Asian Sweet Bakery

I really, really want to give this place a better rating, because by far this is one of the most authentic Chinese food place in Madison. I remember all my favorite breakfast and lunch specials back home in Shanghai, and their baked goods selection covers most everything I expect. If there’s anyone who wants to know what Chinese people eat, this is the place to be. Also it’s quite affordable.
Having said that, the actual taste of the food was so disappointing. I got their fish congee (it taste better than it sounds), a pastry with red bean filling, and a hot milk tea. Usually these types of porridge are very savory, because they’re stewed with preserved eggs and ham, and cooked using a meat broth, but what I got here was bland and boring. Maybe they skimped on the preserved eggs, because those things are umami bombs. The bun was mediocre as well — decent filling but kind of small, and the breading of the pastry was a bit dry. I say disappointing not in the sense that it didn’t compare to the best I’ve ever had. It’s disappointing because it didn’t quite reach a good enough level where I feel satisfied, and I could see that it’s almost there… but not quite.
I thought long and hard about whether to cave and bump up my rating for this place in the name of supporting ethnic food, but I couldn’t convince myself that the meal I got was worth anything more than an «A-​OK». No matter what the circumstances, the food must stand for and by itself, and as of right now it’s not quite there.

If only this place was closer!:(I took the 4 from downtown and arrived here. The service lady was so polite + sweet and immediately greeted me. She was very helpful with both Chinese and American customers, which is not something you can say about all authentic Chinese restaurants.
The restaurant in itself is a small low maintenance joint that serves primarily Cantonese food as well as baked goods. Unlike the Asian restaurants on state street, Asian Sweet Bakery has a low key, authentic charm with very good pricing (large quantity noodle soups for $ 6ish and breads for $ 2).
To note, Cantonese food is unlike the Americanized Chinese + Szechuanese food you will find on state street. Asian sweet bakery does not serve stir fry; they have noodle soups, «crepes» (aka chow fun nothing like French sweet crepes), fried rice, and baked goods
The soup broths have a bitter savory flavor accompanied with whatever assortment you choose. The baked goods vary from savory to sweet and are often much lighter in density compared to American baked goods, meaning they feel like clouds in your mouth and do not sit like rocks in your tummy.
I ordered the BBQ chow fun and the beef shank wonton noodle soup and then got a coconut bun and «Chinese tamale»;) to go.
Both dishes really hit the spot because it was such a cold winter day. The noodle soup broth was hot + filling and came with lots of noodle, vegetable, and beef as well. In terms of the BBQ chow fun, the taste is wonderful. I only wish they would add just a little more BBQ pork.
Overall– Authentic off site Cantonese with all the good quality and service money can buy

Very traditional Chinese bakery. Just like I used to see in Chinatown growing up in Chicago. Very good sponge cake and other buns. They make almost everything fresh there. So if you go early enough things will still be warm. Sometimes it takes them a while to fill their case though.
But I also like to enjoy there hot breakfast food and lunch items. My favorites are the rice noodle crepes with shrimp. I also really enjoyed the tofu and fish. The tofu was slightly fried and super silky on the inside and sauce was perfect. We’ve also had the pot stickers and stir fried rice noodles with beef.
They have a small seating area if you stay. Nothing fancy, they serve on paper plates which is fine with me. The lady at the counter is always very friendly too.

This small Mom and Pop operation serves up real tasty Chinese baked goods! I’m so glad that a place like this opened up in Madison. It’s truly authentic and affortable! The buns come in all different shapes and flavors, but they also have a menu of traditional dishes to try as well!

Great bakery. Awesome tasty baked goods. Affordable prices.

This place is seriously really good, and I’ve been enjoying it recently for breakfasts, lunches, and snacks. The prices are very affordable and the lady who womans the counter is really friendly and remembers me when I come in. Their baked goods and buns are fun, creative, and delicious. Their noodles, crepes, and congee are really flavorful too. I can’t remember the exact name, but one of their fish stir-​fry rice entrees is incredibly flavorful also. Yesterday I tried their milk tea for the first time and will be having that every time I’m there too:)

Love this place for a quick and very affordable lunch. No frills authentic Chinese food can be found here. I have had some great soups here, sampled most of the baked goods, but my favorite is the fresh rice noodles with sliced beef and peppers. I love the wide, chewy noodles in tasty gravy, they keep me coming back. CiCi, the owner, is so nice and if you are seeking to try new new baked goods she will even throw one to try on the house.
Also, if you are looking for a warm brothy wonton soup or congee for breakfast there is basically no other place in the area!

I love this place. The baked goods are awesome, not-​too-​sweet Asian bakery classics with some savory options too. My husband especially loves anything with the sweet top. Taro Twists are probably my favorite. Egg Custard Buns and Tarts are also amazing. It’s hard to pick, so usually we get a huge box with a mix of things.
Everything we’ve tried has been good, and the prices are great! $ 1 – 2 for all the baked goods, which are giant. We also finally ate lunch, which was also really good. Again, the prices were very reasonable. We shared two small items and two entrees, bringing half of one home, and it was about $ 25.
Every time I’ve gone, the same woman has helped us. She is very friendly and willing to describe items we aren’t familiar with and give opinions, which I really appreciate.
Definitely give this place a try if you haven’t already!

This place is so great. I love the egg tarts and BBQ pork buns here. The sesame balls can be a little oily but it’s not too bad in my opinion. The other day I came here the lady at the counter told me they have two types of egg tarts: Macau-​style and regular. I don’t know if this is a new addition to the menu or just a limited time kinda thing. Macau egg tarts are better because they’re creamier in taste whereas regular ones are eggier, but this is a personal preference.
They also have meals that are homey in flavor and good in portion. They’re not super greasy and MSG laden like some of the other Asian restaurants in town. They’re served on styrofoam plates and you take your own silverware and have a shared bottle of Sriracha on a side table, which I don’t mind at all since the price is so reasonable.
I like that this place isn’t too far away from campus so I don’t have to travel that far to get good Asian bake goods. Definitely check it out.

They’ve added chicken curry (and beef curry) buns to their menu, which are pretty good. They also had mini moon cakes! I’m sold.

I was starting to think that Madison did not have any authentic Chinese places: this place proved my hypothesis to be false. Take-​out Chinese is fine, but sometimes you need the real deal.
There is one caveat to this five-​star review: if you have had awesome Chinese food in China, or Chinatown in various large cities, you might not agree with me in giving this place five-​stars. I think this place is great for Madison.
I ordered the beef noodle soup with thick rice noodles. You can choose among thin rice noodles, thick rice noodles, and udon noodles. The soup base was bland like it’s supposed to be, though it was a little too greasy for my liking. It had beef slices in it and Napa cabbage — definitely a feel good meal. My boyfriend got the Hong Kong style shrimp soup, where the shrimp is wrapped in wonton skin.
We got a few egg custards to go — they tasted like how they should. I didn’t think they were too sweet and it still had about eggy taste.
I had the rice dumpling for lunch today (sticky rice with meat wrapped in bamboo leaves). It was a little bland but satisfied my craving for it.
I’m not sure if they make all their baked goods in store. I can’t imagine that they would, since their kitchen is kind of small. Also, there’s an Asian grocery store nearby, so maybe they get it from there?
I’ll definitely be back! The employee there was very nice and motherly.

Five stars for authentic food! You won’t see any orange chicken on the menu here — instead, congee, dumplings, and Chinese crepes abound. The whole shop is filled with the aroma of fresh pastries that are common in China.
It is a very small hole-​in-​the-​wall kind of place, but though the food comes on paper plates with plastic utensils, the flavor of the food always stays true to Chinese cuisine. I definitely reccomend the Taro bun and any of the dumplings. A good way to spend very little money for very delicious returns.

First time here and left great impression on me and my husband. Will definitely come back!
The lady at cashier was very friendly and took orders carefully. We ordered a bit of everything and I especially love their congee. No tip either.
Price was pleasant for me – a bowl of congee for 1 person is 5, pretty cheap in the US. We lived in HK before and I especially miss congee, especially when I am slightly under the weather, or not liking American food that much. The congee here was good enough, and even my husband said it reminded him of HK again.
I like the fact everything is not overly seasoned. Congee not too salty, sweet bun not too sweet and seem freshly made, chang fen (rice noodle roll) lightly seasoned. I finally don’t need to tell them, less oil please, or if possible.
It is pretty carb oriented, but doesn’t bother me at all (I love carb!). If you want you have other protein choices as well, even though I didn’t really like the fish dish – small broken pieces of frozen fish sautéed with pickles, with rice, 6 USD.
I feel so grateful for this place because it reminds me of home and my culture, in an economic way.

I have been here three times.
The rice crepes were warm, soft, chewy and umami with the soy sauce. Shrimps were tender and juicy. The pork rib rice crêpe was also tasty, but the meat was a little too fatty for me.
The shrimp wontons were large, filled with meat and whole shrimp. The soup had a generous amount of cabbage. I liked that the soup was savory and not salty, and that it tasted nothing like a salty oily soup stock that overwhelmed the overall flavor.
I had the beef fried rice noodles for lunch — hot, tasty, lots of beef and bell peppers! Noodles were chewy and sticky in a good way.
Sweet top bun with egg custard was fresh out of the oven, soft, warm and moist, not too sweet, the best I’ve had. Red bean bread was also great.
Coconut puff is a must-​have. Flaky, sweet, dense and moist. I can eat them all day.
Staff were very friendly.

The staff here was very friendly and the place was clean. Those are the redeeming qualities of my visit. The food however, not so redeeming.
I started with the baked goods. The coconut bun was good. It could have had more flavor but it was good. The BBQ pork bun… it tasted like fat. Just spoonfuls of Crisco melting away in my mouth.
Then I moved on to entrees. The fried intestine. Intestine is one of my favorite things to order because so much can be done with it. This was fried, served over a bed a greens, with white rice. The down side to what could have been an amazing and unique dish was that there was absolutely no flavor. The breading was not flavored, the greens were not flavored, and the white rice was, well, white rice. Let down :(
I also got the BBQ pork crepes. I got them, and although I was expecting egg crepes, I was still excited. I put into it and by the time I had consumed the first one I had ingested one small piece of BBQ pork. Just one.
My last items was the dumplings. I love dumplings. These were fried, and they were good. Nothing to run and tell my friends about, but good.
Like all my lower star reviews I will be back to give Asian Sweet Bakery a second chance. Until there, middle of the road.

Finally, 2014 was an Asian progress in Madison’s food world! I’m so grateful to come close to some sort of Asian bakery… Previously, the only options were day– or week– old pastries from Chicago sold in the local Asian marts… :(
Asian sweet bakery is NOT just a bakery, you can get typical chinese food as well. Indeed, when I visit again, it would be mainly for the breakfast food, not the baked goods. The owner and cashier is chinese, and speak chinese and cantonese. I would describe this Asian style as mainly cantonese, due to the presence of congee, sweet top (what I call pineapple bun) and sesame balls.
What’s good:
Congee with pork
Fried dough stick (almost as good as in Asia)
Sweet top bun (no filling)
Crepes (decent)
Don’t bother:
Sesame ball (too much dough, weird custard filling inside)
Egg tarts (too sweet)
Beef brisket noodles (no flavor in the soup or beef :|)
I think they still have improvement for baked goods, but overall I enjoy the congee and fried dough stick, a typical breakfast food in Hong Kong or Asia. Also, the sweet top buns are a treat! I love to heat them up at home, and put in a thick slab of butter after heating the buns! LOVE IT!
P. S. if Asian Sweet Bakery has some Asian desserts… that would really be a star attraction!!!

Asian Sweet Bakery is a nice little Asian café and bake shop in maybe a not-​so-​well-​known area of Madison, but is worth the trip if only for their buns! Everything in their glass showcase seems to be housemade and tastes exactly like the type of buns you would get in Asia or in any major China-​town area in any big city like NYC. They’re big, fluffy, subtle (but delicious) in flavor, and incredibly inexpensive. The couple who runs the Bakery is also very sweet so it only adds to the positivity of their already awesome goods.
For actual real savory food when you don’t have a sweet tooth — their broths are fantastic. I would definitely suggest grabbing one of the noodle bowls if you head by this way! The one time I went, my friend and I ordered the Beef Brisket Noodle Soup and the Salt and Pepper Shrimp and man oh man, I could’ve drank all of the soup in one gulp. The individual components were fine on their own, but the broth brought them to a whole new level. It was beefy and seasoned, and just tasted of what real Chinese food should be.
The Salt and Pepper Shrimp on the other hand was unfortunately not as OK. I was so thrilled to see they kept the prawns with their heads on, but unfortunately they tasted old, as if they had been cooked earlier or on another day, and then reheated up in a microwave for the meal. As a result, the flesh was very tough, and not pleasant to eat at all. This is also one dish where the salt content was just a few levels too high. I could feel my blood pressure climbing even just from one bite.
That said, you can’t go wrong with their baked goods or soups, so dig into those!

Thanks to Asian Sweet Bakery, I no longer need Chicago to get my fix of coconut rolls, BBQ pork bun, custard tarts, or red bean sesame balls. Dare I say it, do I even need donuts anymore? Moreover, their breakfast special and value pricing make me feel good about coming back often.
I basically ordered everything I wanted to try during my first trip here, things I’ve been missing and craving, like steamed rice crêpe with shrimp, rice porridge with fish and preserved egg. The beef and vermicelli noodle soup was good too, just a tad too much gristle. My hope is that they will expand or refresh the menu as business booms. Space is extremely limited, and it felt crowded by the cash register. We had to hover for a table during the Saturday lunch rush, but it’s hard to complain when you see a family-​owned business selling the stuff you like, doing well.
Service was business-​like but pleasant. I was pleased to see a variety of customers from older to younger folks, international students to transplanted locals, blue and white collar workers, with quick turnaround all around. I’m hoping this popularity will translate into a larger space in the future, but it may still be early yet.

Ordered the shrimp crêpe, shrimp wonton and dumpling soup, 9pc pot stickers, and beef fried rice all for a grand total of.. $ 20!
The shrimp crêpe are steamed shrimp in a gluttonous pillow of dough and comes with a side of dark sauce. The soup was a clear and very light broth filled with Napa cabbage and generous portions dumplings and shrimp wonton. The beef fried rice was as healthy as fried rice comes in a Chinese establishment with thick slices of beef, green onions, and scrambled eggs. My partner remarked how it was plain, and in a good way.
The pot stickers are where it’s at! They are pan fried, golden pockets of perfection. You can tell they were not dumped in the fryer from a frozen state, rather formed by detailed and skilled hands and fresh ingredients were used in these little edible purses.
We came in on a weeknight around 6:30pm (they close at 7pm) and there was a table of three dinning in and mild traffic for take-​out.
I can’t speak for the bakery items since they were all but gone when we arrived. A good excuse to go back again!

Yay finally! I don’t have to go to Chicago for some asian cravings! I know the asian marts here carry baked goodies from chicago, but having freshly baked awesomeness right here in town is a totally different story.
I’ve been to Asian Sweet twice before, but I waited until my third time to pen this review because the first 2 times I went in the afternoon, and only for the bakery items, which by that time they were mostly sold out, so I only got to try very selected stuff. But today we made it right as they open after consulting friends who have pro tips (go early!).
Their food items are a real deal, you can easily get a full breakfast complete with coffee/​tea or a mix of coffee and tea (yuan yang) for less than $ 10. They offer all day breakfast and lunch items starting at 11 am. I will be going back to try their lunch items some time soon. The tofu and fish over rice looks amazing! We had the shrimp crêpe, wonton noodles, chive dumplings and pork congee set today. The crêpe, dumplings and congee were all nicely done. I found the wonton noodles a little on the plain side, probably cause we had that right after the crêpe, which came with soy sauce. But that aside, the wonton doesn’t have pork in them, only shrimps, not quite the best you can get in town, but not too bad.
As I mentioned right at the start their freshly baked goods really stand out. Finally I got the long awaited egg custard and char siew buns yay! And they are really good. The red bean buns are another popular item on the menu too. These sell out fast. While I was in line I see different groups of people come in and grab more than ten bakery items at one go. Amazing!
So, go early for the best selection!