Bakers Bench Review: A Victor Heights Bakery Cracks the Code on Vegan Croissants | Eater LA

"Follow the scent of freshly baked pastries through Victor Heights’ Alpine Courtyard to an all‑vegan viennoiserie from Jennifer Yee, where fruit‑filled Danishes, yuzu poppyseed scones, chocolate chip cookies, and some of Los Angeles’s best croissants await. The Culinary Institute of America–trained baker, who began experimenting with plant‑based butter at Echo Park’s Konbi before opening a Chinatown kiosk in 2021, has settled into a former house, and a single bite of these pastries can change the minds of even the staunchest vegan‑butter naysayers. Tear into the flaky, buttery plain croissant to find a spiral interior that resembles a tightly wound golden ratio; the exterior shatters to reveal plush, laminated layers, and there are versions filled with chocolate or dotted with furikake. Vegetable‑laden sandwiches come on slices of golden, airy focaccia with a sturdy undercarriage, with fillings that change with the seasons—currently bright orange romesco, pickled red onion, and kale. Chewy black sesame cookies start with a nutty punch balanced by mild sweetness, their flavor resembling the filling of tang yuan. Best for picking up a box of pastries to take to a picnic at the neighboring Los Angeles State Historic Park, or for a casual daytime croissant and coffee." - Rebecca Roland