If you've driven northbound on Eighth Avenue, toward downtown, you've probably seen the mural: "Life can be sweet," it reads, with a colorful explosion of pies, cookies, cakes and sprinkles scattered around the words like confetti. Or maybe you've seen it on Instagram — the art, painted on the outside wall of new bakery Baked on 8th by Susanna Chapman, is starting to give the Gulch's angel wings a run for their money as far as Music City selfie spots go.
The inside of Baked on 8th (1512 Eighth Ave. S.) is just as bright and picturesque as its exterior wall. The shop's countertop is covered with cake plates and platters full of brownies and blondies, coffee cake, cereal treats, scones, cookie sandwiches, hand pies and decorated sugar cookies in shapes like unicorns and cacti. A refrigerated case holds pies and cakes, sold whole or by the slice, and almost everything shimmers with a pinch of edible glitter or smattering of pearlescent sprinkles.
On one side of the shop a pink neon sign beams "Baked in Nashville" against a white brick wall; the other side is covered in beautiful peony wallpaper from Rifle Paper Co. Behind the counter, a pegboard holds dozens of cookie cutters — a rubber duck, a mustache, a flamingo, a crown, every letter of the alphabet and a man flexing his muscles. Every inch of the space is cute, sure — there's a good selfie spot on every wall. But can Baked on 8th bake? Instagram may have pushed food culture to new photogenic heights, but even the prettiest pastry is worthless if you can't enjoy eating it after sharing it on social media, so I loaded up a box with some of Baked on 8th's treasures and put them to the taste test.
The unicorn cookie, decorated with a delicate sprinkle crown and gold horn made of royal icing, is probably the cutest cookie I've ever eaten (or at least it's in the Top 3). Generally heavily frosted sugar or shortbread cookies are not my jam — they're meant to look good, like a party decoration instead of dessert. Baked on 8th, though, clearly thought beyond looks. The cookie was tender, tasting strongly of almond, and the icing didn't breakdown into a flavorless paste in my mouth. I meant to just try a bite of it (I had a whole box of goodies still to try, after all) but I devoured the whole thing. Oops!
The snickerdoodle was damn-near perfect, too — the texture was soft and chewy, the way snickerdoodles should be. And the frosted brownies also had a delightful, soft texture. If you want something a little more gooey, go for a blondie — it had a good crust with a buttery, rich center.
The sandwich cookie, with cinnamon buttercream sandwiched between smaller snickerdoodles tasted good but the soft filling couldn't stand up to the cookies — almost all of it squished out the sides on the first bite (which is why I prefer cakey whoopie pies with thick marshmallow filling over cookie sandwiches when eating sandwiched desserts ... I have a lot of thoughts re: sandwiches).
What I really loved about Baked on 8th's treats was the noticeable amount of salt in every bite. Every good cookie or slice of cake, every swirl of buttercream, should have salt in it. That's what keeps the sugar from bombing your tongue with overwhelming sweetness. There was even a pinch of salt in the marshmallow cereal treat, made with a mixture of Fruity Pebbles and Rice Krispies. Delightful.
Baked on 8th also offers Frothy Monkey coffee and Topo Chico flavored with housemade syrups as well as some gluten-free items. They're celebrating their grand opening this Saturday, June 23rd, with free samples from 11 a.m.-4 p.m. You can see more of their daily offerings on Instagram.
