local market. Bon appetit!

I saw Caroline on the Kelly Clarkson show and decided I must order these delicious cookies! Guess…read morewhat, they are scrumptious. I placed an order online and they shipped them over to me. They took such great care in boxing up the order. Plenty of extra cushion so the cookies didn't break. Super thoughtful folks! The online customer support was fantastic. Super helpful in helping to decide which of their delicious items we should have. The millionaire's shortbread bar is outstanding!

Run, don't walk to your nearest Greenisland Bakery. Or, check out their website and order online…read more Their Irish Shortbread cookies are absolutely delicious. I have tried their entire line and honestly can't say which cookie I enjoyed the most. Fortunately, it is the holiday season. The perfect excuse to give a gift guaranteed to please ... and don't forget to get some for yourself. Enjoy!

While we were eating lunch at Union Market this past Friday, our gaze landed on Saku Saku Flakerie…read moreas the option for our post-lunch dessert. I was surprised to see a Saku Saku location open here, but apparently they've been open since last August. MATCHA LAVENDER MOCHI ROLL - 6.95 My mom and I decided to go with this one because it was there was only one left, which meant it must be good! We also love matcha and lavender. However, the matcha frosting consistency was a bit weird -- more gloopy and didn't stick well to the mochi roll and kind of got everywhere. The lavender notes within were delightful, however. The mochi roll itself was hard to cut through because it was so sticky. We thought the dessert was overall too sweet and didn't end up finishing. Probably an off day, or the dessert just wasn't for us. Given their interesting flavors and being Japanese-inspired, I would be open to trying the pastries here again.

I was very excited to try this place during my trip! The service was nice, it was only one worker…read morebut they were very sweet. I tried each of the cookies available, and they were okay. Not super sweet but I felt that the cookies leaned a bit more heavy and dense. Additionally, when we went they were not doing drinks, which I was disappointed about but perhaps it was just an off day.

Move over spiked milkshakes, these adult cupcakes might just crunk you up! Very excited to try…read morethese two very nomnom alcohol infused cupcakes. Birthday Blackout (5/5 NOMs) Vegan alcohol delight with funfettie cupcake infused with marshmallow whipped vodka topped with vanilla vodka butter cream. Its a whole lot of alcoholic sweetness. It was like tasting cotton candy rainbows! Irish Car Bomb (4/5 NOMs) Guinness chocolate cake infused with Jameson topped with Bailey's butter cream. It was like taking a shot of yummy bailey in a chocolate glass. Its a great day to be an adult and sweets lovers. Bacon Cupcake (5/5 NOMs) Holy mother of bacon!!! Get ready to enter becany pork heaven. Its a very soft and light cupcake filled with jello and bacon flavor goodness. Great mixture of sweet and salty smoky flavors. Its not bacon awesomeness until you stick giant piece of bacon on top. Now, that is a great creation I was super happy to try. This is my favorite bacon cupcake in town. You have had bacon until you tried this.

Crunkcakes (as the name implies) are booze laden cupcakes with an equally great balance of flavor…read more I had the privlege to have their mini-cakes (which I thought were perfect shots) at Little Miss Whiskey's for a Whiskey Tasting Night. Irish Car Bomb: Chocolate cake perfectly balanced with the moist Jameson center. The bailey's frosting is the sweet compliment bringing out the rich chocolate. Cowboy Coffee: EXTREMELY chocolatey, with a rich dark taste. Hint of espresso goes back and forth with the Jameson. Both have perfect moist centers that taste as if they were lightly soaked in alcohol, and the cake was ACTUALLY BETTER than the frosting (only other place that accomplishes this is The Sweet Lobby). I'm not downing on the frosting, though. It is perfectly complimentary. As of right now they sell them in bars/private events/festivals. But I hope to see a store front in the future.

There are no words to describe the pure love in Donna Faye's Bakery. Seriously magic…read more Only one simple favour- Can you please make dog biscuits?

I ordered their new brownie Bundt cake…read more Couldn't finish it in one sitting or even the same day because it's soo rich But when I finished it I wanted another and another

this place was tucked away right in Union market. Super cute space serve good drinks and amazing…read morefood. The staff was super nice and helpful and I love the space as it made the show feel intimate and fun. Parking is a little tricky, but there is options around union market from garage to street parking. I will definitely be back for more shows!

I have a friend who is starting to do music gigs, and he invited me to see him perform at this…read morevenue that I had never been to before. It's in Union Market just a few doors down from the new F1 Arcade... parking right nearby may be tricky, but there's always the Union Market parking lot and more options if you're willing to walk a bit. It may not be ideal on really cold days. They have a spacious outdoor seating area, and entry is easy -- just show your ID, ticket, and you're good to go. I'm not sure if it was because of the show, but there were just a few tables along the closest wall and near the stage. I would see there were five to six high tables total. Before ordering anything, I grabbed the only table left -- I had a feeling the others coming would appreciate that. I had already eaten, but I absolutely had to have the jerk chicken sandwich, it looked too good. I ordered it at the bar, was given a buzzer, and it was ready in about 10 minutes or so. It was indeed tasty! A bit pricey to just be the sandwich and nothing else, but it was good. The bar is fully stocked, and there are water cups at the far end to refill at your leisure. The show itself was really fun -- vocals and the sounds of the instruments were excellent. Certain vocals got drowned out by certain instruments, but that's just how sound works, you know? All in all I'd come back to this venue, it was a vibe with the disco ball overhead! I don't mind it, but for the less tech savvy, I could see the dependence on an app to retrieve the ticket for the concert being an inconvenience for some. There was no way to pull up the ticket without downloading Dice and activating the QR code on there.

Really high-quality and thoughtfully curated flavors…read more When we ordered the banana cream, they had to check if it was still in stock which was a cheeky sign on how tasty the donuts are. Our donut was light and fluffy, with a creme infused with real banana. You can tell that they are being thoughtful on their approach to artisanal donuts, and it really shows up in how they elevate this classic dessert. Its rare to find donuts that balance complex flavors, sweetness level, and good crumb but all of those things are what make it distinct fom others, especially chain restaurant donuts. Of course, these are probably made the day of and ours was a large and substantial size. Its definitely a treat-yourself type of moment to commit to the price point, but we weren't disappointed. My take on high‑price‑point food in Union Market is simple: that's exactly where you'll find it. So once you let go of that once you enter, you have a more pleasureable experience by allowing yourself to indulge and try to find the thing that will really fulfill you. And they did that for me. Thank you beautiful ladies who helped me select my donut!

Not $60 doughnuts .... And also described as not dreadful??…read more cinnamon struseul was best of the bunch and was still just okay. But wow were the rest disappointing (super frustrating bc they look very pretty). All of them felt old and dry, the buttermilk glazed (which tasted like it had citrus glaze icing) and the citrus cake (way dense) were the driest. Chocolate ganache doesn't even taste like chocolate more chemical than anything. Service was extremely slow when all they had to do was place doughnuts in a box -- also seemed like customers were an inconvenience. Overall absolutely go buy other doughnuts. Don't waste your money, product to cost ratio is 1 star.