Au Levain Bakery & Cafe
Bakery · North Center ·
Parisian pastries, croissants, danishes, breakfast wraps, pies
Parisian pastries, croissants, danishes, breakfast wraps, pies
"Once a pop-up, this North Center bakery now has a permanent spot, bringing top-notch baked goods and a few breakfast staples. Chef and owner Ángel Chávez draws on extraordinary skill and French technique to turn everyday pastries and holiday cakes into a year-round celebration. Most of the menu rotates, but I don’t skip the generously sized sourdough English muffins (take a bag home, savor them in a sandwich, or simply order one toasted) and the decadent chocolate babka. The kouign amann is a delightfully dense, simultaneously crispy and chewy little croissant cake topped with apple butter sauce and a slice of Brie, and the pain aux raisin is a laminated chef’s favorite with yellow raisins and just enough pastry cream; seasonal doughnuts are more cakey than fried. When I want something more robust, the expanded menu runs from chilaquiles and salads to a lox sandwich, and I go for the homemade sausage and egg sandwich on one of those English muffins, with hot sauces within reach. Drinks include a few classics along with café de olla and a latte flavored with cajeta. The vibe is modern nostalgia with soft music and seasonal decor; the bright, windowed space is better for a quick visit than a long sit-down, with counter ordering and food delivered to the table. Insider tip: boxes of day-old pastries are 50 percent off, and the bakery accepts online orders for seasonal cakes, including rosca de reyes and pan de muerto." - Brenda Storch
"On any morning, Au Levain is full of coffee-sipping couples, people grabbing a pre-work pastry, or parents on crumb control duty as their toddler rips into a pain au chocolat. It’s busy for good reason: the pastries at this North Center bakery are excellent. The plain croissants are flaky masterpieces with the ideal sweet-to-buttery ratio and an airy honeycomb interior. Their danishes are equal displays of lamination prowess, from the housemade chorizo and avocado poblano cream to ones with blueberries and lemon curd. And thanks to their sourdough english muffins, you'll be thinking about the sausage egg and cheese even when it's dinnertime." - veda kilaru, john ringor
"A North Center bakery celebrated for ushering in a new era of decadent, internationally influenced pastries and breads, helping to elevate the neighborhood’s dessert offerings." - Ashok Selvam
"On any morning, Au Levain is full of coffee-sipping couples, people grabbing pre-work pastries, or parents on crumb control duty as their toddler devours a pain au chocolat. It’s busy for good reason: this North Center bakery makes excellent pastries. The flaky plain croissants have the ideal sweet-to-buttery ratio, while their chorizo or lemon and blueberry danishes are equal displays of lamination prowess. And thanks to their sourdough english muffins, you'll be thinking about the sausage egg and cheese even when it's dinnertime." - sam faye, adrian kane, john ringor, veda kilaru
"Au Levain started out as a pandemic side project-turned-virtual-bakery, but now has a brick-and-mortar spot in North Center. Aside from pastries like croissants and danishes, they also have sausage egg and cheese sandwiches and chorizo wraps." - john ringor, veda kilaru, nick allen