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The Infatuation
The Best Croissants In Chicago
By John Ringor, Veda KilaruNick Allen,
4 days ago
Chicago is a croissant city at heart—we love butter, bakeries, and a good feat of architecture. And after evaluating croissants from all over the city, we know where to find the very best. For toasty crescents with seductive crackles and intricate marvels worth every runaway flake, head to these eight spots.
Lost Larson’s whole wheat croissant would be a lethal poker player—you can’t guess what’s going on behind its glistening exterior. But this Andersonville bakery (they also have a Wicker Park location) has achieved pastry perfection. Breaking it open unleashes a subtle, seductive crackle, and reveals an immaculate honeycomb structure. It’s buttery, sweet, satisfyingly toasty, and has the ideal flake-to-fluff ratio, so you won’t need an army of vacuums afterward.
The ridges on this Roscoe Village bakery’s croissants look like the shiny mountain range we wish we had in our giant cornfield of a state. And those caramelized grooves play an important role in texture, starting with the crispy crumble at first bite, followed by a nice airiness. The smooth, laminated layers are like thin stacks of warm blankets freshly plucked from the dryer—when you finally remember to use fabric softener—and there’s a pleasant hint of nuttiness from the whole wheat flour.
If you enjoy simply staring at croissants, this will be one of your favorites, too. This pastry from West Town bakery Aya has such a golden and glossy shell, it could be mistaken for a knock-off found in a play kitchen. But there’s nothing plastic about the taste—it has a pleasant chew to go with its balance of butter and salt that’s not surprising but never dull. When you want a textbook enjoyable pastry, look no further.
This pretty but dark pastry from West Loop’s Good Ambler can be a little intimidating. It looks like it could be too burnt. But no—this croissant has a great crunch from its tough, flaky outside, with a softer inside dough. Best of all is the slightly herby aftertaste, which pairs nicely with that char.
Plenty of tempting baked goods line Floriole’s pastry case, just waiting to send you into a tailspin over choosing between the blueberry sourdough muffin, canele, and maple-bacon-chive scone. Get them all, and a croissant as well. The plain ones aren’t much to look at, but breaking into the crackly exterior rivals radio static and unveils squishy layers that bounce back into place. They’re a delight to listen to, and even more delightful to eat thanks to a slightly salty flavor that begs to be paired with Nutella or some other sweet spread.
The croissants at this Lincoln Park patisserie seem to have missed the memo that picture-perfect croissants grow up, not out. But what these relatively flat, borderline circular pastries lack in height, they make up for in softness and plenty of surface area to slather on some jam. There’s a hint of sweetness in the dough though, so this croissant is a good option for a rip-and-eat-plain experience too.
While other croissants lean savory, the croissants from La Patisserie P in Uptown go the opposite direction. Once you make it through the flakefest of a shell (warning, it can get messy), it’s immediately noticeable that butter is in control more than sugar. But it’s not too sweet, which makes it a great choice if you’re looking to lightly tickle your sweet tooth without going full caramel walnut tart and getting blacklisted by your dentist.
A croissant from La Fournette is like a boxer punching above their weight. Free of any hefty fillings, the plain option is lighter than other croissants on this guide, and it managed to knock out nearly half of the contenders (including some from our favorite bakeries). It tastes more like flavorless bread crust than rich, buttery dough—but that just means it’s the perfect vehicle for sandwiches with salty fillings like ham and cheese, which you can also get at this Old Town bakery.
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