The international nature of Nagasaki also emerges from its dessert culture. I have written about its milk seki in another post, clearly showing Western influence. This review will focus on the famous castella cake (kasutera) and some other sweets like yori yori.
The classic castella from Fukusaya
Regarded as a specialty of Nagasaki, castella cake was brought to Japan by Portuguese merchants in the 16th century. The name is derived from Portuguese Pão de Castela, meaning “bread from Castile”. It is a sponge-cake.
Fukusaya is the most famous producer of catella cake in Nagasaki (along with Bunmeido) and has branches also in other cities. Their symbol is the bat. I went to their main store in central Nagasaki.
The cake is usually sold in boxes as a gift. Fukusaya also has a chocolate castella called Hollander cake. Unfortunately their shop is not a cafe.
I decided to buy the mini-box (called Fukusaya cube) that carries two pieces of castella. It was very good, fluffy, and sugary.
The small box was just 270 yen (a little bit more than 2 USD).
Where in Nagasaki: 3-1 Funadaikumachi.
Ice cream castella sandwich at the Foreign Settlement Cafe
Up on the Hollander Slope (one of Nagasaki’s landmark) there is a lovely cafe housed in a traditional Western House open to the public. I would not call it a gourmet destination, however they had vanilla ice cream sandwiched in two slices of castella cake that was quite nice. It is a good place where to have a coffee and relax.
Where in Nagasaki: House 13, Holander Slope.
Baigetsudo’s cakes
Baigetsudo is one of the oldest pastry shops in Nagasaki and has multiple outlets. They of course sell castella (one with green tea flavor is unique to their store) and other Western cakes. In their main store they have a tea room upstairs where I tried one of their cakes. If you go, you might want to try their sponge cake with peach and pineapple; it is their signature.
Where in Nagasaki: 7-3 Hamamachi (inside the covered shopping street).
Yori Yori bakery
Not far away from Ichiriki I stepped into a bakery selling yori yori, twisted fried dough that is regarded as a perfect souvenir for people visiting Nagasaki. The Chinese influence here is clear, in China they ave the exact same thing.
I was amazed at the price of some of the packaged yori yori. I snagged a cheap bag and this was quite disappointing. It was hard as stone. They also sell castella cake, probably a better bet.
Where in Nagasaki: 7-28 Suwamachi. (Store name: 萬順製菓 工場直売店).