Croissant & Co.
Almond Croissant
Chocolate Twist
Paris Brest
Pear Frangipane Tart
Apple Pastry
Located along the same stretch of pavement as Upper Crust and Venice Avenue Creamery it was during the busy lunch hour that a stop was made at local favorite Croissant & Co., the homespun space filled with Francophile specialties plus several additional options catering to the local crowd’s age-based proclivities.
More brightly lit than Upper Crust, the fresh pastries and bread laid out fancifully behind glass as opposed to being tucked inside a retro metal case, those entering Croissant & Co are likely to be met by big smiles and rich accents from servers, owners or bakers and whether opting for a table or take-out the wait can vary depending on timing, as can the daily menu’s variety.
Not particularly keen on a long queue, the quoted time at 12:05 approximately “20-30 minutes” for two, it was with little lost that an order turned to take out baked-goods and although the Alligator shaped loaf was admittedly quite amusing, the items chosen took a far more traditional approach with many of them quite good.
Unpacking pastries an hour later, the quintet fetching although an almond croissant that felt hefty yet flaccid turned out to be just so with a dense pocket of Frangipane at the base, first bites of a Paris Brest showed the choux somewhat compromised by way of humidity despite the light hazelnut filling, the Pear Tart also featuring almond paste far more appropriately textured than its predecessors largely as a result of the crisp butter shell beneath.
Hoping for better use of lamination technique in later bites, the powder-sugar stenciled Apple Tart easily the best of the group with a rim that shattered to the tooth, final bites of the Chocolate Twist would have been benefited by use of darker type of cocoa, the flavor perceptible though certainly not robust.
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