Chocolate Covered Cashew & Pistachio Baklava Pastry Fingers - Bab Sharqi Eleg...

Was very taste we offer after a dinner with a coffe all like!

These are certainly tasty, attractive looking baclava, but the packaging desperately needs a rethink. The baclava arrive in a shrink-wrapped tin, which is attractive enough. However, there's a great lack of English language information on it. It's not even immediately obvious what they actually are, which isn't good if you're intending to give them as a gift. It's a product originating in Saudi Arabia, so the bulk of the text is naturally in Arabic. That's fine for domestic sale, but foreign products imported into the UK usually have an English language sticker applied with full information about the ingredients. As it is, you get a very tiny nutritional information chart and some storage instructions, but that's it. A card is also included inside, which is also entirely in Arabic. Again, fine for Arabic speaking territories, but not so good for UK sale. That issue aside, the actual baclava are rather nice. The pastry is rich, crisp and buttery, and they're not overly sweet, which is good. There's a definite nutty flavour and the dipped end of chocolate adds a nice bit of creamy sweetness. Definitely moreish. Of course, we can't ignore the price of these. At £27.99 (price at the time of review) they're a considered purchase. Baclava usually is fairly expensive, but not to this degree. There are numerous other baclava assortments around that are far cheaper than these. Because of the price and the packaging issues, it's really hard to fully recommend these. They are definitely tasty, but I feel the manufacturer needs to rethink a few things for the UK market.

Mixed reviews on this tin of chocolate-dipped baklava. The product appears authentic as nearly all the packaging and information is in Arabic. There's a little note from the producer inside which is only in Arabic. Google translate helps with this but it's surprising to not have a dual-language slip. There are nutrition information details in English on the reverse but that's about it. This wasn't quite what I was expecting but the second picture is accurate. I must admit a bit of alarm when I first opened them up as I thought they had gone mouldy in transit with what looked like green mould on the product - but turns out it's just the pistachio. They taste nice enough. Not a strong cashew taste at all. In fact I can't even tell there's cashew in there. Pistachio taste is also minimal. Main taste is the chocolate and baklava. Slightly greasy for my liking but not a bad overall taste. However, the overall lasting impression is based on the price. Based on the current price of £27.99 I simply couldn't recommend these at all. They come in a nice enough approx. 6 inch square metal tin but the price is bordering on excessive in all honesty. There are many alternatives for hand-made, deluxe, baklava far cheaper than this, also on Amazon, which make this a tough recommendation at this price.

The tin is 16cm x 16cm x 4cm and weighs 350g. That should have warned me of what to expect for £27.99 at review time. The tin has a card inside but its in Arabic so I don't understand it. The halal and vegetarian pastry fingers inside looked like they had just been thrown in the tin or had travelled very badly. Had I seen this in a shop I would have walked on by, I really did expect more, more quality, more volume and more taste. I am sorry but the five pound note I put along side the tin for size comparison is about what I would expect to pay for these.

If you haven’t tried Baklava then I would urge you to try these, provided of course you don’t have any allergies to the ingredients. Presented in a small metal tin measuring about 16cm square and 4cm deep, these delicate but incredibly moreish fine biscuits melt in the mouth. There is a small postcard under the lid (but separate from the sealed biscuits) written in Arabic for which I have included an online translation in my photos. The biscuits have a soft but slightly crunchy texture, smooth and buttery. The Belgian chocolate coating is not too sweet, but creamy and satisfyingly intense. They are a perfect accompaniment to coffee. There are 36 biscuits in the tin, each measuring about 4cm by 2.5cm and about 1.5cm thick. The cashew and pistachio nuts blend perfectly with moist and buttery crispy layers of filo pastry to achieve a wonderful taste sensation in the mouth. The taste is delicately balanced with the nuts blending into the creamy chocolate and moist buttery ‘ever so slightly’ sugary pastry. These are a premium biscuit and accompanied by a presentation tin that would make them an ideal present. Manufactured in Saudi Arabia, these are skin wrapped to preserve freshness and typically have an expiry date of about 6 months from manufacture (mine arrived with around 5 months remaining). Definitely recommended for those special moments or as a special gift.

I was tempted by these because they are made from natural ingredients. Quality comes at a price but to be honest, this tin is tiny and I’m not convinced about the quality. Most of the product information is in Arabic. There is limited nutritional information but it’s impossible to understand the ratio of ingredients. I’m not convinced the details are accurate. Is filo pastry made with only butter commercially? What’s in the ‘chocolate’ because the ingredients mentioned wouldn’t make chocolate. The treats, once opened, look like a jumbled mess. Not particularly appetising and the card in Arabic within is of little use unless you speak the language. I’ve no idea of controls for hygiene etc used in Saudi Arabia. Are factories subject to health regulations? All in all, I’m left very uncomfortable about these and have decided not to eat them. It’s too easy to contract salmonella or other bug and I’m not prepared to risk my health. I’ve kept the tin and put the contents in the food waste.

Way too expensive for what you get.