Purchasing pastries and desserts from bakeries is a delightful experience for most people, unless you happen to be a robot or adhering to a strict diet.
Now, picture this: You’re happily selecting a baked good, your taste buds tingling in anticipation, only to later discover that what you thought was a delectable treat was, in fact, a display sample not meant for consumption.
Believe it or not, this scenario is not a figment of our imagination but an unfortunate incident that actually took place.
On 17 January, Takashimaya posted an announcement on Facebook concerning a product recall.
It turns out, DonQ, a Japanese bakery in Takashimaya, accidentally sold a cake sample to a customer on 14 January at 11:18am.
In their Facebook post addressing the mishap, they issued a clear disclaimer, urging the customer not to consume the cake and to promptly inform their staff while expressing their apologises for the inconvenience caused.
So, how did this bizarre incident unfold?
How the Incident Took Place
The cake in question was a sample of Galette des Rois, a traditional French pastry known for its exquisite flavour and texture.
The galette is a puff pastry filled with frangipane, a sweet, creamy mixture made of almonds, sugar, butter, and eggs. The almond cream filling is enclosed within two layers of buttery and flaky puff pastry, forming a round flat cake. Variations often include candied fruits or chocolate fillings.
The display cake must have appeared exceptionally tempting to the customer who allegedly took it from the display and put it in a box. I guess you could say that his purchase was a piece of cake…
In reality, he actually purchased an expired piece of cake.
A spokesperson from Takashimaya disclosed to the Straits Times that the cake had been baked and set out for display on 9 January, with a three-day shelf life from its manufacturing date.
Do the maths and you’d realise that the cake, intended solely for decorative purposes, was never meant to be sold. In addition to this unexpected sale, the concern over the cake’s expiration prompted Takashimaya to issue the recall notice.
The announcement was unfortunately made two days after the purchase. We can only hope that the customer could detect the cake’s unpalatable state and did not consume it.
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