If you live on the North Shore of Long Island, Buttercooky Bakery is a name that usually commands immediate respect. Their Manhasset location is a local landmark with a glistening glass case of high-end cookies, elaborate cakes, and buttery pastries that are snatched up by folks in the neighborhood and surrounding areas.
Sometimes legendary bakeries can have an off day or they start to slip in their offerings. Many of us remember what happened at the Bakery (in Alberston and Plainview). For those that do night, The Bakery set the standard for Long Island Kosher Bakeries but for the last few years before they closed the quality of their baked goods dropped. Many of us believe that financially they could not afford to have fresh cakes baked each day and the baker would only come in 2 or 3 days a week. As a result, their cakes were a crap shoot. If you bought one the day it was baked then it was good but you could have also bought one that was cooked 3 days ago and it was stale.
During my most recent visit to Buttercooky Bakery, I purchased the Crumb Cake and it unfortunately fell surprisingly short of the mark. You expect a buttery, cinnamon-sugar streusel atop a moist, springy yellow cake base. The crumb cake that I purchased tasted like it had been sitting in the case just a day or two too long.
The hallmark of a great crumb cake is the contrast between the crunch of the topping and the softness of the cake. On this visit, that contrast was missing:
The Cake Base: Instead of being moist and buttery, the cake had taken on a slightly dense, refrigerator-dry texture. It lacked that fresh-from-the-oven give and felt more like a utilitarian sponge than a premium pastry.
The Crumbs: When fresh, they should melt in your mouth. These, however, were notably hard—almost crusty. This suggested to me that they had lost their moisture to the air.
The reason a not-so-fresh experience especially hurts at Buttercooky more than at a grocery store is the price point. You pay a premium for the Buttercooky name and the Manhasset location. When you’re paying top-tier prices, you expect top-tier freshness. You especially feel it when you are paying up for something and it is stale.
Does this mean Buttercooky is on the decline? Had to say. I will be forced to try their other offerings to see if they match the standards that we come to expect.