The best way to banish the winter blues? Carbs, obviously.
New York’s pastry scene is hotter than ever, with unique bagels, croissants and donuts coming out of the ovens and fryers of the area’s most talented chefs.
And demand for the tasty treats is sky high. Comfort-seeking city dwellers are going to great lengths to get their hands on delicious goodies — many of which are selling out in a matter of minutes.
Queens bakery Kora has a waitlist of thousands for its in-demand donuts while Dominique Ansel’s Cronut continues to sell out by late morning.
Here are five to try — if you’re luck enough to get them. Plus, some advice on how to beat the lines for pastry-seeking success.
Bagels from Popup Bagels
Putting it bluntly, New Yorkers are begging for these bagels. Popup Bagels, a subscription-based bakery with roots in Westport, Connecticut, won the vaunted title of best bagel at the Brooklyn BagelFest last October.
Owner Adam Goldberg, 47, told The Post that his bagels’ “fun collaborations and freshness” make them real winners. His recent “awesome flavors” range from dill pickle and caramelized onion to Utz Cheese Ball powder and Mike’s Hot Honey.
How to get one: Goldberg will be in the Big Apple this weekend doing a popup at Danny Meyer’s Daily Provisions Upper West Side location on Sunday morning from 10 a.m. to noon.
Online preorders for the event — roughly 720 bagels sold by the dozen — sold out in a mere two minutes, but you can still walk-in and get a sandwich. There will be bacon, egg, and cheese sammies on salted poppy bagels, or smoked salmon spread, tomato cucumber, and red onion on everything bagels.
$12.50, Popup at Daily Provisions, 375 Amsterdam Ave., walk-in only, PopUpBagels.com.
Donuts from Wildair
During COVID-19, Wildair partner and pastry chef Fabian Von Hauske found that making luxe, cream-filled donuts in unique flavors could be the bread and butter to keep his upscale, Lower East Side eatery alive and well.
Von Hauske makes the delectable dessert fresh from 7:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. two days a week in varieties such as tiramisu or amaro-and-citrus. They’ve been phenomenally popular, altering customers’ perceptions of the acclaimed, six-year-old restaurant and wine bar.
“A lot of people think we’re a donut shop now,” Von Hasuke joked, noting that he sells out in 15 minutes on a good day.
How to get one: These donuts are only holed up at Wildair on Friday and Saturday afternoons from noon to 2:30 p.m. This Saturday, Von Hauske is whipping up yuzu-and-black sesame.
$8 per donut, pickup only at 142 Orchard St., Manhattan, Wildair.nyc.
Millefeuille de Jambon de Paris from Ghaya
Renowned pastry chef Ghaya Oliveira was looking to introduce something savory to her menu at Ghaya inside Long Island City’s JACX&CO food hall. So, the French-trained Oliveira concocted the Millefeuille de Jambon de Paris, a delectable ham and Emmental cheese rectangular croissant that’s become a fan favorite.
“A lot of people got interested in the layers and the crispiness. We sell out of it a lot,” Oliveira told The Post. No wonder, she makes only about 20 of the coveted croissants — which feature six layers of rich ham and seven layers of gooey cheese — each day.
How to get one: It’s tricky, but Oliveira says “getting in early for breakfast is the best bet.” Ghaya opens at 7 a.m. on weekdays and 9 a.m. on weekends.
$13.25, JACX&CO food hall at 28-17 Jackson Avenue, Queens, JACXandCO.com.
Donuts from Kora
What began out of a Woodside apartment is now the sweet treat of Queens. Kora bakery has a 10,000 person waitlist for its donuts, which come in cream-filled or tart-like varieties. Chef Kimberly Camara and partner Kevin Borja offer up unique Filipino flavors, like leche flan, ube custard and queso de bola cream.
How to get one: While currently sold out, Kora will reopen its online ordering portal this Monday at 3 p.m. for pickup orders. If you make it through the high demand, a Long Island City pickup location will then be disclosed in a confirmation message. Kora advises that their donuts should be refrigerated in an airtight container after two hours and can be stored for up to three days.
$6.50 a donut, online only fromKora.com, @fromKora.
Cronuts from Dominique Ansel Bakery
Almost a decade after its 2013 inception, pastry chef Dominique Ansel’s iconic Cronut – a scrumptious croissant and donut hybrid – is still a highly sought after sugar rush. His eponymous Soho bakery often sells out of several hundred by late morning.
Keeping it fresh, Ansel introduces new flavors of the innovative pastry each month —January is caramel-flan ganache and orange marmalade — and says that they’ve become so popular that people socialize for the treat nowadays.
“There’s even a group of guests called the Cronut Club, who gather each month to catch up together and try the new flavor – I spotted them at the bakery this morning, actually,” he told The Post.
How to get one
Line up at the bakery before it opens at 8.am. Or, take the easy route: The bakery has opened an online pre-order pickup portal through which customers can pick a timeslot to buy two or 12 Cronuts up to two weeks out. The portal opens each Monday at 11 a.m.
$6.50 a donut, 189 Spring St., NYC.Cronutpreorder.com.
