Leah O.
Yelp
The older I get, the more specific I get about what I love in baked goods.
I don't like fancy shit anymore- the kinds of desserts that make me feel like I'm obligated to literally salute this tiny, exquisite mousse thing before eating it, like I'm dishonoring it by actually doing what I'm supposed to do, which is friggin annihilate its 27 mousse/gel/cake/buttercream/ganache/whateverthefuck layers with my fork.
More and more, I love humble, simple deliciousness: high-quality ingredients, put to good use. Not too sweet, great on the nose and on the eyes, and not reliant on cups and cups of sugar or fat to carry the show.
This bakery excels at this elegant simplicity. I had the cardamom kringle*, and it was perfect: ropes of subtly-sweet, perfectly-baked dough laced with cardamom. The whole thing was twisted, baked, and covered in sugar. It was light and floral and ridiculous.
The almond danish was also outstanding. Again, they didn't go nuts on the sugar- their pastry cream was light, and not too sweet, and almond flavor shone the brightest.
I love this place. We drove up from the Cities, so it wasn't something we can do all the time- but I'd drive further for that kringle.
*Yo, Wisconsonites! Not like Racine's kringle! It's breadier, instead of being danish pastry- so think less butter, more bread, no filling, and definitely no slick of weird oil on the back of your mouth after eating.