Croissant Tour of Honolulu #1

Croissants never meant much to me, one way or another. They were a banal staple at conferences where refreshments were served. Here in Hawaii we are used to the Costco variety, soft, somewhat flaky, somewhat buttery croissants, similar to the bun stand-ins in a croissant-wich. I actually love the occasional croissant sandwich, especially how the sandwich is never dry because of the buttery, flaky exterior. What I'm getting to is, croissants now mean a great deal to me. On a non-descript 'rue' in Paris, we visited a VERY small bakery named Poilane. World-famous, this bakery was not crowded or glitzy. It paled in comparison to any of the other large boulangeries with famous culinary namesakes. The croissant I was lucky enough to eat was life-changing, unlike any croissant that had crossed my path!

Flaky is an understatement when talking about this croissant. I have actually tried making croissants, in Hawaii sans a marble slab or air conditioning. On a positive note, I ended up with some homely crescent shaped biscuits. The Poilane creations looked like any other in France, but it was so crisp in its top layers, incredibly flaky, tender and beautifully layered on the inside, butter hardening the flat bottom into a crust. I was sure I would never be content with any other croissant after this, and so far it has been true.
















Sometimes I visit Poilane via Google Earth, that's how powerful a memory it was for me! I always dream of visiting France again, recreating meals and sifting through our photos. I was lucky enough to have a wonderful croissant this weekend that had Han and I trekking to a few more bakeries to give some Hawaii bakeries a real look. The croissant that has given me hope was from Town, in Kaimuki. What a wonderful croissant, ultra crisp and flaky, soft and gorgeous on the inside! My hope was being restored. We bought a croissant and pain au chocolat at Bakery Boulangerie on King Street. We headed to Manoa to try Fendu Boulangerie and Bakery Manoa's offerings.

These are our findings:













Town croissant - wow! Ultra-flaky, crisp, most like the Poilane croissant! Very satisfying weekend breakfast moment.













Bakery Boulangerie - really good, tasty croissant. Not quite as crisp as I like, but it was tender and flaky. We loved the apricot/peach glaze and sliced almonds. The pain au chocolat, also very good! Nice dark chocolate interior!













Bakery Manoa's (shown left) was a disapointment. It was "alright" having a somewhat flaky exterior but a more dense, bready interior. It also had a slighty chemical taste to the croissant.

Fendu was out of croissants, so we got their chocolate croissant (shown right). The pastry was quite nice, somewhat crisp, quite flaky and buttery! We were not very happy with the chocolate, the chocolate tasted of low quality and there was too much chocolate for our tastes.

We definitely want to do more croissant taste-testing! Pass along any noteworthy suggestions.