If there’s such a bakery that has an Instagram friendly space and serve excellent laminated pastries at the same time that would be Mr. Holmes Bakehouse. The space itself is slightly on the industrial style with minimalist decoration, done in tones of white, beige and grays and a touch of wood, making it a great canvas for the golden brown pastries (some dipped in colored glaze) to stand out. This particular bakery started in San Francisco, CA particularly famous for the Cruffin, a croissant dough shaped like a muffin and filled with various flavored fillings depending upon the day of the week (I’ll get to that pastry later on). The good thing is, there’s no line here to get any of these pastries around 11:30 AM and they were fully stocked so we had to get almost all of the laminated pastries.
For those who aren’t aware what is laminated pastry, it is any pastry dough that has been rolled and shaped in a way in which many layers are created of dough alternating and fat. We started off with the savory pastries since this was our breakfast – and I love to have savory pastries than sweet ones since they are harder to find. The savory ones were the French onion soup danish and the “Just Try It” croissant and these were phenomenal even at room temperature. The flaky danish does have the flavors of the onion soup – deeply caramelized, savory onions and chives with a good amount of Gruyere and other blend of cheeses to make this flavor happen. The “Just Try It” croissant is filled with their house made pastrami, pickled onions, pickled oranges, Manchengo cheese, pumpkin seeds, and fennel seeds. This particular croissant is incredible; the well seasoned pastrami mixed with the bright pickled onions, slightly sweet oranges and the gentle spice of the fennel seeds and pumpkin seeds with a touch of Machengo for a subtle cheesy funk was wonderful.
Since we were there on a Saturday, the Cruffin flavor of the day was pecan pie. This croissant pastry was rolled in cinnamon sugar and filled a delightfully creamy pecan pie flavored pastry cream that isn’t too sweet. I finally understood the hype behind this pastry and it is not just chatter.
The twice baked pear and chocolate croissant is both photogenic and tasty. The level of sweetness isn’t too sweet and the dark chocolate and pear flavors were harmonious. The plum tea-cream danish was great for showcasing the seasonal fruit without it being overshadowed by the tea cream. The matcha croissant is a very good matcha flavored croissant and not too bitter or sweet (and my matcha loving mother would obsess over). The churro croissant was interesting that it mimicked the churro’s flavors well by having the buttery, flaky pastry coated in cinnamon sugar and filled with a delicious dulce de leche cream that was perfect.
As for that bright pink beverage you’re seeing on these photos, it’s a yuzu basil lemonade and it’s pleasantly acidic and sweet enough to drink with these buttery, flaky pastries.
To view more photos of this visit, please view the gallery below or CLICK HERE for the photo set:
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Information:
Mr. Holmes Bakehouse
Official Website
Highland Park location
111 S Ave 59
Los Angeles, CA 90042
Phone: (323) 739-0473
Map
