Decadent, creamy, and delicious; in my opinion, cheesecake is the king of all desserts. In honour of the newly opened Cheesecake Garage, I decided to visit every place in Sackville that sells cheesecake to compare them. This is not a serious review and I will not be telling you which place is better. Instead, I want to make you aware of where you can get cheesecake in town and what you can expect.
I ended up exploring two locations: Cranewood on Main and Cheesecake Garage. Ketchup With That Kitchen sometimes has cheesecake at the weekly farmer’s market, but, unfortunately, I could not get my hands on any this week. Luckily, however, another member of the team tried some at the beginning of the term. According to The Argosy’s Copy Editor, Lily Baker, Ketchup With That Kitchen’s cheesecakes are “superb, with a delicious strawberry compote and a delightful hint of lemon.”
Cranewood and Cheesecake Garage offer very different experiences and very different cheesecakes, so while I will be offering comparisons, the choice of where to visit is ultimately up to you.
If you are looking for flavour variety, the Cheesecake Garage is where you want to go. They sell little cheesecake balls covered in chocolate that come in all sorts of flavours, from raspberry to maple bacon. You can test an impressive amount of flavours by purchasing a selection of them. However, I would suggest eating them all the day you get them. I was told that they would last well in the freezer, but keeping them in the fridge causes the chocolate to sweat, making them melty and flimsy. This ruins the experience of eating them for me. They also serve cheesecake by the slice in a variety of flavours, like cookies and cream and pistachio.
Cranewood on Main, because it is not dedicated to cheesecake, has less variety. They serve one flavour a day and only in slices.
Comparing the actual cakes, I tried a few flavours from each location, including a Reese’s pieces flavour from each. Cranewood on Main has a thicker, richer cheesecake batter, while that from Cheesecake Garage is lighter and more delicate. The slices at the Cheesecake Garage seem to be more carefully decorated.
Although the owner of Cheesecake Garage, Marcuisse Thompson, told me that they are planning to set up seating for the restaurant in the future, as of right now, it is take-out only. If you are looking to dine-in, Cranewood on Main has wonderful seating. They also use reusable ceramics rather than plastic containers and serve items like coffee and other drinks, other desserts, and meals, should you want to have something else with your cheesecake. Effectively, Cranewood on Main is more suited to a longer, sit-down visit than Cheesecake Garage. I myself have done several online classes over a slice of cheesecake and a cup of coffee.
Both places are excellent options and I enjoyed the cheesecake at each. Your favourite on any given day will be based on what you are looking for: a richer cheesecake with seating and more additional offerings or something quicker, lighter, and with more flavours to take with you.
