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Yelp
With visits to Au Kouign-Amann and Les Co'Pains D'Abord already complete, my last stop in the battle of the Croissants is Boulangerie Guillaume. This throwback bakery, offering fresh breads, sandwiches, and teas also carries some delicious pastries and mini cakes.
With metered street parking just outside it's doors, and a courtyard just beside it, you can enjoy a scrumptious snack under a canopy of trees on a nice summer day.
Common to French architecture, the Bakery is narrow and long. Croissants, pastries and breads line the walls immediately to your left as you enter and is impressively one of the most extensive selections you will find. But at the end of this display is a small display case housing some real treats... brownies, tartelettes, and mini cakes.
Although I was here mainly for the croissant, there was no way I was going to leave with only that. My purchase consisted of the Butter Croissant, Queen Elizabeth Mini Cake, Bread Pudding, and a load of fresh artisan bread.
To recap my criteria in Battle of the Croissants, my perfect Croissant isn't about the butter, it's about the texture, the appearance, and the crumbs! A good Croissant will taste delicious, a great Croissant will leave you wanting more. The outside should be crispy and a nice golden brown with white near the folds. The inside should be light, soft, and airy on the inside without being chewy. Most of all, it should hold together and produce very few crumbs.
Butter Croissant. The color was a nice golden brown with some spots of burnt orange. it looked nice and crispy, but turned out softer than it looked.The inside was light, soft, and airy, Butter flavour was not overbearing, but definitely present. Unfortunately, the crust was slightly on the chewier side in comparison to Au Kouign-Amann and Les Co'Pains D'Abord. 4,0 stars.
With that said, here are the final results in Battle of the Croissants:
Appearance: Boulangerie Guillaume, Au-Kouign Amann, Les Co'Pains D'Abord.
Outside (Crispyness): Les Co'Pains D'Abord. Au-Kouign Amann, Boulangerie Guillaume.
Inside (light and airy): Three-way tie.
Cohesion (Crumbs): Au Kouign-Amann. Boulangerie Guillaume, Les Co'Pains D'Abord.
And the winner of this round of the Best Croissant is.... Au Kouign-Amann! (based on 3,2,1, point scoring system). Runner up is Boulangerie Guillaume. In all honesty, the differences are so subtle, you'll enjoy your Croissant from any one of these places, especially if you're from outside the province. If you're a resident, then you'll probably be more picky honing in on these subtle differences. There are no losers here, just different levels of pickiness.
Queen Elizabeth Cake. Visually, this cake looks absolutely delicious! These mini cakes have a slight muffin top and are garnished with nuts, and coconut flakes, then iced with a sugar cream glaze. If you love muffin tops, you'll love this! The cake itself is a date/nut blend, and is more dense than a muffin. Slightly on the dry side. But despite this, the top is totally worth it! 4,0 stars.
Bread Pudding. Not visually appealing as the Queen Elizabeth Cake, the Bread Pudding at Guillaume's was a sleeper, and it totally stole the show! This take on the classic was sweet, buttery, and very flavourful. Not overly heavy, this cake is the perfect complement for those who need a pick up while on the go, or stay, it's perfect either way! 5,0 stars.
The next time I'm in Quebec, I'll probably do a Battle of the Chocolatines.
While I give Guillaume's Croissant 4,0 stars, overall the bakery is 5,0 stars for it's freshness, variety, and creativity in their products. I'm a fan, and will definitely be returning... my fifth 5 star rating and first for a boulangerie, congratulations Guillaume!