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Q: Why do Chinese bakeries smell so good but the food tastes horrible?
Everytime I walk past my mouths waters but then I have to remember that the taste will always disappoint. Such a sadness!
some of it is pretty good. my big problem is that maybe what looks like it will be sweet, then has some of that shredded meat inside
They bake with flour and sugar just like back home, but cater to different standards of taste. Meat is valued highly, so expect shredded pork on your buns, something that looks like milky pork oil in your cream cake, and hearty tomatoes used as sweet toppings. I actually don't hate the tomatoes. And good milk crean ishard to come by, so most of it is high in egg protein, and just doesn't taste so creamy. Perhaps it's coz there are lots ofpeople here who are lactose intolerant?
and have 1800 bakers in a kitchen along with workers playing on their phone when people like me pass by. Oh, that describes a number of businesses in our host country.
after years of passing bakers and the smell enticing me to buy thick crust bread, i am unfortunately programmed to associate the smell with 
But here in China it is not the case: the same smell is now connected to 
, due to differing local tastes.
You just have to get lucky, and find one or two things within that will suit your palette. I've found a few things that aren't too bad at my local bakeries, typically muffin/cake-like entities that work OK for breakfast. I don't mess around with the "meat floss" and red bean stuff....typically go for chocolate. I know exactly where they're kept, and how much they should cost.
The big question is always....do they have one of those specific items I like today, right now. 50/50 chance I'll hear 不好意思，没有 (sorry, no have). 
Usually, oil is used instead of fresh butter (or at best that rancid stuff from NZ or Australia that dares to bear the name), and probably powder milk instead of real milk too. I don't expect the other ingredients to be of any quality.
Maybe chem stuff is added in the process, considering how many of those "bakeries" look more like that yellow foam used for seals. I really wonder how they manage to make them look so much like plastic.
And to be sure the art is properly insulted, ketchup or mayonnaise toppings, in case you managed to get lured anyway.
I hate the smell of chinese bakeries. its horrible same as the food insde. The only exception is Jepson bread...
