clock menu more-arrow no yes mobile
Neighbor Bakehouse
Neighbor Bakehouse
Eric Wolfinger/Facebook

13 Bakeries with Killer Croissants in San Francisco

Pick a flavor, any flavor

View as Map
Neighbor Bakehouse
| Eric Wolfinger/Facebook

The croissant may be the pastry most particular to Paris, but San Francisco has taken its own equally-inspired spin on this buttery baked treat. Often best served wrapped in brown paper and hot out of the oven, there's no optimal time of day to enjoy a croissant. Whether eaten as breakfast, lunch, dinner, or dessert, a croissant is a versatile delicacy that is always appetizing.

These bakeries offer every rendition of the French pastry, from savory to sweet, and classic or creative. No matter what, they’re all flaky, excellent versions.

Still can't find your pastry fix? This round up of all of San Francisco's most popular morning pastries might point you in the right direction.

Read More

Arizmendi Bakery

Copy Link

There’s no dough so uniquely San Franciscan as sourdough, and it’s this fact that Sunset bakeshop Arizmendi had in mind when it created its sourdough chocolate croissant. Slightly denser than the traditional, this croissant melds San Francisco inspiration and French technique all in one buttery bite.

Arsicault Bakery

Copy Link

Arsicault’s croissants made headlines this August when Bon Appetit named this pocket-sized mom-and pop the best new bakery of 2016. Now, lines wind down the block, even before the bakery opens its doors in the morning. The verdict? Without a doubt, Arsicault’s croissants live up to the hype. Baked in batches, they arrive fresh and warm, with a subtly caramelized finish that melts on your tongue.

B. Patisserie

Copy Link

Former Gary Danko and Manresa pastry chef Belinda Leong and San Francisco Baking Institute founder Michael Suas have combined their vast pastry prowess to create a croissant to rival anything you'll find in France. Inside B. Patisseries’s charming, European-styled shop lies a marble-topped pastry case behind which are plates stacked high with layer upon layer of golden croissants. If the classic is delicious, then the chocolate banana almond croissant is doubly inspired, with an almond-encrusted exterior encasing a warm center of chocolate and banana.

Craftsman and Wolves

Copy Link

Craftsman & Wolves chocolate croissant defies tradition: It arrives as a cube, each crisp fold of dough interlaced with Valrhona chocolate and butter. Artfully adorned with a thin slice of chocolate and a smattering of powdered sugar, it’s as lovely to look at as it is to eat.

Fillmore BakeShop

Copy Link

Fillmore Bakeshop’s pretzel croissant blends the very best that Europe has to offer, pairing butter-dense Bavarian treats with France’s signature spiral pastry. Savory, buttery, and speckled with poppy seeds and salt, it has a rich, vaguely nutty flavor sure to satisfy your salty side. However, if you're more in the mood for sweets, there's also the "cronut," Fillmore Bakeshop's noteworthy croissant shapeshifter that's fried like a doughnut and dusted in a coat of cinnamon-sugar.

La Boulangerie de San Francisco

Copy Link

Classic, crispy, with a golden crust flaked in almonds. What more is there to ask for?

Le Marais Bakery

Copy Link

Bite into a croissant as you sit inside Le Marais’s charming, sun-drenched bakeshop and you’ll feel as though you’ve entered the quaint Parisian neighborhood it’s named after. Le Marais’s Fisherman Wharf location presents its almond croissant with flair, finesse, and an eye for tradition. With a shop recently opening in Ghiradelli Square and yet another arriving imminently to the Castro, this croissant is making its mark on San Francisco.

Mr. Holmes Bakehouse

Copy Link

Culinary traditions collide in Mr. Holmes' the "California croissant," is a harebrained east-meets-west confection of baked salmon, ginger, nori, and wasabi that is part pastry, part sushi roll. Sound awful? They know. However, we're certain you'll change your mind the moment you take that first savory, soy sauce-drizzled bite. If you're not an adventurous eater, opt for the cruffin instead, the half-croissant, half-muffin delectable enough to inspire recipe robbery.

Neighbor Bakehouse

Copy Link

Greg and Christine Lindel's baked goods have graced the pastry cases of coffee shop darlings Sightglass, Four Barrel, The Mill, and Contraband, but at stand-alone Neighbor Bakehouse, coffee is only an afterthought, especially when it comes to the twice-baked pistachio blackberry croissant. Filled with jam and flecked with powdered sugar, it's best served warm: the ideal treat for any time of day. Other unique flavors include the everything croissant.

Socola Chocolatier + Barista

Copy Link

Don't be fooled by Socola Chocolatier's name; one of the best items on the menu contains no chocolate at all. The jam-filled guava croissant's unique flavor will surprise and delight you.

Tartine Bakery

Copy Link

You can attempt to mimic Chad Robertson’s intricate nine-page croissant recipe in his cookbook, Tartine Bread, but it will take less time (and skill) to brave Tartine’s Guerrero street line. Crafted with layer after layer of butter and paper-thin dough, this classic croissant is both crispy and creamy at once. Feeling adventurous? Order the ham and jalapeño flavor.

Thorough Bread and Pastry

Copy Link

There’s no wonder why Michael Suas’s cozy, unassuming Castro bakery has become something of a Castro essential. It’s where he first perfected his almond croissant, a rich and airy confection encrusted with sliver-thin almonds that emerges in piping hot batches from the oven every other hour.

Vive La Tarte

Copy Link

The Belgian-born husband and wife team behind Vive La Tarte present their old world-inspired pastries in fresh, modern interior. While Vive La Tarte is known for its cheesecake, the almond and orange blossom croissant is just as noteworthy.

Arizmendi Bakery

There’s no dough so uniquely San Franciscan as sourdough, and it’s this fact that Sunset bakeshop Arizmendi had in mind when it created its sourdough chocolate croissant. Slightly denser than the traditional, this croissant melds San Francisco inspiration and French technique all in one buttery bite.

Arsicault Bakery

Arsicault’s croissants made headlines this August when Bon Appetit named this pocket-sized mom-and pop the best new bakery of 2016. Now, lines wind down the block, even before the bakery opens its doors in the morning. The verdict? Without a doubt, Arsicault’s croissants live up to the hype. Baked in batches, they arrive fresh and warm, with a subtly caramelized finish that melts on your tongue.

B. Patisserie

Former Gary Danko and Manresa pastry chef Belinda Leong and San Francisco Baking Institute founder Michael Suas have combined their vast pastry prowess to create a croissant to rival anything you'll find in France. Inside B. Patisseries’s charming, European-styled shop lies a marble-topped pastry case behind which are plates stacked high with layer upon layer of golden croissants. If the classic is delicious, then the chocolate banana almond croissant is doubly inspired, with an almond-encrusted exterior encasing a warm center of chocolate and banana.

Craftsman and Wolves

Craftsman & Wolves chocolate croissant defies tradition: It arrives as a cube, each crisp fold of dough interlaced with Valrhona chocolate and butter. Artfully adorned with a thin slice of chocolate and a smattering of powdered sugar, it’s as lovely to look at as it is to eat.

Fillmore BakeShop

Fillmore Bakeshop’s pretzel croissant blends the very best that Europe has to offer, pairing butter-dense Bavarian treats with France’s signature spiral pastry. Savory, buttery, and speckled with poppy seeds and salt, it has a rich, vaguely nutty flavor sure to satisfy your salty side. However, if you're more in the mood for sweets, there's also the "cronut," Fillmore Bakeshop's noteworthy croissant shapeshifter that's fried like a doughnut and dusted in a coat of cinnamon-sugar.

La Boulangerie de San Francisco

Classic, crispy, with a golden crust flaked in almonds. What more is there to ask for?

Le Marais Bakery

Bite into a croissant as you sit inside Le Marais’s charming, sun-drenched bakeshop and you’ll feel as though you’ve entered the quaint Parisian neighborhood it’s named after. Le Marais’s Fisherman Wharf location presents its almond croissant with flair, finesse, and an eye for tradition. With a shop recently opening in Ghiradelli Square and yet another arriving imminently to the Castro, this croissant is making its mark on San Francisco.

Mr. Holmes Bakehouse

Culinary traditions collide in Mr. Holmes' the "California croissant," is a harebrained east-meets-west confection of baked salmon, ginger, nori, and wasabi that is part pastry, part sushi roll. Sound awful? They know. However, we're certain you'll change your mind the moment you take that first savory, soy sauce-drizzled bite. If you're not an adventurous eater, opt for the cruffin instead, the half-croissant, half-muffin delectable enough to inspire recipe robbery.

Neighbor Bakehouse

Greg and Christine Lindel's baked goods have graced the pastry cases of coffee shop darlings Sightglass, Four Barrel, The Mill, and Contraband, but at stand-alone Neighbor Bakehouse, coffee is only an afterthought, especially when it comes to the twice-baked pistachio blackberry croissant. Filled with jam and flecked with powdered sugar, it's best served warm: the ideal treat for any time of day. Other unique flavors include the everything croissant.

Socola Chocolatier + Barista

Don't be fooled by Socola Chocolatier's name; one of the best items on the menu contains no chocolate at all. The jam-filled guava croissant's unique flavor will surprise and delight you.

Tartine Bakery

You can attempt to mimic Chad Robertson’s intricate nine-page croissant recipe in his cookbook, Tartine Bread, but it will take less time (and skill) to brave Tartine’s Guerrero street line. Crafted with layer after layer of butter and paper-thin dough, this classic croissant is both crispy and creamy at once. Feeling adventurous? Order the ham and jalapeño flavor.

Thorough Bread and Pastry

There’s no wonder why Michael Suas’s cozy, unassuming Castro bakery has become something of a Castro essential. It’s where he first perfected his almond croissant, a rich and airy confection encrusted with sliver-thin almonds that emerges in piping hot batches from the oven every other hour.

Vive La Tarte

The Belgian-born husband and wife team behind Vive La Tarte present their old world-inspired pastries in fresh, modern interior. While Vive La Tarte is known for its cheesecake, the almond and orange blossom croissant is just as noteworthy.

Related Maps