Cannoli Challenge!

   In the North End, I was told about two places I had to try for their famous cannolis.  One was the legendary "Mike's Pastries" and the other is a smaller shop called "Modern Pastry".  They are the same block and both boast having the "best cannolis in town", so they are pretty much asking for a challenge.  I felt that I was up to that challenge and put these two cannolis to the test.

  First was Modern Pastry.  It's a small and cozy shop with a small display case where everything looked amazing.  It is cash only and run by a few people alternating between the kitchen and the counter.  They offer the five classic varieties of filling for their cannolis, and fill the shell right when you order.  I ordered a chocolate dipped shell and stuck with the classic ricotta filling.

   
    It was delicious!  The filling was nice and light, not too sweet, and had a great custardy texture.  The shell was crispy but still light.  This cannoli reminded me of ones I had while in Italy.  Simple and light, but has great flavor and a nice, creamy texture for the filling.  It was also the regular size for a cannoli, so a very manageable dessert for one.  I very much enjoyed this cannoli. 

http://www.modernpastry.com/index.html



  We were then on to Mike's Pastry.  The atmosphere could not be more different from Modern.  Mike's is big, with about 20 different flavors of cannolis.  There are workers everywhere behind the giant counter taking orders like a cattle call and boxing up cannolis in record time.  Also, the cannolis at Mike's are HUGE.  Easily double the size of Modern's cannolis.  About the only thing these two places have in common is the street they share. 

http://www.mikespastry.com/index.html 

    I ordered the chocolate mouse cannoli.  It was also very delicious.  The mouse was extremely creamy, and oozing out the other side with each bite.  It had a great texture and chocolate flavor and was heavier than Modern's filling.  The cannoli shell was also heavier and thicker than Modern's but still crunchy and sweet.  I also loved the chocolate chips on the outside.  The added a nice bite to all the creamy mouse filling.  I would definitely recommend splitting one of these monsters because they are very good but a little too big for just one person.

    Both cannolis were amazing.  I think if you are looking for a more traditional and super fresh taste, Modern is the way to go.  But if your looking for fun and interesting flavors (I hear the Limoncello cannoli is awesome.) and a big and crazy cannoli experience you gotta head to Mike's.  Really, I recommend you just do what I did and get the best of both worlds!  La dolce vita!