It’s the smell that greets you first as you walk through the door at Bricolage Bread & Co.; the warm aroma of baking intermingled with the heady whiff of good coffee. It could hardly feel more alluring — that is, until you see the array of baked goods.
There are golden, feathery croissants and tempting, fluffy pains au chocolat. Next to them are at least four kinds of rolls — pro tip: go for the citron version, studded with morsels of confit lemon peel. And don’t skip over the Danish pastries, comfortingly substantial but not overly sweet, in exotic goma (sesame) and yomogi (mugwort) flavors.
But what really makes Bricolage special is its bread. You won’t find any of the usual anemic, puffed-up shokupan (feather-light white bread). More remarkably, nor does Bricolage bother with baguettes, flutes or any other of those elongated French breads. Instead, its calling card is its large, semispherical loaves of rugged, rustic pain de campagne.