Dominique Ansel Workshop — Restaurant in New York

Dominique Ansel’s Workshop is a great bakery to get fresh and delicious treats. My hotel was just around the corner and I was tickled to find that the bakery was just sound the corner. The baked goods were delightful. Everything was fresh and crispy, and I enjoyed how the sweet items were not too sweet while the savory items were rich and delicious.

I got to try the Coffee Cake and Chocolate Croissant Nest, the Passionfruit and honey vanilla brioche, the Earl Grey and Caramelized Pecan & Mascarpone Pie, as well as the Bacon, Egg, & Caramelized Onion Croissant and everything was delicious. The Coffee Cake and Chocolate Croissant Nest was the most decadent, and the rich chocolate would likely delight any chocolate lover. The Passionfruit and honey vanilla brioche was my favorite - it was sweet, rich, and creamy, and I loved the sweet and tart bite from the passionfruit custard. The brioche was super soft as well. The Earl Grey and Caramelized Pecan & Mascarpone Pie was a close second for favorites. It was crispy, flaky, and the Earl Grey filling was creamy and so delicious. As for the Bacon, Egg, & Caramelized Onion Croissant, it was a savory pastry that I could easily eat two of. The yolk of the egg was still a bit runny and jam like, and who could go wrong with bacon on a croissant?

There are tables to stand and eat your goodies at, but no chairs so it’s not a place to sit for hours and linger, but it was clean, the staff was friendly, and we found that we could linger there as long as we liked standing.

One added bonus for us - Chef Ansel was in the house when we visited, and he is absolutely charming. He was even kind enough to sign two books for my family members who fan-girled when I called them to let them know he was there. (He has books and merch there, too!). Overall, it’s a delightful bakery that I would stop by again when...

Quality, interesting pastries, beautiful shop on the inside, a bit of a disorganized staff. I came on a Saturday around 1pm and there were only a few people waiting, but everyone was scattered about and the staff didn’t make an effort to guide people or make sure they were taking the right person who was next. When I ordered, the person taking my order wasn’t all that friendly and we were given a wrong item. Shortly after, a long line formed and there wasn’t a pick-up area, so when my order was ready I had to go through the line forming against the counters and reach out to get my things. Besides that, the food quality was superb as expected from Dominique and his chefs. The items seem a bit experimental, so they might not be for everyone like his other store. I got the Ham, Brie, & Cornichon Sandwich and it was fine. It was pretty long, but narrow - and wrapped very nicely with a rope bow. I had about a 1/4 of it and I had enough, so I passed it to my mom to finish. The mix of flavors wasn’t my favorite - there was some Dijon as well. The ficelle, croissant-like bread, was way too flaky and made a mess with every bite, even though it was great in taste. As for pastries, I had the Huckleberry & Vanilla Riz Au Lait Cube, a regular croissant, and a weekend exclusive Dulce de Leche Chocolate Bread Pudding - all really delicious! Wish that weekend exclusive was a permanent item because it was my favorite of the three. Overall, I would come back because I trust the quality and love the pastries, but it wasn’t a great...

Don't buy into the hype. They took my friends order first, she paid, then they took my order. They give me a gigantic box and a black coffee saying it's mine. I ordered my coffee with milk. The pastries in the gigantic box were my girlfriend's. My friend finally got her drink and I told them the mix up. Evidently they completely lost my order even though I watched them print the receipt and put it on the counter.. huh? Then they gave me my pastries and said, "Here you go Shea!" I said, "I'm Jared, these aren't mine."

Ok, fine, no big deal, the person on register was in the weeds. It can happen. I only bring it up because, I finally get my stuff, and it's completely underwhelming.

The croissant was not warm or even room temperature, but slightly cold. For $4.50. The ham and cheese croissant was nothing special at all and also not warm. And the DKA, according to my Parisian born friend, really missed the mark. Way too sickly sweet.

You can go to Cannelle in LIC or Elmhurst, or literally ANY of the famous Colombian bakeries in Jackson Heights for fresh pastries that knock these out of the stratosphere at half the price.

Final note, the glorious and perfect pastries lined up on the counter at the "Workshop" are generally not what you are given. They unattractively reach under the counter to grab pastries to fill orders. It's kind of off-putting to be given stuff that's sitting in the dark...