Byeollae bakery: microwaved fig wakppu salt bread and tart, Byway

I was looking for somewhere to pick up bread in Byeollae, so I stopped by Byway Bakers Byeollae Branch. It's a bakery right near Byeolgaram Station, and the showcase had a really wide range, from salt bread to financiers (small almond butter cakes), egg tarts and tarts!

I dropped in because I was curious about the new fig wakppu salt bread, and ended up taking home an Oreo financier and fig pistachio tarts too. Even in photos the fig-topped items stood out, and in person the showcase full of different salt breads and financiers looked so pretty that I spent ages choosing, haha.

Byway Bakers Byeollae Branch: location, parking and hours

Byway Bakers Byeollae Branch (바이웨이 베이커스 별내점) is at 27-10 Deoksong 2-ro 10beon-gil, Namyangju-si, Gyeonggi-do, Unit 104 on the 1st floor, and is open daily from 09:00 to 20:00. There's a free parking lot behind the shop, and takeout, delivery, reservations and simple mobile payment are all available.

It's about 100 m from Exit 4 of Byeolgaram Station, so it's practically right in front of the station. If you come by car, the parking lot behind the shop looked convenient for picking up takeout.

Inside Byway Bakers Byeollae Branch: atmosphere and display case

The shop isn't very big, but the long showcase makes it easy to see all the breads at a glance. The wood tones gave it a warm feel, and along the back wall there was a menu screen and neatly stacked takeout boxes.

The showcase ran from basic breads to financiers, egg tarts and tarts. The fruit desserts caught my eye most. Some were covered in yellow and green netting, and there were fig-topped tarts and salt bread displayed separately too.

There were quite a lot of egg tarts on one side too, so anyone hunting for egg tarts in Byeollae could browse here. There were several kinds of financiers and gift packaging sets as well, so I imagine many people come looking for financiers or baked-sweet gifts.

What did I take home from Byway Bakers, and for how much?

I took home three kinds of items from Byway Bakers Byeollae Branch.

• Fig wakppu salt bread ₩8,500
• Oreo financier ₩3,200
• Fig pistachio tart ₩5,600 × 2

Each item was wrapped individually and put in a paper bag and box for me. When I took them out at home, the two fig items really stood out just from their shape!

What does the fig wakppu salt bread taste like?

The fig wakppu salt bread (₩8,500) is closer to a dessert than regular salt bread. It was the one I was most curious about.

It's said to be a basic salt bread topped with fig, Basque cheesecake and yogurt cream, then finished with a white chocolate coating. As in the photo, an ample layer of ivory cream sits on the outside with a fig right in the middle, so it looked completely different from ordinary salt bread.

When I cut it in half, there was plenty of cream inside too, filled in several layers. There's the salt bread part itself, plus soft cream and cheesecake inside, so you get several textures in one bite.

With the fig in there, you get bits of fruit pulp here and there, and overall it felt clearly more like a dessert than a normal salt bread. I think it suits people who like sweet breads with cream or cheesecake more than a light salt bread to snack on.

Is the fig wakppu salt bread better warmed in the microwave?

Personally, I liked the fig wakppu salt bread more when I microwaved it so it got a little gooey, haha. The takeout notice also said this product has lots of cream and toppings, so you should carry it carefully without tilting it, and when I saw it in person I understood why, haha.

How sweet is the Oreo financier?

The Oreo financier (₩3,200) is a slightly sweeter baked treat than the basic financier because of its topping. Even in its packaging, it had a generous cookies-and-cream topping on top.

Taken out, the financier part underneath is dark brown, with a light-colored Oreo chocolate coating on top. Cut in half, the inside showed a dense financier texture, and eaten together with the Oreo chocolate coating on top, the cookies-and-cream flavor came through more strongly.

Since it has a topping, it was a bit sweeter than the basic financier, and it was a good baked treat to have with coffee. With so many financier varieties, I'd like to try other flavors next time.

What's the texture of the fig pistachio tart?

The fig pistachio tart (₩5,600) is a small tart with soft cream, fig and pistachio on a crisp tart shell. This was the last one, and I took two home.

Cream sits on top of the small tart, with fig and pistachio in the middle. From above you can see the cross-section of the fig as is, so it's pretty for photos too. When I cut it in half, the tart shell at the bottom, the cream inside and the fig were layered.

The tart part is fairly crisp and the inside is soft cream, so the contrast in texture was quite big. With the sweetness of the fig plus pistachio, I could taste a little nuttiness here and there too.

Fig wakppu salt bread vs fig pistachio tart: how do they differ?

If you like fig desserts, I think it's worth trying the fig wakppu salt bread and the fig pistachio tart together to compare~ One is a cream-heavy wakppu salt bread and the other is a tart, so even though both are fig menu items, they felt quite different.

Verdict: is Byway Bakers Byeollae Branch worth another visit?

I took home salt bread, a financier and tarts from Byway Bakers Byeollae Branch near Byeolgaram Station. The showcase had a lot of variety, so you can pick everything from basic breads to baked sweets and fruit desserts in one go.

I mostly chose fig items that day, and the fig wakppu salt bread in particular, with cream, cheesecake and fig on top of the salt bread, was a completely different thing from ordinary salt bread~ The Oreo financier had a generous topping too, and the fig pistachio tart was nice for enjoying the crisp tart and soft cream together.

The shop is right next to Byeolgaram Station so it's easy to reach, and there were lots of breads suitable for takeout or gifts. If you're looking for salt bread in Byeollae, or want to see desserts like financiers and egg tarts at the same time, it's a Byeollae bakery worth stopping by, haha.