I finally tried a cronut yay! And I didn't even have to wait in line for it! In case you didn't know, the cronut, a croissant/donut hybrid created by chef Dominique Ansel has been abit of pastry phenomenon ever since it's debut in 2013. A limited number are made daily and since the demand exceeds the supply there has been a complete frenzy with people lining up at the crack of dawn outside his New York City bakery since last summer just to try to get a taste of this sweet treat.
So how did I get mine without queuing up? I used the online pre-order system. The Dominique Ansel Bakery launched this on their site back in November. It was apparently quite glitchy initially but they seemed to have the kinks worked out when I used it in mid-December. Due to high site traffic, I did have to keep refreshing the page but it did eventually load after about 20 minutes and I was presented with a list of available dates and quantities left. I selected a date, quantity and a pickup time which is in hourly slots. I was then directed to Paypal to make a payment and my order was confirmed.
When pickup day came around, all I had to do was go the bakery at the time I selected and give my name and a copy of my confirmation email to the cashier in the front and she returned with my order. It was that easy. The pre-order site and phone system (212.219.2773) goes live at 11am EST sharp every single Monday and orders are accepted for 2 weeks out from that particular date. You can can pre-order up to 6 cronuts in a session subject to availability. Like I said, there is a high volume of traffic so you will have to keep refreshing the page. I didn't do it continuously... probably every few minutes. You will need to have a Paypal account set up to pay expeditiously as the cronuts are only held in your cart for 10 minutes. One drawback is that once you place the order, it cannot be changed or cancelled. But if you find you're not available to pick it up yourself, you can send someone in your place as long as they have your name and confirmation info. Also if you're placing a pre-order for the following month, it means you may not know what flavor you will be getting since a new one is introduced monthly but that's probably an acceptable risk for most. Obviously this will work best if you live in New York but it's also good if you know you'll be visiting the city. To learn more, you can visit the bakery's Cronut 101 page.
Onto my review of the actual cronut. The flavor for January is Peanut Butter Rum Caramel. It really has the nice crispy exterior of a donut and inside are chewy flaky layers just like a croissant. The taste was pleasant and hubster and I both enjoyed it despite not being big fans of peanut butter or caramel. I will say that the peanut butter which is made at the bakery is quite good and has a lovely creaminess. I personally thought it was a tad sweet and could've used a little less sugar coating on the outside because the rum caramel cream inside was already quite sweet but then I rarely eat sugar so I tend to be a little sensitive to it. Hubster felt the sweetness level was fine. While there is lightness to the pastry layers, there is a richness to the layers of peanut butter and rum caramel cream which ooze out when you bite into it. It's definitely an experience and I liked it enough that I would try it again. I'd probably use this same pre-order method again as I find it preferable to waiting on a physical line for hours.
I was just reading about what could be the next hybrid sensation, the cragel, a croissant/bagel offered by the The Bagel Store in Brooklyn, NY. It's $2.95 which makes it $2.05 less than the cronut and significant lines haven't formed for this one yet. It's also available for order online. Since I prefer savory treats, I may have to try this. Have your tried a cronut? Would you wait on line for a pastry or any type of food? How long would you be willing to wait?