Breaktime Desserts
- Hours:
Mon-Thu, Sun 11:30 a.m.-11:00 p.m.
Fri 11:30 a.m.-12:00 a.m.
Sat 11:30 a.m.-12:30 a.m. - Price Range: $
- Accepts Credit Cards: No
- Parking: Private Lot
- Attire: Casual
- Good for Groups: No
- Good for Kids: Yes
- Takes Reservations: No
- Delivers: No
- Take-out: Yes
- Waiter Service: Yes
- Wheelchair Accessible: Yes
- Outdoor Seating: No
- Good for: Late Night
- Alcohol: None
17 reviews
San Jose, CA
"When I want to stay in I get me some House of Chu!! It's soooo good. My favorite is the house special beef. i also get pork fried rice,…" read more »
55 Reviews for Breaktime Desserts
Just an okay Chinese dessert place. I've been here two times and both times were just mediocre. The prices are high and the service is slow. The menu is limiting and the portions are on the small side. I do like their egg waffle thing but that was almost $4 when you can get it in HK for less than a buck.
Sure, I've tried their other desserts and were mildly satisfied, but you CANNOT GO WRONG WITH THE SOUFFLE.
I've tried the orange souffle, chocolate souffle and vanilla cinnamon. I loved them all. Oink oink oink.
Sure, sometimes it comes out a bit lopsided or overblown, but I'm too busy stuffing my face in it to really care what it looks like. When I get to the bottom of it, I usually wish that I had ordered two because if I order one now then I'd have to wait another 20 minutes.
So sad.
Usually I'm scraping the hardened sides because I want the flavor. More more more. Well worth the 20 minute wait. Bring good company or a book to kill time.
During peak hours, it's darn near impossible to find seats, but I've been pretty lucky because it's easier to seat 2 than a party of 10. It's a good place to relax with friends and chat.
It's a cute place with a very different feel to it. Food and service are good and kind of lighthearted/fun.
The desserts here are pretty good, but service is sometimes slow. The sesame paste is nice and thick, even better if you add rice balls. 1 complaint....one night we went, and they were out of sesame paste and they couldn't make egg puffs.
I am giving this place 5 stars for 1 reason: black sticky rice in coconut milk! I've been to a lot of Chinese dessert houses in LA, NY, and the Bay Area, but black sticky rice in coconut milk doesn't seem to be a default item on the menu for a lot of these places. I am so glad Breaktime decided to add it to their menu. I will go back again and again for that! Other than that, I think the quality of most items there are pretty standard, like mango pudding, various sagos, souffles, and egg puffs. My bf says the red bean egg puff is amazing, but I guess it doesn't hit the spot for me. Price wise, it's probably a bit on the high side, but still very affordable.
My friend, we'll call him "piggy" introduced me to this place. What time is it?! BREAK TIME!
After coming here so much, I started to realize that it's overpriced. But oh well. It's the best DUN DAN I've had in this area. Hello Desserts is too watery. There's a place in SF that's reallly good but too far.
The mango pudding is overpriced in my opinion because it's around 6 bucks. I can understand with dundan since it takes about 20 minutes to cook but mango pudding??
Souffle is alright but sometimes can be too soggy. This is the only place I know that will just serve souffle..let me know if you know of others?
The wait can suck on weekends when there are large groups who stay forever.
They are open until 11pm almost every night I believe.
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What time is it? Breaktime! I go to this place all the time to hang out with my friends. I like the Egg Dun Dan quite a bit, people don't know what they're missing out.
Not exactly the cheapest, a little overpriced if you ask me, but it's a nice place to go to after dinner.
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I first went to Break Time when they first opened back in 2005, I always liked the place, good selections of HK style dessert, that is what Cupertino needs nit just bubble tea if you know what I mean. I always order the Mango pudding, Black and White (Sesame and Almond soup) and many others, but recently I started to order the Souffl especially the Chocolate, the only down side is you have to wait about 20 minutes for it but to be honest it is worth the wait. The service is good only when there are not many people, overall good place to hang out.
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My friends from cupertino took us here really late one night and introduced me to the egg puffs ($4). They were like little balls of goodness! I can't believe I didn't know about them before. I thought the snacks (ex individual sized souffle $10) were way too expensive and waiting for the food to cook/bake took a lifetime.
I really like coming here because of the relaxed atmosphere, and hot and cold dessert selection. The free internet makes it a great place to stop in while still "working" too.
If you want something new, interesting then come to break time. Dessert are decent and fun to look at. Their eggpuffs are something else altogether. I havent' had anything bad from here before, and a great place to bring a girl to if you want to surprise her. Price can be a bit high, and the wait for the dessert can be long if you have a big order. But hey, the fruits are fresh, they made to order so can't really complain.
Nice place for some late night HK milk tea and egg puffs. The place isn't that big though. Don't bring a large group here. A group of 2 or 3 with at least one Chinese guy or gal should be good :).
Desserts: overpriced
Service: horrible
I had family visiting from San Francisco and Hong Kong for Chinese New Years and my mom suggested I bring them to Break Time for an after dinners dessert. Big Mistake. The cashier was very standoffish, but I didn't think too much of it since the place was sort of busy. She tells us to come back 15-20 minutes later so we take a stroll around the Cupertino Village. About 15-20 minutes later we go in and ask if our order (to-go) was ready yet and she snapped back with, "we'll call you when it's ready." So we go back outside and 15 more minutes later I go in and ask if it's ready yet. This time I asked the manager and she (snapping as well) says they're cooking it- that our "dun lai" takes a long time to cook. Dun lai's do not take 30 minutes to make. So we're standing inside for another 10 minutes until we see the cashier say something to the manager and it turns out that they had to make our dun lai numerous times because it kept breaking apart. I'm pretty upset by this time (having waited 45 minutes already) and I tell them to cancel the order (even though it was for my mom) and when they give us the other desserts they're already cold. My guests asked the manager to remake them (it's the cafe's fault we had to wait so long they're cold). You know what they replied with? You guys could have started eating it when it was out. Wow. They end up remaking it and my cousin goes inside to pick it up and when we get back home we realize it's just been microwaced. For a dessert cafe to overcharge their desserts so much, I expect some decent service. I will never go here again. Go to Hui Lau San in SF or Milpitas for better desserts, prices, and service.
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Can someone tell me what Hong Kong style desserts are?
I had no idea what this place was, and pretty much I like to stay away from Cupertino VIllage PERIOD but my friend suggested this place and I felt indifferent.
I usuually hate cutsy looking places like this little cafe. What I ESPECIALLY hate is that this place is always full every time I come here, so I feel like a big loser having to wait around outside because: 1. I don't smoke 2. I was born in America. Oh well.
Food-wise...
I like their desserts, but I usually get the same thing everytime which is the Strawberry French Toast, and some dessert dish where you choose what kind of fruit you want and they service it with shaved ice and condensed milk. Overall, this place will satisfy your craving for sugary and sweet fried food. Overall the people who work here are really nice but still - nothing can really alleviate the feeling of awkwardness I feel in here.
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I am surprised that not many people have tried the STRAWBERRY FRENCH TOAST!
I think it is the best thing in the menu. It comes with 8 little cubes of french toast that is crispy on the outside and soft and warm on the inside. Each piece is topped with a slice of fresh strawberry, a bit of strawberry glaze and powdered sugar. There is also a hint of peanut butter in it the toast too. All this also comes with a scoop of smooth vanilla ice cream in the middle. In the end, it offeres a wide blend of crunchy and smooth textures, wamn, toasty and cold tempuratures and the sweet taste of the ice cream, toast and semi sweet strawberry.
I've tried a wide variety of the other desserts that they offer, and I can only rate them acceptable with a few slightly better than others.
I give it 4 mainly because of the strawberry french toast, since there is no where else that has anything close to this on their menu. But along with everybody else, the service is lacking and could be alot better. The prices are fairly decent in my opinion.
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Food Quality: 4 stars
Price: 2 stars
Since I am a person of Chinese descent, I just can't help but obsess over the outrageous prices they charge at this otherwise good dessert place. I mean, seriously, they are charging full meal prices for the desserts they have. Charlie and I had 3 things between the two of us and it came out to $10 per person with tax and tip.
Apparently they even have a sign by the cashier that said something to the effect of, "Our wait staff is underpaid and rely on your generous tips to survive the high living costs of the bay area." I don't think you can get any more Chinese than that.
Seriously though, come ON. I don't mind supporting businesses I like, but you gotta figure out a way to keep your costs down. Either that or double the portion sizes.
Okay, that's enough ranting about the cost/portion size ratio.
What I've had here has been great. The egg puffs are good (way better than the way-too-eggy egg puffs I had at a similar dessert place in San Francisco) and come in 3 flavors: regular, red bean, and chocolate.
The mango desserts and other stuff I've had has been good as well. Will update with pictures and more comments on the food later.
BreakTime has a formidable variety of desserts. It has not just milk pudding and egg pudding but 3 kinds of milk pudding and 3 kinds of egg pudding. They also have sundaes, sago, souffles, savory Hong Kong snacks and shaved ice.
I saw the red bean egg puff on the menu and wondered if it could be the Taiwan style egg puff (where the egg puff is filled with red bean paste). Well, it was not Taiwanese style but it was Hong Kong style. The whole red beans were in the batter and didn't have that much flavor. The egg puffs were good but the puffs are smaller than Eggettes and not as crispy on the edges. Eggettes still has the best egg puffs.
The green tea smoothie was excellent indeed. Not bitter at all but not super sweet either. The vanilla cinnamon souffle sounds delicious but it takes 20 minutes to prepare.
You may have to wait for a table in the late evening but there are plenty of places to see in Cupertino Village. Cash only. For a Chinese dessert place, it's on the pricey side ($4 for an egg puff, $5.65 for a spam & egg sandwich, $4.55 for a steamed pudding). The egg puff is $3 at Dessert Republic.
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This is a great, quirky little place to get dessert or a snack. I love the honeydew sago, the black sesame paste, and the spam and egg sandwich, served on soft, sweet white bread, probably the Taiwan Toast from Sheng Kee. My "sometimes" foods, to borrow a term from the reformed, post-childhood-obesity Cookie Monster, are the fried mantou (comes with condensed milk for dipping!), the spaghetti and meat sauce (HK style for sure), and the new blueberry french toast.
I still haven't mustered up the courage to order anything requiring 15-20 minutes to cook, i.e. the souffles and steamed egg/milk puddings, but frankly, it ends up taking 10-15 minutes to get your order regardless of what's in it.
Oh, and if you sit near the front counter, make sure you read the posted sign explicitly spelling out why you should feel like a jerk if you tip under 20%. It's pretty great.
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They were open really really late on a Tuesday night, so it was our only hope! Turned out to be decent. I had pork cutlet curry - the sauce was a little different from what I was expecting, and the katsu was flat as a pancake, but managed to taste ok. All in all it was pretty average late night fare.
reasons why i am willing to drive half an hour to go to this place three nights in a row: egg puffs, orange souffle, and steam milk pudding.
i also like their coffee souffle and pork chop bun.
souffles and milk/egg puddings take about 15 minutes to be ready so call in ahead to put in your order if you don't want to wait. they may even reserve a table for you if you do that.
Craving a sweet fix, my family headed over to Cupertino Village to get our fob on. I heard decent things about Breaktime, so we rolled on in to the cute Canto cafe.
Being a Thursday night, it wasn't super crowded, but still, most tables were occupied, and there was only one girl who was managing the tables and taking take-out orders at the register. We readied ourselves for the wait. And yeah, I could've done a few (hundred) laps around the village by the time we got out of there. From the ordering, to getting waters, to the food, to paying--let's just say they didn't get bonus points for efficient staffing. Poor girl. At least she seemed friendly enough.
But on to the food (because who actually cares about the girl?).
Hm. Not super impressive. I was... underwhelmed.
The other family members seemed to enjoy their sweet tofu (dofu hua) - but my mom and sis kept on pouring on the sweet syrup (apparently, not sweet enough?). My strawberry sago w/ assorted fruit inside was cute, but not exactly the party in my mouth that I hoped. And our "red been" eggette had a scattering of red beans that were barely discernible in the dough.
Now I understood why people complained about the price. Overall, for dessert, not expensive in the scheme of things. But for what you get, I'd rather head to Banana Boat Cafe in Fremont and get my shaved ice fix. Mmhmmm. Shaved ice. *drools*.
This place ain't going break it for me. Har har. Obviously, didn't get enough of a sugar fix.
Yeah, it's expensive and service is slow and it's cash only. But sometimes, you just really want some sticky rice with mango and an eggpuff. So what can you do but drag your soon to be larger butt over there and pay the always increasing price for your dessert fix. The world is a cruel cruel place.
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Happened upon this little place and was drawn inside by the enticement of homemade sweet tofu. I tried the almond tofu with green tea ice cream and fruit, and the blueberry French toast, which was absolutely amazing! It was so yummy - I'll definitely go back and try more things. The place was clean and the decor was cute. Some items were a little pricey, but if the quality is high and the service is good, I'm willing to pay a little more. I love the shopping center in which this place is located - lots of good Asian (mostly Chinese) restaurants and businesses.
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I've been here twice -- once for the desserts and the other for an attempt at dinner. Dessert was fine as their dessert fare are Hong Kong style desserts plus a wonderfully rich looking orange souffle. It looked super yummy and I think I'll try that next time.
What made a seriously interesting impression on me during my dinner attempt was the zaru soba dish I ordered. When I ordered it, I expected a very plain Japanese zaru soba dish. What arrived was the buckwheat soba topped with scrambled eggs. I stared at my order for a good half minute until I realized that was what I ordered. Let's just say they have a very creative twist to standard dishes. So, please do hold your breath for your orders and exhale with relief when they arrive the way you thought they should.
Basically, stick to what you know on the menu. For any deviations, keep an open mind.
When you know you would rather eat a snickers bar for dessert, you have found a pretty sad excuse for a dessert house.
Yes, it is late night, but it doesn't mean you can water down the condensed milk! That alone gives this place one star.
The Creme burle is the worst offender. It tasted like they just dumped a sack of sugar on top of pudding. The only redeeming item is the fried mantou (deep fried mantou is a popular azn dessert served with condensed milk), but they had the balls to water down the condensed milk!!! The egg puffs are okay here.
Did I mention they watered down the condensed milk?
This place isn't GREAT, but it isn't bad, at least the quality of food though. The first time i went here, I remember one of the waitresses giving me a dirty look, which really pissed me off. She gave me a dirty look for no reason. Then i asked her, for my cousin, do they accept cards. and she said in a rudely manner, NO. Ugh, anyhow.. It's quite crowded in there, the food is alright but it could take forever sometimes... okay, most of the time. But what I didn't' like was that they'd make people move after they're already eatting because they don't have enough seats. It was kinda out of line, but they had to do it to make room. Hello desserts is faster, and kinda better? Because it has faster service and more room.
Breaktime has become a favorite late night dessert stop for us since we've moved to the area. Try to the hot sesame and almond dessert if you're in the mood for something warm. My wife swears by it. I prefer the mango and sweet tofu.
If you want something more substantial the curry pork chops are decent and late night spam and eggs can really hit the spot.
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3.5
I like the egg waffle. It reminds me of the Chinese doughnut, the taste is very similar.
Fluffy on the inside and crispy on the outside. Yum.
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I went there one weekday afternoon a little before 5pm with a friend. We ordered shaved ice with 3 toppings and dofufa (sweet tofu soup) with tapioca balls. Shaved ice was disappointing. The ice was too coarse and the red beans we ordered... I could've made the red beans at home. They were not sweet at all. They tasted like they were just plainly boiled. Dofufa was pretty good.
Price is the biggest drawback. Our total bill came out to be a little over 10 bucks. Service was not that great. We were rushed to pay as soon as they brought us our desserts. Later we figured out that they were closed from 5:30pm until 7:30pm. That's why they had to rush us... but still... For the price of the stuff on their menu, I'd rather go to Q-cup or Fantasia. I don't think I'll ever go back to this place again.
Great Egg Puffs!!! (comparing to what I've tried so far in SF).. I've ordered their egg puff on several occasions and it comes out fresh, soft and crispy on the corners...
Also, their steam egg, tofu pudding w/ ginger was satisfying...
The biggest drawback here is the price... I usually end up paying $10-15 for desserts for two... kinda pricey! Also, the wait is long (even when we were the only customer)... wait is usually around 10-15mins when we get there early... However, if you come around 8-9pm, the wait might be longer..
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I'm in love with the cold sweet tofu, with red beans and peanuts. So delicious. Just like how they have it in Taiwan. Haven't tried anything else out but if I do, I will update this review. But the tofu gets a solid 4.5 stars from me. The store isn't too nice inside but whatevers.
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When the pearl tea places close at 10pm, this is one of the few places you can head to in Cupertino Village that isn't a restaurant. There are things you want to experience and things you want to avoid. Good eats: egg puffs, sesame/almond/walnut paste. Ice cream dishes aren't too bad but pricy for ice cream. The souffle has a "#1 ribbon" on the wall, but stay away from it. It's like eating bread pudding. On that note, the pictures of dishes on the wall with award ribbons don't mean there was a food tournament here.
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I love-love-love the mango and sticky rice because it's not overly sweet... and it just tastes good! The egg puffs and souffle are worth trying as well. I am a big fan of this place, but I can't give it 5 stars because 1) the desserts are on the pricey side for what you get, 2) it can get crowded with no place to sit if you want to wait , and 3) it
s cash only, but I guess that's expected from a small asian snack place.
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I love this little dessert place! Great french toast and egg puffs! definitely the place to eat if you wanna gain some lbs. Cash only!
their shaved ice bring me back here again and again :)
Good place for getting dessert and hanging out with a small group of friends (like 4 or less). They don't do large groups well with their limited seating.
Their dou hua (soft tofu served with a vareity of toppings) is one of the better ones that I've had on this side of the Pacific (though that may not be saying much) and I find their egg puffs to be pretty good. If you feel like splurging, then definitely go for the strawberry French toast.
It is a little pricey though and it's usually full, which are detractors. I for one like the music videos they play, since I listen to the stuff. 3.5 stars for the dessert, down to 3 for always the limited seating and price.
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Not sure how good/bad this place actually is. I went once for some shaved ice and I did not like it at all. The quality of the shaved ice is like the kind you'd get from a street vendor in Taiwan; however, when you go to an actual restaurant in Taiwan, the ice will be finely shaved and has the texture almost like ice cream. This place was packed though, but I figured it's because it's the only place like this around there. I'm sure the other things were fine though.
JONASAPPROVED!
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I love me some Eggettes! It's like the best Asian snack food known to man. I could eat two or three trays of the warm waffly-like goodness, along side a delicious fruit platter on top of shaved ice, with condensed milk! Or on a cold day pair it with a warm individual pot of tea.
Ok so it's kind of expensive. But heck, I don't eat eggettes that often and don't drink rose tea or have stuff over shaved ice that often either. So when I'm craving it, I think it's a great place to go, and so convenient to where I live.
Yup. They have great egg puff. It doesn't tasted exactly like those in Hong Kong, but it's still good stuff.
I like their Mango Sago, simply yummy!
Yes, the price is a bit high, but when I see real big pieces of Mango in the Mango sago, I think it definitely worth it.
This place actually rates a 2.5 from me, but I decided to round down because the service here is rather pitiful. I came here with 3 other people on a Friday night - it was busy, but definitely not even close to being packed. After we were seated, one of two waitresses stopped by and we asked for water, which never came. The waitress later came back take our order, and again we asked for water - and it to never came. Eventually someone from our group had to go to the counter and ask them again.
The variety here ranks in at probably around a 4, but the price and quality of the food is comes in closer to a 2 or 3. The quality is rather average, nothing that I tried remotely "wowed" me for my sugar fix, and the prices are a bit pricey given the location and what you're actually ordering.
On the whole, I'd probably avoid coming back - except they're open late on Fridays, which is the only reason I would return.
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