Patisserie Tomoko

It’s a nice dessert bar with seating that allows you to get a view of the dessert making in action. The three of us each had a course — I got the premium and they got the standard. The only difference is a starter, which was mascarpone ice cream with berries. The ice cream was good, without being too rich as I feared initially.
I got the black Sesame crème brûlée, while my friends got the white chocolate Mont blanc. The glazing for mine tasted like those sesame crackers, and the crème brûlée tasted like what you would imagine. It was good, but I wouldn’t get it again.
For our petit fours, they combined all of ours together, so we got to try a lot of options. The macarons were probably the best (lavender and coffee) but the matcha crème cookie was outstanding too.
I also had the matcha milk cocktail, which is simply matcha, milk, and sake. It tasted like a green tea frappuccino that was melted down to liquid, sweet, but not as sweet. It was good and smooth, but it was hard to taste the sake.
Each item on its own doesn’t deserve 4 stars, but altogether, especially the vast variety of cookies we were given for the petit fours make it a decent dessert bar. I would go back to try other dessert bars though before coming back here.

I tried the chocolate cake, chocolate ice cream, the green tea crème Brullee and the macaroons I’m sorry but I didn’t like any of it. This is just not for everyone. Everything tasted different than what I expected. The coffee ice cream was good but they give you a scoop that is the size of a melon ball and the place is overpriced.

I need to thank my Unilocaler friend Virginia Y. for reviewing and in turn letting know about this Patisserie Tomoko which is now my top spot for desserts that combine both European and Japanese style and favoring. The shop is in Williamsburg Brooklyn in a neighborhood going through mass gentrification. The modern clean style shop has a U shaped counter with about ten stools were you sit surrounding the chefs and watch them while they prepare desserts except on the side where they have a small display case. It’s almost like a small dinner except that in stead of ham and eggs they serve up Cherry cream millefeuille with pear sorbet.
Chef Tomoko Kato was present along with two assistant chefs preparing dessert for customers and custom orders. You can order desserts and eat them here or order to go. You can also request custom cakes or other specialty items to be made.
I knew from Virginia Y. review about the 2 and 3 course Prix Fixe Menu and went with the 3 course premium with a Cappuccino on the side, but you can pair your desert with wine if you chose to do so. You get one choice of desert with Pettis Fours (four different cookies) for the 2 course at $ 12 and a have the Starter of the day with the 3 course at $ 16. I went with 3 course to maximize my experience here since I never venture to Brooklyn till now just for this place. I picked from the menu of 4 items the Ricotta Cheese Cake with Rosemarry Orange Grapefuruit Confiture and Yuzu Sorbet. And yes that is only one dessert. They rotate the items on the Prix Fixe Menu buy I don’t know the frequency.
The Cappuccino was good but this is not there mainstay so it’s the not better than some of the coffee shops. but it is above average.
We began with the Mascarpone ice cream with mixed berry. Now this did not blow me out of my seat, but that is good and it’s meant to be not too over powering, they want you to be able to taste all the different berries and not be masked by the sweetness or the flavor of the Mascarpone.
Then came a dessert that was like a mini tower of the different parts that made up the dessert. it was Ricotta Cheese Cake with Rosemary Orange Grapefuruit Confiture and Yuzu Sorbet with a the additions of a meringue top cap and a sugar crystal in the shape and color of a orange slice on top of the meringue cap. It was a beautiful dessert that was being prepared on the side while I ate the berry dessert. Next time I will sit at the end so I can get a close up of them making the desserts. Now this was really delicious, and again not overly to sweet or any one part of the dessert over powering in flavor which on it own was good or exceptional and enjoy the full complexity of the creation in front of me. I could taste each component and apprecheate the different textures of what I was having. I would have gone to Brooklyn just for this one dessert, and I know I will again.
I finished up with the Pettis Fours, which were four different cookies. I could not pick up the names the chef all spoke in soft low tones and I did want to ask them to repeat themselves too much since I’m getting old anyway and my hearing may be getting bad. The cookies for the most part were a coconut cookie, hazelnut lace cookie, matcha cream cookie sandwich, and chestnut cookie square. The coconut, and hazelnut lace cookie were good and I decided I should head back to the office and I ask them to box the other two cookies. The matcha was a strong flavor between to mild short bread cookies. And the chestnut cookie square is a perfect coffee companion.
I could not go back to the office and tell my buddies about all the great desserts I had empty handed. So I went to the display case were they have a every few deserts. So I guess because the display case is small that they put only one of each that is available and replenish them when needed.
So I ask for a Zuzu Mousse cake and what could be decibel as a Salted Caramel version of a Pecan tart. We shared these back at the office the Zuzu was very pleasant light Yuzu flavor. and paired really nicely with the light fluffy cake base. The Salted Caramel version of a Pecan tart left us craving for more and the pecan on top had a crunchy crystallize coating holding it together. Combine that with the caramel and the rich, gooey filling in your mouth and you one step from heaven, It was so yummy.
I need to go back again to Patisserie Tomoko and next time sit by the end so I can get a close up of them making the deserts. They also use a kitchen that is out of view so you will not see them do everything, and of course the cookies were already made but it will be fun to watch.
I was debating on 4 or 5 stars and I settle on four only because I wish that they had tables or booth too and not a communal counter then the place would be good to get cozy with your date or to have private conversation between friends. I came on a weekday and there were only 4 other customers so I assume that on weekend this place should be more bu

Came here to check out the desserts to-​go. I’m not usually a Japanese dessert fan as these are not very sweet. However, I enjoyed what I sampled. Get the sesame crunch, delicious! Probably any of the crunches are good (there were I think 2 other flavors).

Venue — Cute dessert bar with comfortable seating.
Desserts — Both prix-​fixe and a la carte. Everything is semi-​sweet, Asian-​inspired, and delicious. They also serve tea and coffee.
Service — Very friendly. Sitting at the bar, you can see them prepare your dessert and ask questions. They even gave us some free samples and ice cream!

Cha-​An Teahouse was one of my favorite Japanese dessert places; I was super excited to read that the owner of this patisserie was the original owner of Cha-​An. The interior is very cute: typical white, minimal décor with hung lights and plant adornments.
While looking for a new spot for special occasion cakes, I saw the many options offered on their website. The Green Tea Mousse Cake (6″ — $ 35) is a sure favorite and rightfully so. The mousse was whipped to an airy delight, and those who love matcha & mousse will surely love this. It was almost all cream, but still retained lightness. If it had more green tea cake batter, it would have been perfect.
The second time I came for a Mother’s Day cake, I decided to try something different: the Black Sesame Dacquoise Cake (6″ — $ 40). I’ll be honest in admitting that beyond googling the pictures, I had no idea what this would taste or look like. When the cake was revealed, I thought it was a pretty cake, but that the word ‘cake’ was perhaps inappropriately applied. It didn’t look substantial, more like cream sandwiched between sugar cookie pastries. Keep in mind that its shape will not hold up when being sliced. Whereas the mousse cake was perfectly balanced in sweetness, the dacquoise cake was not. The meringue was so sweet, terribly lacking in black sesame flavor. No one wanted seconds.
When picking up this cake, I had their black sesame ice cream on a waffle cone. The waffle cone was impressive– thick, made in-​house & lightly sweetened. Their ice cream did not measure up because although there were visible groupings of black sesame, it did not have a black sesame flavor.
A return trip is contingent on if I’m in the area to try their dessert tasting menu. Being a couple of blocks away from McCarren park, takeout would not be a bad option either.

Wow. this places was quite an experience. Let me break it down to bullet points:
PROS
— The dishes tasted amazing. The black sesame crème brûlée was out of this world!
— the idea of a dessert bar is quite fun, and having them prepare the dishes in front of you whole seated at the bar is game, if you’re into it.
— the staff is very helpful and attentive
CONS
— The space is small, so it gets full easily
— as fun as the bar counter is, it’s not as comfortable as tables, and not good for groups.
— it didn’t seem like they wear gloves when preparing the desserts.
It is kinda pricey for dessert, but I can cut them some slack on that since they work hard on preparing the stuff, but $ 80 for 4 people is kinda hefty, especially given they’re almost bite sized portions.
I can’t see frequenting a spot like this, but would definitely recommend it to anyone adventurous and really into dessert!

Very unassuming and cute dessert shop with Christmas lights in the windows. Glance away and you might miss it walking down the block! We actually walked right past and had to double back before noticing the small sign out front. I wanted to try everything but we only ordered the green tea cheesecake and salted caramel nut tart to go. Everything was very good but a little pricey as can be expected from this type of pastry shop. Might stop by if I have a sweet tooth and in the area but probably won’t trek out there for it.

This place had pretty good ice cream. The scoops are small but the flavors are more on the unique side. I tried a bit of the berry rosewater ice cream and the yuzu ice cream. The rose flavor was really nice and delicate. Loved it! Yuzu was pretty good but I’ve never been a big fan of the citrus fruit. The place has twelve stool seats and unfortunately, it was smorgasburg weekend nearby so the seats all got taken by 1 group of people post smorgasburg shenanigans. I would’ve loved to sit in and try their petit fours. Perhaps next time. The atmosphere is also clean and modern and staff members were friendly.

We trekked all the way from East Harlem to here for some sweet goodies. The décor of the store/​restaurant is pretty cute and comfy, but there are not many seats available. So we only ordered to go.
We had green tea cookies, a green tea donut, a slice of green tea cheese cake (yep, we love green tea…) and a slice of mixed berries crêpe cake. All the green tea flavored desserts had a good dose of matcha, which was very refreshing and spring-​y but not so strong that made the desserts bitter. I also really liked the texture of the cookies. The crêpe cake was good too. If you like Lady M’s crêpe cakes, this won’t disappoint you. But then again, it wasn’t a «wow» for us.

Walking in I was attracted by the very white and basic interior design. There’s a bar area where you can sit on bar stools while eating desserts/​pastries and sipping on drinks. On one end of the bar, there’s a display case of various desserts/​pastries that I saw people come in order for takeout. My foodie partner and I had just finished going to the Coffee & Tea caffeine festival earlier and so we needed a break from coffee and tea. I still wanted some dessert though and didn’t want something too sweet so we Unilocaled the area and found this Japanese bakery/​café.
Since we didn’t want to eat too many sweets, we shared the 2 course dessert pre-​fixe which came with a choice of the the main course petit fours. We chose the black sesame crème brûlée for the main course. We watched the chef torch the dessert and then pop it into a refrigerator for it to set before plating it. The presentation was pretty but taste-​wise I was not impressed. He liked the black sesame crisp that was on top of the mini scoop of sake ice cream but I thought it was nothing special. The sake ice cream was sweet but didn’t have much sake flavor to it. The texture of the crème brûlée is fine but the black sesame flavor was too weak for my palate – I was waiting for a strong nutty flavor but it never came. The petit fours were nothing special either. For the price, I was expecting better.

After dinner at Lilia, we pondered into this lovely café just right across the street. It was a Friday night and surprisingly empty. At first, we thought it was closed since we didn’t see anyone in sight through the window. However, we saw an open sign and decided to wander in.
The décor was very cute. They have minimal sitting about 10 seats around the bar. They offer dessert courses that are served only at the bar and a variety of other al carte desserts that you can buy to go. The al carte items might be a bit misleading as those items aren’t on the dine in menu. You can order those al carte items when you eat at the bar too. You just have to check out their dessert showcase next to the cash register to see what they have.
We ordered a 2 course dessert tasting to share since we were quite full from dinner (but still had a curious appetite). We got the sesame crème brûlée with sake ice cream (first course) and an assortment of cookies and a green tea macaroon (second course). The sesame crème brûlée was really tasty (even for someone like me that don’t usually enjoy sesame desserts). The sake ice cream was light and not too bitter or sweet. I highly recommend this pick if you like Asian desserts, though I’m sure the other options are just as tasty. It all depends on what your cup of tea is.
I think this spot is date-​friendly. Although you might not be able to sit and dine for hours, the dessert bar is suitable for small groups and provides an unique dessert eating experience that isn’t the typical chocolate cake or vanilla ice cream.
The staff is also really nice and informative. You get them see them plate your dessert together and are open to questions about what they are making/​doing.
Coffee, tea and sake are all available. Sake pairings are also offered with your dessert tasting.

A cute place with «open kitchen», good services.
I like the fact that you get to see the chef prepares the desert right there at the U shape open kitchen, and the other staff makes your cappuccino there as well. You get to see how the chef does it step by step with the details in presentations.
the deserts we tried were very good, all flavors were unique and flavorful,
it was so worth the drive to come here.
We will def be coming back.
PS. even when you ask to wrap your left overs to go, the staff carefully wrap them individually and put them in a very cute box for you. I can tell they value quality and service to their customers.

Not sure why this place has 4.5 stars. This place has very nice interior, unfortunately the service and food were very disappointing.
My friend and I were the only customers, yet the staff was inattentive, my friend and I both felt like unwelcome guests. For drinks we got the jasmine tea and lavender mint tea. For dessert we got the 2 course dessert prix fixe. We chose the black sesame crème brûlée with sake ice cream as the first course (as it was mentioned so many times on the other Unilocal reviews) and the chocolate macaron with coconut cookie as the second course. The portions were tiny considering the price (a pretty high price at that). Sure, presentation was aesthetically pleasing but I was surprisingly unimpressed with the flavors (considering all the hype). No one stopped by to check on us or even hand us our check. We ended up flagging the guy working in the kitchen. Very disappointing.

Drove here, it is in a good area of Williamsburg. More a 3.5 stars for sure here.
We got the Standard Prix Fixe dessert offering.
Dont exactly remember the names of the items we got, so this review is more on the presentation and taste of the overall experience.
Of course the portion here is small as it is more of a taste menu, definitely makes you wanting more of it. Got a Crème Brulee with Sesame with Ice cream and it was delicious. The Crème brûlée’s consistency was perfect and the taste wasnt overly sweet. Great desert.
The prix fixe came with 3 additional items, I recall a green tea macaroon which I thought was ok, but have tasted better macaroons and two other items that I didnt think was that special.
Also got a Cappuccino and Genmaicha (Green tea w/​roasted brown rice). Definitely good mix with the dessert.
Pricing to me was a bit on the high side overall but the the taste for the crème brûlée was fantastic and would love to get a bucket full of it, but I would be dead broke.

I had the fancy deluxe three course dessert.
It was amazing and also beautiful.
Also lavender mint tea and jasmine pearls tea. The jasmine pearls tea is better because mint is disgusting. Especially chocolate and mint together.
Lovely.

This gem came from very disappointing dessert options at the restaurant near by, so I set out to find dessert alternatives. To my delight we found a 3 course dessert prefix for $ 13.
Starter was mascarpone hazelnut crisp and citrus
I had a sesame seed crème brûlée. Amazing. The right balance of savory and sweet with perfectly touched brûlée. I did get it on my face which looked like poo– but trust me I was more devastated that it was wasted on my chin.
Lastly we had an array of shortbreads and macaroons to finish.

It’s easily a 5 star for me, I say this was a definite find. The location is kinda in a weird building complex that has other stores, it kinda feels like the lower level of an office building. Honestly, when I first drove by, I didn’t think this was it and it kinda seemed out of place. But it’s a good thing I didn’t let that deter me since this place was freakin awesome. A friend and I were planning to stop by to pickup a tiny cake for a friend’s birthday and to obviously do some «quality control» and both of us were smiling like the Kool-​Aid man when we left. We really loved this place. The place is like a dessert bar, you sit at the U shaped counter and it sits about a dozen. You have the option to do prix fixe but my friend and I opted for their a la carte and wow. The a la carte option had an abundance of options.
The food:
Yuzu Mouse Cake– HOLY MOLY it was so damn light, it might be one the lightest cake I ever had, it also had a very pleasant Yuzu flavor. The Yuzu wasn’t over pronounced and had the right amount of Yuzu flavor, sometimes it is too much but the one here paired really nicely with the light fluffy cake.
Pumpkin Pie– This was prob one of the best pumpkin pies I ever had, the crust was damn near perfection. It was so light and flaky, the crush was perfect, kinda felt like a more crusty croissant. The filling was great, it had a nice smooth richness with a delicate pumpkin flavor. In all honesty, I have a hard time saying which was the better dessert since both were excellent.
Chestnut Tart– Holy Jebus was this good. The tart aspect was so perfectly crunchy and had a nice butteriness kinda like a short bread cookie. The filling kinda had a taro like feel but it was super smooth and I liked how it wasn’t too sweet. Now I am torn between the top three for which is best.
Green Tea Cheese Cake– Overall, it was a well made cheese cake but I was never a big green tea person so maybe my opinion is a little biased. For me, the bitterness of green tea is a little much. But my friend who is a big green tea person raved about the cheese cake saying it was one of the best ones she has ever had, I did really love the texture, though.

Yuzu Mousse Cake was delicious! Comes in both full sized cake and small pastry sized!
After drooling over my phone over the Yuzu Mousse Cake photo posted by Unilocaler, Cynthia L., I was waiting for an opportunity to get the full cake for my next birthday friend. My birthday happened to be this month! One of my best friends came and got me the cake for my birthday! It was custom-​made to be picked up. Yuzu Mousse Cake normally comes with sponge cake but we tried it with the green tea cake! It was so aromatic that you can smell it outside the box. Yuzu taste is very pronounced in the mousse! So, so delicious! Mousse texture was light and fluffy! There was more mousse than cake but I felt that it was perfect since the mousse was so good! It is also topped with white chocolate and charred oranges. If you know any birthdays coming up, this will be the perfect and unique cake! A must-​order!
Yuzu Mousse Cake also comes as a little dessert pastry, too. It is just a fluffy and light and delicious!
Another great item was the Coffee Macaron which was soft and light; quite different from other macarons that I had before.
I will be back for the dessert courses!

I wish we could have more spot like this in Philly where you can actually get multi course of dessert with wine pairing.
We sat at the counter where you can see the chefs preparing your desserts. It’s a small, quaint, very well thought out place. The desserts were amazing and carefully crafted, the chef is very meticulous with the plating, etc.
I wish that they offer more than three course of desserts, because I surely will order seven courses if they offer. It’s a great spot to take your date or wife in my case.