This is the second post in the series title Girls’ Trip to New York!
I know.
I’m like two years late to the craze. There was that time when people would line up for hours waiting in line in front of Dominique Ansel Bakery to taste that day’s allotment of the highly sought-after CRONUT®, a “croissant-doughnut” hybrid that Chef Dominique Ansel created using a three-day process. A proprietary laminated dough is fried in grapeseed oil, covered in sugar, filled with cream, and covered in glaze.
I’m not here to tell you about the CRONUT®.
Because as you can clearly see from the sign that was displayed when we arrived (a weekday afternoon around 4:30PM), the bakery was SOLD OUT of CRONUTS®.
Nobody seemed to care (or maybe nobody knew?). The lines were still crazy long. We probably waited a good 15 minutes.
It was fun walking by the kitchen, though, and taking a peek inside.
While in line, you can admire fun CRONUT® signs.
Or take selfies at the mirrors inside the bakery.
The bakery has a ton of really elegant and cute desserts. Check out these cute pigs, called Penny the Pig above, described as “a classic French religieuse that consists of a double-decker cream puff filled with fresh strawberry jam and honey rose mascarpone cream.” Sounds pretty amazing.
They also serve some all sorts of coffee drinks, a variety of gourmet sandwiches, and fun breakfast items. It’s a great cafe, even if you don’t have a sweet tooth.
Supposedly, Dominique Ansel himself prefers the kouign amann (called “DKA”, or Dominique Kouign Amann) to the CRONUT®. They still had plenty of DKAs left. You could even buy them in bulk (see above).
I was all set on order a DKA (or two!) until I saw the girl ahead of me in line order THIS!
What is that??!
It was a DKA ice cream sandwich.
I knew I had to order that instead. I LOVE ice cream sandwiches.
We toyed around the idea of also getting the Chocolate Chip Cookie Shot ($4.25). Only available after 3PM, these cup-shaped cookies hold cold-infused Tahitian vanilla milk inside. Super cute.
We had to save room for dinner, so we opted to just share a DKA ice cream sandwich as our pre-dinner “snack” together with some cappuccinos.
It was phenomenal. Totally worth the wait in line.
They have a fun outdoor patio with plenty of seating in the back of the cafe. We had no problems finding a seat at which to enjoy our little treat.
Some day perhaps I’ll make it there in time to actually try a CRONUT®. But honestly, I’m perfectly fine enjoying DKA sandwiches in the meantime, or maybe even indefinitely.
There is also Dominique Ansel Kitchen, another sister bakery nearby that serves made-to-order pastries, including the DKA (but not the CRONUT®).
Dominique Ansel Bakery
189 Spring Street (between Sullivan and Thompson)
New York, NY 10012
I think people still line up early in NYC for Cronuts. They’re easier to buy in Tokyo. I went to the Dominique Ansel Bakery in Tokyo at 8 am on a weekday last year and there was only one other person in line (she did not buy a Cronut). I did see long lines in the afternoon there for the frozen s’mores or cookie shots. I’m happy I tried the Cronut but I prefer the DKA. The DKA ice cream sandwich looks amazing!
Thanks for sharing! I highly suspect I like the DKA more than the Cronut too, even though I’ve never had the Cronut, ha ha. Maybe the next time I am in Tokyo I will try to seek out his bakery. 🙂