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Oak Mill Bakery - Croissant Quest 2010

Posted by Tammy at 7:00 am

Aug 192010

Spinach Croissant

Sitting in Oak Mill Bakery, I had a very earnest conversation with my friend Karen over the essential qualities of croissants. It’s good to revisit the topic and to see someone else apply their croissant judging skillz. I usually go for the plain croissants, but Karen had one of the spinach and feta-filled. According to her, it was very tasty with a strong, robust feta. The pastry, on the other hand, was a tad dense & chewy — perhaps necessary to support the filling. I had the plain, butter croissant, but it was unremarkable. While light and flaky, it was also very dry and didn’t have any distinctive butteriness.

Croissant

I liked Oak Mill. It’s a smallish, comfortable space with warm light. The staff didn’t mind us lingering over our baked goods even though we were there a while. Pictures of their specialty cakes are posted on the walls and there’s a huge book to browse through more. It’s their main line of business, and I’ll definitely keep them in mind if I need a cake made. I just wish their croissants were more impressive.

Inside Oak Mill Bakery

Plain croissant $1.25
Spinach croissant $1.95
Ham & cheese croissant $2.25

Oak Mill Bakery
2204 W. North Avenue
Chicago IL 60647
(773) 252-4400

Croissant Quest 2010 Establishments (in order of preference):

See the photo gallery of Croissant Quest 2010 bakeries.

Cake Ball - Midweek Food P0rn

Posted by Tammy at 7:00 am

Aug 112010

It was more colorful than crisp, but very cake-y.

Just to dispel any doubts that I’m able to walk into a bakery and get something other than a cupcake or a croissant, I offer proof: the cake ball. In fact I found many interesting things at Angel Food Bakery, from Airstreams (their version of the Twinkie) to home-made pickles, but none were as cheerful and alluring as the balls of cake.

In retrospect, I wish I’d gotten a vanilla or chocolate cake ball because Fruity Pebbles get stale really quick in the open air. It seems like they’d be best just as they’re frosted. Still, it’s good to try something different. What’s better? To have friends who will satisfy your cupcake jones by giving you a piece of their red velvet cupcake from Angel Food. Yum.

Angel Food Bakery

Cake balls are $1.25.
Red Velvet cupcakes are $3.00.

Angel Food Bakery
1636 West Montrose Avenue
Chicago, IL 60613
(773) 728-1512

Cafe Selmarie - Croissant Quest 2010

Posted by Tammy at 3:00 pm

Jul 302010

Croissant ala Cafe Selmarie.

Cafe Selmarie is a lovely restaurant and bakery in Lincoln Square and the tenth stop on Croissant Quest 2010. I tried a couple of times, but was never early enough to snag a chocolate or almond croissant. The fact that they’re always out of them should be a big hint for me to get there earlier. Oh, well. The run out of their plain croissants too, but I managed one morning to get one.

I have to say this is the most reasonably priced croissant for the quality on the Quest. $1.85? Yeah, I wish I’d picked up a couple of more. Cafe Selmarie’s croissants are light and buttery and are definitely in the top-half of spots. A side-effect of having such tasty treats is that the bakery is always crowded and it’s difficult to get a seat at the counter. Fortunately, you can take your baked goods to the square next door and eat them on a park bench.