Big City, Little Kitchen

If there were ever a bakery worth crossing a monumental bridge for, it would be Almondine, in the DUMBO area of Brooklyn. On the first truly warm day in NYC, we decided to brave the tourists and cyclists on the Brooklyn Bridge in the name of the city’s best baguette, as named by New York Magazine. Clearly, we couldn’t go all that way without picking up a few more of Almondine’s superior baked goods. An incredibly buttery, yet light and airy, pain au chocolat (above) is reason enough to return. Ditto the almond croissant, prepared in the traditional way: a day-old croissant is sliced in half, lengthwise; spread with almond cream then closed back up; scattered with almonds on top and baked until dark golden-brown; and dusted with confectioner’s sugar. The edges get crisp and caramelized, the filling is creamy and glues the croissant together, and after one bite, you feel as if all is right with the world.

Although Almondine is probably best known for its baked goods, lots of its patrons were having lunch. We tried the smoked salmon sandwich on a poppy-seed roll, accessorized with sliced hard-boiled eggs, capers, and cream cheese; and the turkey sandwich (above), topped with cheese that was crisped under a broiler–a little chewy on the outside, gooey on the inside, and completely delicious. Their hot chocolate is not too shabby, either, though not quite as decadent as City Bakery’s, in Manhattan.

And as for that baguette: its crusty, chewy exterior and fragrant, light interior will keep me going back to Brooklyn until I find a worthy competitor in Manhattan.