I am standing at Epicerie Boulud with my new iPad (I'm very happy!) and am sorely disappointed by their croissants. I've never bothered to get their pastries, since they are tiny and expensive. But they look delicious and I've heard excellent things about their croissants. I was in the mood for a pain au chocolat, so I caved in and bought one. It did satisfy my craving, but for the price and the fact that it was from one of Daniel Boulud's restaurant it wasn't great.
It looked large and puffy, but in reality the size was from giant air pockets, rather than a network of small/medium ones. This shows that the dough was either not folded/shaped properly or over proofed. Also the chocolate batons did not run the full length of the croissant and were far sweeter than I'm used to--I think it must have been milk or very light semi-sweet chocolate.
Had I found this at a little local bakery I'd have been happy with it, but given the big name behind Epicerie Boulud, meh. Not to toot my own horn, but mine are better. (Possibly because the recipe and technique I learned were from Jacques Torres, who makes the best pains au chocolats I've ever had.)
On a positive note, I had the pulled pork sandwich, which was delicious. The roll, the coleslaw, and the pork (with its sweet and sticky sauce) were all excellent. Obviously it was not traditional Carolina pulled pork, but that's okay, I wasn't expecting southern barbecue at a French restaurant.
Regardless, the mediocre croissant will not stop me from going back, but I certainly won't be bothering with any more of their baked goods. If I want sweet when I'm there I'll stick to their delicious gelato and sorbet.
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