Meet Puff Daddy Jean Christophe Blanc

It doesn’t seem fair that we should have to drive all the way to Allen to find the perfect croissant. (Although Allen is preferable to no perfect croissants at all.) But Allen it is, where Voila French Bakery and Bistro chef and co-owner Jean Christophe Blanc makes his puff pastry crescents from scratch. There’s none of that pre-made frozen dough everyone else uses, and boy, can you tell the difference. The ones here have crisp, flaky shells that crackle precisely when you take a bite. Inside, it’s all buttery-moist and pliant. Who needs jam? Blanc is from France, followed by pit stops baking at the ’96 Olympics, Buckhead Bakery in Atlanta, and Eatzi’s, before opening this tiny restaurant-bakery. He also does a baker’s rack of rustic breads—olive, honey wheat, and so on—plus sandwiches, salads, and milky lattés topped with ultra-creamy froth that seems to dare you to stop it from oozing over the rim of the cup.