I’ve said before, in passing, that I wished we could get Kings’s Hawaiian bread and rolls here in Canada. I’ve dreamed of tasting them, and reviewing them. Now, my chance has come! My go-to neighbourhood supermarket has just started carrying KH products!
The package calls them Savoury Butter Rolls. But in much of the US, they call them ‘slider rolls’. Whatever you call them, they’re a cut above the average store-bought soft white roll. And the latter generic appellation correctly suggests that these little gems would perform yeoman service at any swank dinner party, as well.
A taster’s review…
I’ve been hearing bout KH breads and rolls, in the context of Fast Food ‘spe-cials’ and collaborations, for years. I tasted my first King’s Hawaiian roll about an hour ago. And it delivered everything I was expecting from it!
The top crust is a gentle, uniform gold-en brown. And the colour is the only hint that you’re dealing with a ‘crust’. The surface is delicate, yielding to the slightest touch, but strong enough to remain intact until you bite into it.
The interior is worthy of the best fancy White Dinner Roll, with a light, yet very fine, uniform crumb. Yet it bounced right back from a certain amount of gentle pinching during routine handling. The KH Savoury Butter Roll is definitely not going to fall apart after the first bite. I’d love to know how they get them to come out like that…
But it’s the flavour that really impresses! I was expecting something with heartier, more pronounced bread flavour and aroma. But what I got exceeded that bare-bones description. What really impres-sed me was the base flavour – robustly bready, but not yeasty – followed by a distinct hit of butter – real butter, the package boasts – and a slightly sweet finish…
The logistics…
KH Savoury Butter Rolls come 12 to a pack at a regular price of $4.99. That may sound a little rich for the average purse, but it works out to just $0.40 per roll. And today (I imagine, as an introductory special) they’re on sale for just $3.50 per dozen.
My take
Still concerned about the price? $0.40 per roll is only about 40 percent of the price of the ‘baked in store’ equivalent at the same supermarket.
My overall verdict? The real deal delivered on every boast the manufacturer makes – and most of those other food writers I’ve read have offered. I’ll have no qualms about serving KH Savoury Butter Rolls as the traditional ‘dinner roll’ on any occasion – fancy or family…
~ Maggie J.