Rolling Pin Bake Shop
In a word: It's a buttery little bakery.
The specs: #0555
Address, hours & details via Isthmus; reviews at Yelp, Viewpoints, Wisconsin Candy Dish, Isthmus, listing at Eat Drink Madison; official web site, 
Faye, JM, and Nichole split a cupcake, a cream puff, a Napoleon, a berry tart, a cinnamon bun, and a slice of chocolate cake.
The bill was about $20 or $6/person.
JM and Nichole gave Rolling Pin Bake Shop an A-; Faye gave Rolling Pin Bake Shop a B- (see our grading rubric).
Latest Rolling Pin Bake Shop news and reviews
It's easy to overlook Rolling Pin in its strip-mall off Fish Hatchery, near the Laredo's. We missed out on a real meal there due to a scheduling miscalculation, but we're not going to complain about having room left for five pastries. Based on our sample, we can say Rolling Pin is never shy with the butter or sugar, and they have a balanced eye for cuteness.
A peanut butter cupcake left JM's mouth feeling coated in lipidy stuff (like MST3K says, "whole stick of butter in every can"). The flavor was sweet and nutty. A berry tart had a thick crust of, yes, ultra-buttery yellow crumbs, a thin layer of sweetened cream cheese, and tart-verging-on-sour raspberries and blueberries.
A cinnamon bun was fully glazed but not sticky and frankly not very cinnamoned. Getting both a Napoleon and a cream puff was probably overkill, as each incorporated massive amounts of airy whipped cream. The cream puff's pastry was not too sweet (though it was, um, buttery) and the Napoleon used what the server called "creme brulee filling" between flaky layers.
After splitting five treats, we waved the white flag and put away the cake for later. (It was Nichole's favorite of the group, dense with intense chocolate flavor in the cake, creamy internal frosting, and ganache-like exterior frosting.) Cakes are sold whole or pre-sliced, so don't get your heart set on anything in particular before you see what's available.
Rolling Pin also has an impressive portfolio of wedding cakes and a decent selection of breads, which we probably should have sampled. But we were on our way to Brat Fest and really didn't want to overdo it, you know?
Yeh for the mst3k reference.
Posted by: Keith | July 13, 2010 at 11:22 PM
"creme brulee filling" do you agree/disagree with that description?
Also, how did the cream puff compare with "the" State Fair Cream Puff????
Posted by: Ken | July 14, 2010 at 01:51 AM
LOVE their Russian cookies. They always have three or four varieties...
Posted by: Kovalic | July 14, 2010 at 08:28 AM
We tried some of their cookies a while back and were unimpressed. Maybe it's time to give them another shot.
Posted by: Kat | July 14, 2010 at 08:29 AM
I just wanted to comment here to keep the 'K' streak going.
Posted by: Kyle | July 14, 2010 at 10:06 AM
I'd like to go there sometime!
(you're welcome, Kyle!)
Posted by: Karen | July 14, 2010 at 02:00 PM
I'm always on the look out for a good bakery in town, and somehow I've never stopped here. I'll have to put it on my list now, that tart looks delicious!
Posted by: Katie | July 14, 2010 at 02:05 PM
The strawberry shortcake cake is amazing if they have it when you go.
Posted by: Jason | July 14, 2010 at 04:32 PM
I was given a baby shower with a raspberry cream cake from there and it was FANTASTIC! Then again I was pregnant and any cake was fantastic.
Posted by: Heidi | August 18, 2010 at 07:41 PM
You may remenber the four proverbs:
A bad workman always blames his tools.
A contented mind is a perpetual feast.
A good beginning is half the battle.
A little pot is soon hot.
Posted by: Nike Air Max TN | October 26, 2010 at 08:10 PM
And even a spammer is right twice a day.
Posted by: EiMAtZ | October 26, 2010 at 09:46 PM