• Almondine Bakery

  85 Water St., nr. Main St., Dumbo; 718-797-5026

  What you look for in a proper French bakery: a buttery croissant that’s so flaky it “weeps” when you bite into it; a crusty baguette with an airy, fragrant crumb; and a baker-proprietor who’s so omnipresent he must sleep on a cot next to the oven. That’s what you get at Almondine, where Hervé Poussot, formerly of Le Bernardin and Windows on the World, keeps his Dumbo clientele awash in lush raspberry doughnuts, artful tarts and pies, hefty sandwiches, saucer-size cookies, and a hot chocolate that rivals Jacques Torres’s across the street. Both the baker and his inventory are French, but not too, which means he’s open to innovations like a signature baguette that’s part whole wheat, and a soft, chewy pretzel roll blanketed with melted Gruyère.

From the 2009 Best of New York issue of New York Magazine