I told Thais of my recent craving for croissants, and how I have been searching all the over the city for The Perfect Croissant, so she told me to check out the bakery "somewhere near QFC in Ballard". Yes, ambiguous direction is the story of my life.

This morning I went down to QFC and stood around the parking lot, one hand over my forehead like Ferdinand Magellan looking for the Spice Islands. "I Want Buttery Fluffy Croissants, can you tell me where the bakery is?" After having been told "there's one somewhere on 24th", I found Cafe Besalu with a line outside the door. When I finally got to the counter, it was like Heaven's Gate just opened, and the guy taking my order was St. Peter, taking me into Pastries Paradise. I gleefully got my croissant and brioche (yeah, brioche!) and will come back again!

Quoted: A bite into any of the pastries suggests that everything is handmade and fresh; the flurry of dough-plying behind the counter confirms it. The apple Danish and spinach quiche are good, and the croissants and brioches are outstanding, as is the pain au chocolat. If you need incentives to drag yourself out of bed, you won't find many better than this.