A croissant and a coffee is one of my all-time favourite breakfasts. It’s not an on-the-go meal for me; I like to sit down with my croissant, partly as a mark of reverence to such a delicious pastry but mostly as I expect to shower myself in buttery flakes as I eat.
Croissants, one of France’s most famous exports, reportedly originated in Austria. They’re the ideal instant meal, a breakfast that is low on prep and high on delight. When people talk about food like croissants as full of “empty” calories or void of nutrition, I worry about them. It is true that they tend to be high in fat (they’re full of butter) but this is why they taste so good.
According to 2025 research by French bakery manufacturer Bridor, 93 per cent of British croissant fans buy them at least once a week, 55 per cent buy them twice a week and almost a quarter, 23 per cent, are chewing their way through these world-famous crescents of burnished laminated pastry three or four times a week.
Dee Rettali, founder of London’s Fortitude Bakehouse, sells inventive flavour combinations such as almond, apple and matcha or peanut frangipane. A good croissant, according to Rettali, comes from great quality flour. For her croissant dough at Fortitude Bakehouse she puts a spin on the French classic by using cultured butter that brings depth of flavour.
