So this is not a story about natural, unprocessed or raw foods, but it’s a story worth telling. After hearing here and there and everywhere that I just had to go try out the cronut – a hybrid between the croissant and the doughnut – I finally went. My friend and I got to Dominique Ansel Bakery down in Soho at 11 a.m., naively thinking we would be able to get a one.
“We sold out at 8:30 a.m.,” the lady told us. “The line forms at around 6-6:30 a.m. We make 400 cronuts a day and we sell out by around 8:30. Oh, and you can only buy 2 per person. But here is our card, you can call next Monday and reserve some….for July.”
Apparently, now there’s even a cronut black market. People line up at 6:30 a.m. and then resell cronuts once they’re sold out at the Bakery – for up to $20. Someone is even selling them (and delivering to your home) via Craigslist - see below – for up to $40.
There’s a “cronutphile” website.
Other bakeries are already creating their own version like the doissant in Chocolate Crust bakery in Washington D.C.. At least Dominique Ansel very wisely trademarked the world cronut.
I’m sorry – WHAT?! The world has gone insane! This is crazier than the cupcake craze.
So, disappointed and planning to come back another day, we went bought other pastries as a consolation (hey – we didn’t walk over there to come out with empty stomachs), including a canelle, a DKA (“Dominique’s Kouign Amann”) – both heavenly - and a Nutella milk bread, which truthfully looked way better than it tasted.
We were sitting out in the patio and saw a couple of guys interviewing and photographing Dominique Ansel. Two cronuts were sitting at their table. Dominique stood up and I went up and said hello. I then started up a conversation with the photographer and after a couple of minutes of small talk I just asked “Could we try one of those cronuts?”
And that’s how we ended up with a cronut at our table – for free – at 11:30 a.m. Thank you very much.
Lesson of the day? If you want something, just ask. A simple question might go a long way. Worse comes to worse, you’ll get a “no”. How many times have you not asked someone for something you wanted because you were, in all honesty, afraid they’d say no?
My opinion? First off you know I don’t consider myself a food critic in the least – but here is what I think. We tried the lemon flavor they’re now offering this month, not the rose one. I think the texture is pretty darn amazing but I am not a big fan of the creamy inside. Then again, I am not a big fan of pastries with cream, with the exception of éclaires (now, please don’t kill me).
I know it’s a huge innovation in the pastry world – and I respect that 100%. The pastry dough is fried like a doughnut, which apparently (I’m not a big connoisseur of pastries) is very hard to achieve. I do think people line up in great part because it’s the new thing in the city, everyone is talking about it, and most importantly, it’s hard to get - and the harder it is to get something, the more people will want it. It’s human nature.
To be honest I don’t think I would line up at 6 a.m. for a cronut (maybe I just haven’t gotten the cronut bug yet). I’d probably do it for one of their canelle though. Those babies are pretty darn good.
The Website
http://www.dominiqueansel.com
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