BUNanza Results!!!

October 21, 2007 by willng24.

Sunday afternoon, yours truly and my group of hungry taste testers ventured into Chinatown to determine which bakery serves up the best pork bun.

Who are the judges? (sorry, no real names, but these are real people)

Yours truly – I’ve been eating buns my entire life. Even though I love pork buns, my favorite has to be the hot dog bun. I use to eat buns every week, but a turn for a healthier lifestyle has cut my bun consumption…until now

Boo Boo Woo – She’s not much of a bun eater, but she’s been with me on adventures for almost 7 years.

TByrd – She has to be the queen of buns. Her love for the tasty treat is what led me to do this test.

Eater X – Just like me, Eater X has been eating buns his entire life, but a healthier diet has lead him away from the bun scene. I don’t know how he does it since he lives and breaths Chinatown.

Before the judging. These buns were divide up for each of our judges to sample.

The Judging

We hit all 9 bakeries and judged their pork buns on the following metrics:

1) Bread – Softness and sweetness of the bread

2) Pork – Flavor, texture

3) Pork to Bread Ratio – Equal amount of bread and pork for every bite

4) Appearance – Browning, glazing and shape

5) Wax Paper – Ease of paper removal

6) Size – Does it matter?

7) Price – Not a huge factor, but a factor nonetheless

The Results

Bronze Medal: Crown Royal Bakery, 68 Beach St.

Their buns scored above average in almost all of the 7 categories with an approval rating of 67.5%. However the size was the only category where Crown Royal lost points. It was one of the smallest buns we tested. Crown Royal was one of the tastiest with the best balance of flavor, but the size left some of us wanting more.

Silver Medal: May’s Cake House, 223 Harrison Ave.

I probably go to this location more often than any of the others. The golden brown color and the great flavor of the pork just barely beat out Crown Royal for the #2 spot. Having an equal approval rating of 67.5%, it was a difficult decision to determine the runner up. The only place May’s lost points was in price. It is the most expensive at $0.90 per bun.

Gold Medal: Hing Shing Pastry Inc., 67 Beach St.

Without a doubt, Hing Shing bakery was clearly the best bun in town. With an approval rating of 85% it blew its completion out of the water. It was also the only bakery to receive a perfect score from one of our judges. The only downfall of this bakery is that it doesn’t open as early as the others. So, you early risers will have to wait a little longer before sinking your teeth into the tastiest bun in town.

Some of the buns just didn’t make the cut.

Final Note:

Stomach aches and food comas were felt by all judges. Do not try this at home without the supervision of the Around C-Town blogger.

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