Parfait Club Tenth Meeting

Location: ポムの樹 (Pomme no Ki)
Members present: Kelly R., Kristin, Kelly O., Owen
Parfaits tried:
Chocola-brownie ¥472
Cheesecake and berry parfait ¥472
BIG Chocolate parfait ¥819
BIG Pudding parfait ¥819

Ingredients:
Shokola(chocolate)-brownie--chocolate syrup, walnit pieces, brownies with walnuts, whipped cream, vanilla ice cream, more brownies, fruit salad (cherries, pear, mikan), corn flakes, more chocolate syrup

Cheesecake and berry parfait--blueberries, pears, peaches, whipped cream, cheesecake pieces, strawberry syrup, vanilla ice cream, cornflakes

BIG Chocolate parfait--vanilla softserve, whipped cream, chocolate sauce, wafer cone, filled with ice cream, BIG pineapple slice (plus leaf), cherry, peach slices, cereal, fruit mix at the bottom

BIG Pudding parfait--pudding, vanilla ice cream, pineapple, fruties, whipped cream, cone

Reviews:
Kelly R.--Chocola-brownie. Here's a surprise coming from me: the whipped cream was delicious and there was just enough. The brownies were also excellent. The fruit would have been better if it were fresh rather than from a can. The chocolate syrup at the bottom made the cornflakes too soggy. Overall, the top half was delicious, while the bottom half was disappointing.

Kristin--Cheesecake and berry. A good size and at a great price! The blueberries were great and fruit other than tangerine was a fun change. The cheesecake was Japanese style and spongey. Not to my taste, as I am more attracted to New York Style. However, it was a sweet and filling treat. The restaurant offers a nonsmoking section and has a friendly atmosphere. Sophisticated, but not too stuffy.

Kelly O.--BIG Chocolate Parfait. If I had known it was that big, I probably wouldn't have tried to take it on by myself. Still, I'm kind of glad that I did. ^.^ The fruit was very fresh, and the ice cream was pretty good. I dunno. It was amazing in quantity-over-quality sort of way.

Owen--BIG Pudding Parfait. This parfait was ok and big. If you want more than that, go someplace else.

Parfait Club Eighth Meeting

Location: Hirakatashi Station
Members present: Owen, Kelly O., Kelly R., Kristin
Parfaits tried:
1 Chocolate Pail (split) ¥880
1 Strawberry Pail (split) ¥880

Ingredients:
Chocolate Pail--Chocolate syrup (and lots of it!), vanilla softserve, whipped cream, banana, fruit-salad-type fruits, corn flakes. Topped with an ice cream cone and a cherry. (hoshii)

Strawberry Pail--Strawberry syrup, soft serve, whipped cream, strawberries, corn flakes, melty vanilla ice cream, strawberry juice, and more strawberry pieces on the botton.

Reviews:
Owen--Chocolate Pail: If God was to have a Parfait, this would be it.

Kelly O.--Chocolate Pail: My only regret is that I did not try to take it on by myself. Also, because it's so big, it was very melty but the time we finished. Still, the ingredients were well-balanced and good quality. I'll have to go back for my own.

Kelly R.--Strawberry Pail: Absolutely delicious. Good quality ice cream, good quality fruit, plus a nice contrast of crunch under the first layer, and mixed into the really melty ice cream. It was the perfect size and price to split between two people.

Kristin--Strawberry Pail: I want to go back! Good price for its size, and the size is excitingly enormous (but still small enough to eat on your own). I loved the strawberries. Good parfait to split two ways. It was kind of soggy because it took a while to make, but still delicious.

Parfait Club Seventh Meeting

[Photo coming soon]
Location: Jyankara (Jumbo Karaoke), Hirakata
Members present: Kelly O., Owen, Kelly R., Kristin
Parfaits tried:
1 Ice Mango Parfait ¥380
2 Yoku Bari Chocolate Caramel Nuts ¥380
1 Chocolate Manhattan ¥380

Ingredients:
Ice Mango Parfait--Whipped cream, frozen mango bubes, chocolate cookie, mango ice cream, vanilla ice cream, mango syrup, corn flakes, and more vanilla ice cream on the bottom.
Yoku Bari Chocolate Caramel Nuts--Chocolate cookie, cream puff, chocolate syrup, whipped topping, chocolate ice cream, cream puff, pecans, walnuts, chocolate corn flakes, caramel syrup, vanilla ice cream.
Chocolate Manhattan--Chocolate cookie, chocolate ice cream, chocolate syrup, chocolate powder, chocolate-covered corn flakes, caramel syrup, vanilla ice cream.

Reviews:
Kelly O.--Yoku Bari Chocolate Caramel Nuts: An excellent combination--chocolate, caramel, and nuts, yummy! Plus the price was perfect. ^.^ Very crunch, too, which was nice, and the cream puff whas a nice addition. My only complaint: It should have been bigger!

Owen--Chocolate Manhattan: The chocolate in this parfait was nice. However, the corn flakes were a bit much and coule have done better with more ice cream.

Kelly R.--Ice Mango Parfait: The flavor was so-so. The whipped cream was too sweet. The mango was tasty but not the best. Fun to have during karaoke, and cheap, but don't go there just for the parfait.

Kristin--Yoku Bari Chocolate Caramel Nuts: This was such an exciting parfait! There was a cream puff on top and crunch, savory nuts that gave it such a rich contrast. It had corn flakes and a good amount of ice cream. Good price! Great to go along with Karaoke. ^_^

Parfait Club Sixth Meeting

[Photo coming soon]
Location: Anonymous cafe near Makino station
Members present: Kelly O., Owen, Kelly R., Kristin
Parfaits tried:
1 Banana Royal ¥530
1 Chocolate Parfait ¥530
2 Fruit Parfait ¥530

Ingredients:
Banana Royal--1 banana, 1 slice kiwi, 1 slice pear, 1 fig. Vanilla ice cream scoop. All topped with whipped cream.
Chocolate Parfait--Cherry, banana, pear, apple, whipped cream, and chocolate sauce on top. Vanilla ice cream more whipped cream in the middle. More pear, mandarin oranges, and something that may have been melon syrup at the bottom.
Fruit Parfait--Cherry, banana, bear, apple, whipped cream on top. Vanilla ice cream scoop with fruit sauce and pear in the middle. Mandarin oranges on bottom.

Reviews:
Kelly O.--Chocolate parfait: I liked that there3 were a lot of different kinds of fruit, and the melon syrup was interesting, but it definitely needed some crunch. Also, it wasn't very chocolatey--the only real differece between this and thr fruit parfait was a tiny amount of chocolate sauce. Still, iw was a quaint littls place, close to home, very cozy. I would like to go back and thry their other tasties. <3

Owen--Fruit Parfait: This was by far the best usage of fruit in a parfait I have come across.

Kelly R.--Banana was yummy. Pear was more yummy. Kiwi was most yummy. Ice cream pretty good too. Not quite worth the price.

Kristin--The pear was new and tasty, but it did not taste fresh--it was sugary from canned syrup, which tastes too candy-like for me. It was a good price, however, so I would get it again. I just wish it had some crunch.

Parfait Club Fourth Meeting

Location: Lawson (convenience store) in Hirakatashi
Members present: Owen, Kristin, Kelly O., Kelly R.
Parfaits tried:
1 Chocolate ¥250
1 Mochi ¥300
2 Cafe Au Lait ¥300
Ingredients:
Chocolate--Chocolate ice cream and vanilla ice cream layered together, topped with chocolate sauce and hazelnut pieces.
Mochi--Mochi flavored ice cream layered with fluffy cream, a single mochi in the middle, caramel(?) sauce, and chocolate chips on the bottom.
Cafe Au Lait--Very simple--a top layer of vanilla ice cream, a middle layer of coffee ice cream, and a bottom layer of vanilla. There were also little pieces of chocolate cookie and chocolate sauce.

Reviews:
Kristin--review of Mochi parfait: A cheap fix when you want a slightly different taste. There was enough there to be content, but lacked that certain interest and delicacy restaurant parfaits have. There was not much contract between any of the layers, and the flavor itself was bland. It was supposed to be mochi...but was a weak attempt.

Kelly O.--review of Cafe Au Lait parfait: Truly the Dairy Queen of parfaits. Lucky for me, I like DQ. ^.^ Though it was very simple fare, I thought that the ice cream was decent and creamy. Also, this is a good choice for someone who just wants an ice cream fix, as they are considerably cheaper than the little thingums of Haagen-Dasz, but they also provide more ice cream. Think about it.

Kelly R.--review of Chocolate parfait: Very, very delicious. It was nice to purchase something cheap for this club for once! The problem is, I can't say this really counts as a parfait. It was labeled as such, but aside from a small crumbling of hazelnut and the slightest drizzle of chocolate sauce, it was just glorified ice cream. Don't get me wrong, this "parfait" was one tasty little cup of chocolate. If you want a quick and cheap fix, go for one of these.

Parfait Club Second Meeting

Location: We couldn't read the kanji. >_>; The restaurant is across the street from the Sun Plaza Hotel in Hirakata-shi. Very Classy.
Members present: Kristin, Owen, Kelly O., Kelly, R.
Parfaits tried:
2 Strawberry Parfaits ¥840 each
2 Chocolate Parfaits ¥840 each
Ingredients:
Strawberry--strawberries, vanilla, chocolate sticks (white and dark chocolate blend), wafers, custard, whipped cream, small piece of chocolate cake, orange slice and strawberry jam at the bottom.
Chocolate--chocolate, bananas, vanilla ice cream with chocolate syrup, whipped cream, chocolate sticks, custard, flakey pastry of sorts, and an orange at the bottom.
Note--There may also have been a chocolate chip cookie somewhere in there, but only two members noticed it.

Reviews:
Kristin--These parfaits are surprising and enjoyable. Every bite is different. Of course, they are also expensive and can only be afforded on rare occasions. Still, the size and taste is worthy.

Kelly R.--Very delicious. Best enjoyed when eaten slowly so that you notice the differences in every layer of parfait. The setting is classy, with good service. A good place to take a date, or to go when someone else will pay for you! The parfait really was excellent. I did feel a little ill afterwards from the sheer amount of whipped cream.

Owen--This parfait was very, very good. The parfait's layers were each a new and different experience, each with its own flavor. The service is wonderful, and very worth the experience. All and all, these bad boys are to die for!

Kelly O.--A very classy restaurant with very classy parfaits. All of the desserts were edible works-of-art, and the aesthetic value alone was well worth the price. Not to overlook the taste, of course--every bite gave us some different combination of tasted, and each one was amazing. Highly recommended, especially if one wants to feel very high-class for a night. ^.^

A note on the date:
We did this Parfait Quest on a Friday because Kelly R. was going to be out of town that Saturday. However, it still counts as our weekly Quest, and thus it is labelled as a Saturday Parfait.