Croissant Olympics
Written by: Eloise Goldstein
The Olympics are an exciting time for everyone, whether you’re a big athlete or just love watching skiing and figure skating like me. If I could never be in the Olympics, how could I create my own? Food, of course! I set out on the Croissant Olympics, a journey to find the best, butteriest, flakiest croissant in Savannah. I went to five bakeries all over town, looking for the perfect pastry. My first stop: Cafe M. On Bay Street overlooking the Savannah River. Cafe M is a tiny French bakery and a favorite in my family. My mom and I decided to order two things from each bakery, so we got a plain butter croissant as well as a blueberry cream cheese croissant. The second stop was a new bakery, Paris Baguette on Broughton Street. A large chain of bakeries with a self-service setup. This is an interesting new addition to Savannah’s many pastry shops. We left with a butter croissant and a caramel-covered smashed croissant. Stop three was a local bakery: Flora and Fauna. We were immediately met with the overwhelming aroma of buttery pastries. We got a butter croissant (of course) and a beautiful rose-matcha swirly croissant. We also couldn’t resist getting a baguette and eating it in the car on the way to stop four. Between the stops, my mom and I visited the Vault Goodwill Boutique to check out their vintage formal wear sale (amazing, though I left empty-handed) and picked up my dad and sister at home to make the next two stops a full-family adventure. Stop four: Le Café Gourmet Bakery. A tiny hidden bakery next to Aldi. Their specialty croissants and seemingly unlimited free samples make this bakery another one of our favorites. We picked up a butter croissant and a mango-passion fruit one. Our fifth and final stop: Auspicious Bakery. To nobody’s surprise, the line was almost out the door that morning. By the time we got there, we were all pretty hungry and decided to pick out more treats to share later. We left with a butter croissant, berry croissant, salmon-cream cheese croissant and a cauliflower-chili oil croissant. We took our food home, laid out each butter croissant and had a taste-test.
Finally, for what you’ve all been waiting for: the results.
Fifth place: Paris Baguette. Not a surprise, being the only chain bakery. Flat, not much flavor, and too toasted.
Fourth place: Auspicious. Shockingly, we rated this one much lower than expected. The croissant was a little bready and not as flaky as we wanted. Auspicious is known for its pastries, but not for being a French bakery. However, the other special croissants were delicious, so bonus points for that.
Third place: Flora and Fauna. Very flaky, lighter in flavor, and a rich aftertaste that somehow wasn’t there while eating it. Good, but not outstanding.
Second place: Cafe M. Extremely buttery, very flaky, and delicious.
First place: Le Cafe Gourmet Bakery: Biggest and prettiest croissant, best texture, not too sweet, and very crispy and flaky.
