Beard Papa’s

Finally got myself around to trying Beard Papa’s (in Metrotown). I never really had a good look at the place and just thought a ping-​pong ball sized cream puff shouldn’t cost $ 2+. Well, it turns out that they are closer to tennis ball sized.
Got there on a Sunday shortly after 11 AM so I was pretty sure the baked products were fresh. Contrary to the Beard Papa’s franchise website, only four flavours were available. Not even all the products advertised at the store were available, although that might be due to it being still early on a Sunday.
Cream Puffs
— The cream puffs held up nicely after the 10-​minute commute home and they were still crisp. A very sharp Cutco knife sawed through it cleanly in half.
— Thin, crisp shell. Nothing chewy about this. Might be different if you go later in the day, though. You might have to watch for them to pull stuff out of the oven for the freshest, crispiest, puffs.
— Not fully filled, contrary to the in-​store ad copy (sort of like burger chain advertising, I guess). So don’t be surprised if it’s not exactly bursting with cream. Basically you get a single pump of the cream. Extra room might allow for cream to move around when you bite into it. Typically unevenly distributed inside the puff. If you want the cream-​plosion experience, try Chewy Junior.
— «Custard» cream is more watery/​thin than I expected but not so much that it’ll dribble out like honey.
* Original Vanilla: Pretty decent cream flavour and has vanilla seeds dotted in it.
* The Strawberry Cream: Weak strawberry flavour, but it’s there. Not recommended if you’re looking for a vigorous fruity flavour.
Cookie Crunch Puff
— Looks like a Cream Puff but even crunchier shell without being any thicker. Also crusted with stuff that lends it more sweetness. A bit more crumbly to eat but taste is better.
Dulce de Leche
— Vanilla Cream Puff with a few squirts of dulce de leche.
— Looks like a fluke goof with mine meant the interior was basically a Vanilla Cream Puff and the dulce de leche sauce oozed out during transit.
Overall the safest bet is the normal Cream Puff. Just choose your custard flavour. If in doubt, go with plain vanilla.
*
Service at this location is okay, considering there was just the one girl running the whole show on typically slow Sunday mornings. Go early for the fresh cream puff shells and just have patience and empathy for solo retailers who have dozens of things to do on top of being nice to you.

I love Bread Papa’s cream puffs. There is NO comparison of frozen cream puffs at all! It is fresh and natural. I still remembered the first fresh cream puff taste that I had in Tokyo. They have 8 – 10 flavours and other 2 weekly flavours cream puffs.
I stopped at Crystal Mall to grab things and found Bread Papa’s at corner. Of coz, I checked it out and saw big funny poster in front of the store. Black Sand Sugar Chestnut Stir-​fry in store!!! I didn’t bother about it and bought my flavour coffee cream puffs. The cream is sweet and light, full flavour and delicious.
I noticed Aberdeen has the wide variety of flavors than other stores. It filled in fresh cream and get messy to eat. Yummy.

My BF and I had sweet tooth after doing groceries, and we though that treating us of our first experience of Beard Papa’s was a good idea.
My BF got the Éclair, it was nice but a bit pricey for the quality. He didn’t go crazy about it !
Now I enjoyed my crème brûlée, and it was a good price regarding the regular price of a crème brûlée in a restaurant.
I might try again as their crème brûlée is Gluten free and that allows me to have a treat for a reasonable price.

probably my favourite one over the Robson one, simply for convenience if you want to be in the mall, do all of your shopping & errands, and free parking of course :) it’s right by the escalator to underground parking. try to find that in DT lol.
plus if you buy the beard papas near closing, they offer a deal too. my personal favourite are the round ones w/​custard of course inside, and dipped in chocolate. for some reason, i like the taste better than the regular crème puffs as i dont like the way the custard oozes out; the ringed ones are distributed evenly.

So far, I’ve tried Beard Papa’s at Aberdeen Centre and Metrotown location and I’ve tried this location three times and I must say Beard Papa’s at Crystal Mall is probably the worst. The outer shell never taste fresh and most of the time it’s hard like bread crust. Luckily, the inner fillings do taste the same as the other two locations.

There are a few locations here in California, but this is the first time I’ve ever tried Beard Papa’s and it was when I was in BC. Hard to believe, I know.
I ordered the cream puff with vanilla ice cream. I wanted green tea, but it wasn’t available. In fact, they really didn’t have much left because it was near closing time. The cream puff was nice and flaky and the ice cream was tasty and cold. It was like eating an ice cream cone in a sandwich form.
I wasn’t really impressed but maybe it was because I didn’t really get what I wanted. I’m going to try it again at one of the locations here — the teaser that I had at this location in BC didn’t seem to do this franchise justice.
We shall meet again, Beard Papa!

The time I went, the cheesecake sticks were flat and messed up looking compared to the ones I’ve had at the robson location.
the puffs were fine, but Anna’s Cake House does a better cream puff. For one, Anna uses whipped cream, not custard!
not bad, but I don’t get the hype around beard papa. the pastry is a bit dry, and the custard is ho hum. Anna’s cream puffs are a work of art.

had this on the 24^th of Dec, 2009 …
so good and so SINFUL!!!
no wonder I didn’t get any xmas present the next morning. :’(

News Alert People
The newest location of Papa Beard just opened their doors at 11:00 am today. They are conveniently located directly across from Superstore at Metrotown, shorter walk than Crystal Mall.
It was a heck of an opening; I should know I was there. Of course I was busy all day on Commercial Drive so didn’t get there until about 6 pm but they didn’t run out of eclairs yet.
Nicely done with lots of staff for the 1^st day anyone so everything was like a well-​oiled machine. Constant line-​up but it went swift and efficient. They have more filling choices for the delicacies too, pumpkin was a new one for me.
So I was one happy camper once again. You go Papa Beard! This location is a winner and once again people I recommend you run not walk there!

The first time a friend gave me one of the classic vanilla-​filled cream puffs, I almost wrestled her to the ground to get the rest of the dozen she had purchased. Instead I ran over to the Crystal Mall and bought a dozen myself. And proceeded to eat them. NO I didn’t offer to share with anyone.
They have other fillings (mango, green tea, mocha, chocolate) but the classic vanilla is the best.
The Chocolate Molten Cakes are good, too. Not too rich. Not too sweet.
They also have Cheese cake strips. I’d pass on this if you are a big cheesecake fan because these are not Beard Papa’s specialty.
Any time I am near the Crystal Mall, I HAVE to get a classic vanilla-​filled cream puff.

I don’t think I’ve ever had a more delicious cream puff in my life. I had the classic vanilla-​filled cream puff which was the size of a tennis ball and tasted like heaven with every bite.