In the land of rice, it just got easier to buy a decent loaf of bread as well as croissants and puff pastry. The Princess bakery, recently opened at Sea World in Shekou, sells bread and pastry made in Europe then baked on location.

All 33 different kinds of baked goods are kept fresh with vacuum-freeze technology. The breads are allowed to rise before baking.

The store's giant freezer can hold up to 1,800 kilograms of frozen dough. Bakers take some out each day to bake in the shop's two ovens. Only bread baked fresh each day is sold.

To maintain traditional techniques and quality, European breadmakers will train all the Shenzhen staff before they start working.

Princess bakers use French wheat flour, which they say contains natural fiber and is relatively low in sugar and fat.

A specialty of the Princess is the blackberry pastries. The fragile, dark purple fruit contains five times more vitamin C than apples and six times more than grapes.

The Princess sandwich is another specialty, with a slice of ham and cheese baked inside.

Come December, bread lovers living in Luohu and Futian won't have to travel to Shekou for European baked goods. The Princess' second shop in Shenzhen will open at the CITIT Plaza next month.

Editor: Donald