Elite Danish Bakery in Burnaby

Even though I have lived in the Lower Mainland my entire life, I know very little about any community outside of Vancouver. I have always lived in Kits and my ignorance of our suburban towns is so high that I get panicky any time I am east of Commercial Drive. I recently secured a contract job with BC Hydro that required I commute to Edmonds in Burnaby. On my first day of work I got off the Skytrain and was totally disoriented. If someone had walked up to me and said I was in Asheville, North Carolina I would have believed them, so poor is my knowledge of Burnaby and its environs. Fortunately, one of my co-workers at BC Hydro was a huge foodie who lives in that neck of the woods and immediately started firing-off recommendations once she discovered I was a Yelper. One of her favourite places was (and still is!) Elite Bakery.

In a squat, unattractive strip of small shops on sleepy Rumble Street lies Elite, with its massive 'ALMOND KRINGLE' sign in the window. This is a Danish bakery, and I did not know much about Danish baked goods before eating here. I'll save you a Google search and tell you all you need to know about pastries from this part of the world: almonds. Every freakin' item in Elite (besides the out-of-place samosas and buttery copenhagens) was either almond or marzipan based, including the massive and eccles-like kringle. I bought some kransekage cookies and an almond-chocolate slice. Both had an outstanding texture, with crisp exteriors and chewy interiors, and the almond flavour didn't slap you in the ansigt. The service was also great. I guess there IS good food beyond the far reaches of East Van!

Keywords: "best vancouver bakery", "Alex Dawkins", "vancouver food blog"