Texas Star Bakery
499 West Harwood Rd
Hurst, TX
http://www.texasstarbakery.com/
A few weeks back, Lauren and I an excursion to Hurst to visit some wedding bake shops. Our favorite one of the day was definitely Texas Star Bakery at 499 West Harwood Rd. It is situated in a quaint strip of all brick storefronts that is really quite charming.
Upon entering the bakery we were both attracted to their display case full of cookies, candies, pies and cakes. The man behind the sweets is the bakery’s owner, (I would love to give his name, but the staff wasn't so helpful with my questions). Everything in the bakery is his recipe, and he does all of the baking so he can ensure that it is done to his standards.
When you are tasting their delectable treats the attention to detail is really noticeable. It is really amazing how much you can taste the difference between real extracts and that imitation stuff. And these guys are 100% real.
When it comes to weddings, Texas Star is one of the best values I’ve seen. Prices for traditional flavors start at $2.50 per slice. Their specialty flavors aren’t bad either at $3 per slice! I did not try the wedding cake while we were there since they were all sold out of their tasting samples. I take that as a good thing, since I know a lot of bakeries who keep a stock pile in their freezer, so as to never run out. Personally, I’d rather not taste it than to eat something that is frost bitten and flavorless! I did have a cupcake though, which was quite yummy.
I do however have a few slight criticisms of Texas Star Bakery. The first is that their work is very traditional, in the way of butter cream roses and fondant swags. Which have their place, but are just very dated designs. Having said that, I believe that they are perfectly capable of creating cakes with more modern designs, or whatever is asked of them. But their portfolio mostly consists of the more dated style which I previously spoke.
Next, their staff and customer service could use some improvement. The ladies working the front counter weren't necessarily rude, but they weren't quite friendly either. Now, I don't expect to have the red carpet rolled out for me just because I'm a wedding planner. But I would expect for a business to be willing to answer questions with detail to someone who comes in WANTING to bring them business. I wasn't asking for secret family recipes, but the owner's name? I have also read several reviews online echoing similar experiences. I think that if they were to offer their customers a bit more of a personal experience they would have more repeat business.
Finally, being an event planner who focuses on the eco-friendly aspects of this industry I have to comment on the "greenness" of this business. Which it isn't very. I can't comment on the ingredients, but it is safe to assume that they don't use organic or much local. I'm basing that assumption purely from the fact that their prices are so low. I could be completely incorrect on that fact. And their frosting is clearly made from crisco, which isn't a bad thing. They don't claim anything otherwise, so you can't fault them. Having extensive experience in the fine art of pastry, crisco frosting has it's place. It does hold up better than butter in icing, and it spreads much easier to create smoother lines. But I do have a problem with calling crisco frosting "butter cream" because it isn't made from butter! And it takes a delicate hand to prevent crisco frosting from tasting greasy, which I think is an art Texas Star could work on. But their cupcakes are pretty good, and the cake is clearly not from a box which makes up for the shortning in their icing. Aside from ingredients there aren't any areas that I feel require the eco comments on. But I would love to hear input from other patrons of this business that could provide insight on things that this bakery does to improve the environment or to help the local community or charities.
All in all, I will happily refer this bakery to any of my brides who are looking for a delicious cake from an experienced bakery.
Click here for reviews of this bakery on Yahoo! Local
