550602 Wed Aug 20 21:03:31 -0700 2008 4 18 Manhattan 0 3974072 i apologize if this issue has been brought up before but i just visited ny for the first time since the trans-fats ban with family. i am a huge fan of bakeries and of course, visited my favorite ones. consistently, nothing tasted as good as it had before. the doughnuts at payard are almost like dunkin donuts. the texture was completely off. i swear, all the cookies etc. that i tried were just off somehow. has anyone noticed a difference in the taste of baked goods? of course, i don't know who uses trans-fats and if my favorite places did or not before the ban. but has anyone had a hamentaschen at moishe's or a b&w lately? it's just not the same....and that's like a piece of history dying...normally i buy a bunch to take home but i didn't because they just weren't worth it...i can't believe i'm even saying this....i had one in 2006 and it was heaven....of course, trans-fats weren't always around and my parents and grandparents always complained how baked goods tasted different years ago...but i was just very disappointed with the quality and being that it seemed consistent and that we all noticed it, i am thinking it has something to do with the trans-fat bans. Wed Aug 20 21:03:32 -0700 2008 40743 lawyerlady 1 3974102 I don't think Payard would have used shortening in the first place. I think stuff tastes much better without trans fats. That means bakeries use natural fats like pure vegetable oil or butter. If anything, the trans fat ban would make things taste better. Wed Aug 20 21:15:20 -0700 2008 3974072 10886 thesu 2 3974151 what about oils? i'm thinking it's what they fry the donut in? just wondering. Wed Aug 20 21:35:53 -0700 2008 3974102 40743 lawyerlady 1 3974209 I'm a pretty regular customer at Financier and Payard's. I haven't noticed any change in the past couple of months in the taste or texture of the pastries or little cakes at either place. (I haven't had any croissants or mille-feuilles-type pastries recently though.) Wed Aug 20 22:26:12 -0700 2008 3974072 48389 racer x 1 3974608 forgot also to mention bagels on the square. have always been a huge fan. the texture of the bagels were off too. don't get me wrong--the baked goods are still better than what you would find outside of the city and still better than what a chain would produce--but they were not worth going out of my way for anymore. Thu Aug 21 06:29:46 -0700 2008 3974072 40743 lawyerlady