The pandemic has brought out some cool ideas amongst the creatives in the city. One of them is Taste Bender, a new high-end Asian fusion dessert pop-up that has just opened up in North York.
Taste Bender started up long before the pandemic, though––tracing back to August 2019, Chef Danny Kim presented the first glimpse of his exquisite desserts at the Waterfront Night Market. Kim has worked in restaurants across Toronto like Joey and Kinka Izakaya.
Kim was partnering with some local cafes to do their dessert, but once lockdown restrictions tightened up, the agreements fell through with no new gigs in sight. That’s when Kim took it upon himself to open his own shop selling his own products. He launched in December 2020, and tripled his sales in the first week.
Kim has always had a passion for cooking, tracing back to when he was seven years old.
“My parents would never let me go to culinary school because they wanted me to study business. I graduated from Ryerson and had a job lined up," said Kim. "Once the contract was coming to an end, I couldn’t see myself doing this job any longer and trying to fake liking something that I truly didn’t.”
After working various jobs in the industry, he was finally able to launch his own concept.
The soft launch menu is small for now, but is looking to expand. One of the most popular items is the 'Bender Milkshake', which is described as a milkshake you can bit into. It's made with components of a vanilla bean crème brulee, strawberry tiramisu and white chocolate chips. You can also order a 'Bender Misu', which is a combination of coffee crème brulee and tiramisu, layered together on top of each other. Everything is made from scratch, from the the shells to the food all the way down to the packaging.
Taste Bender is currently offering a limited amount of boxes per day (8), which amounts to 48 desserts produced. You can place your order directly through their website or through Instagram.
They are available for pickup, at 5162 Yonge Street. by the Aroma Espresso. Or you can place your order for delivery, which will be delivered after 6 p.m.
