Whether you like it with cream on top, as a sandwich or just as it is, there isn't just one way to enjoy a croissant. Hong Kong’s appetite for fusion food has shown the world how dishes can be elevated with a bit of creativity and curiosity.
However, nothing replaces a simple, buttery croissant with the perfect amount of crisp. While the recipe isn’t complex—flour, water, milk, butter and yeast—baking a croissant the right way is more difficult than it may appear.
Tatler Hong Kong has three French editors on the team. They got together over a chocolat chaud to debate which of the city’s boulangeries and cafés offer fresh, crispy and buttery croissants that almost pass the test. Here are our recommendations—guaranteed never to serve a dry pastry.
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Gontran Cherrier
Gontran Cherrier’s croissants might be one of the best of Hong Kong (Photo: Instagram / @gontrancherrier)
You can smell Gontran Cherrier’s buttery croissants before entering into the bakery (Photo: Instagram / @gontrancherrier)
Where the croissant really hits the spot for me is in the smell of French butter. At Gontran Cherrier, you can already smell it before even walking into the bakery, located in the basement of K11 Musea. Flaky, evenly layered, crunchy on the outside and soft on the inside, the croissants here are remarkably close to what you’d get in a typical café in Paris—that is to say, acceptable. You’ll want to grab a cup of coffee just to dip your croissant in.
- Khoa Tran, social impact editor, Tatler Hong Kong
Gontran CherrierAddress: K11 Musea, Unit B205-B207, 18 Salisbury Road, Tsim Sha Tsui, Hong Kong
Frenchies
Don’t sleep on the croissants from Hong Kong’s Frenchies (Photo: Instagram / frenchiesbake)
Frenchies’ croissants are baked daily with delicate care and flour sourced from the finest mills in France (Photo: Instagram / frenchiesbake)
According to the French community, there isn’t a decent croissant in the city. While they're not wrong, there’s one kind of croissant that we’ll never complain about: the ones bought from Frenchie’s at 4am leaving Central after a big night out. The smell of the buttery croissant will naturally drag you to their shop, which occasionally opens on weekends at unusual hours. It's by far the best company for your journey back home.
Once Frenchies’ croissants have seduced you at night, you won't hesitate to come back during the day. Their pastries are baked daily with delicate care and flour sourced from the finest mills in France.
- Salomé Grouard, deputy digital editor, Tatler Hong Kong
FrenchiesAddress: 39 Hollywood Road, Central, Hong Kong
Big Grains
Fall in love with Big grains’ creativity and their croissants made in Hong Kong (Photo: Instagram / @big_grains)
Creative fillings elevate Big Grains' croissants above the rest (Photo: Instagram / @big_grains)
As a French person who's deeply attached to traditional viennoiseries, I have to say that the creativity of Big Grains blew me away. It’s like falling in love with croissants all over again. Their creations have everything we love about a classic croissant—the buttery taste, the satisfying crunch—but then they add a fun twist with creative fillings, like their famous matcha ganache.
- Alix Lefebvre, assistant manager, VIP relations, Tatler Hong Kong
Big GrainsSeveral locations around Hong Kong; instagram.com/big_grains
Proof
In Happy Valley? Try out Proof’s artisan croissants (Photo: proof_hk)
A cross-section of Proof's croissant (Photo: proof_hk)
Tucked away in a side street of Happy Valley, Proof is originally an artisan sourdough bakery offering a wide variety of excellent sourdough breads, cinnamon rolls and … yes, croissants! Though a touch weaker in that essential buttery scent, the wavy shape of its croissants caught my attention. Though I was a little suspicious at first—as with all “French” things outside of France—I find myself returning to Proof’s croissants for how freshly made and crunchy they are.
- Khoa Tran, social impact editor, Tatler Hong Kong
ProofAddress: G/F, 14 Tsun Yuen St, Happy Valley, Hong Kong
Levain Bakery
Levain Bakery’s croissants are light and crisp (Photo: Instagram / @levainbakeryhk)
Levain Bakery prides itself on selling handmade products using traditional bread-making methods and levain (Photo: Instagram / @levainbakeryhk)
Levain Bakery has a special place in my heart, as one of the pioneering artisanal bakeries in Hong Kong. The bakery prides itself on selling handmade products using traditional bread-making methods and levain—a natural leavening agent made from flour and water—which make their croissants light and crisp. It’s like a little piece of Europe in a surprisingly big space in Hong Kong.
- Salomé Grouard, deputy digital editor, Tatler Hong Kong
Levain BakerySeveral locations around Hong Kong; levain-bakery.com
Elephant Grounds
In the heart of Sheung Wan, Elephant Ground’s croissants get the job done (Photo: Instagram / @elephantgrounds)
Enjoy Elephant Ground’s croissants on their terrace (Photo: Instagram / @elephantgrounds)
Elephant Grounds is like a little piece of Paris right here in the city. When I’m craving a croissant that's so good it makes me feel like I'm strolling down a Parisian street, this is my go-to spot.
The Sheung Wan location has this awesome terrace where you can soak up the sun while munching on a buttery croissant and sipping an espresso. It’s the perfect place to pretend you're in Paris without the jet lag. One bite feels like a mini-vacation in the heart of Hong Kong!
- Alix Lefebvre, assistant manager, VIP relations, Tatler Hong Kong
Elephant GroundsAddress: G/F, Hollywood Centre, 233 Hollywood Road, Sheung Wan, Hong Kong
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