A little over a week ago “FOY” Kenneth sent me an email regarding having croissants from both Relic and Izola and doing a compare. I did mention that Izola has pretty much come off my “list” ever since the croissant had crossed over the $8 mark! I also mentioned needing to do a compare of croissants from Wayfarer and Relic, which I indicated were my two current favorites here in San Diego. Yes, I admittedly have a “thing” about croissants. In fact, I have an entire category for it! And yes, there are 61 posts (this is number 62). It basically all started during our visits to Paris. And it just gained momentum after visiting La Maison d’Isabelle.
Anyway, Kenneth’s wonderful email got me off my butt and on one recent morning, I first drove up to Bird Rock, which had a bunch of folks waiting, but no one in line to order, to get my first croissant. Then down the 5 to Relic for the second. I was just going to do a compare between Wayfarer and Relic, but since I had already paid for one hour of parking and Izola was just 4 blocks away…I just decided the “heck with the eight dollar price” and went to Izola as well. Needless to say; it was an interesting walk, with some “personalities” along the way.
And here’s what the croissants looked like.
Can you guess which one was $4.80 and which was $8.62 (!!!!)?
Well, let’s start from the most inexpensive. The “Plain” Croissant at Wayfarer ($4.80).
The shape was interesting. I think that “croissant” literally means “crescent” in French. This was not quite that. It’s much different in shape than what I had back in 2020.
Wayfarer seems to sometime overbake their croissant as was the case here, with the laminate too flakey, basically an explosion of flakes upon bite.
On this visit, the crumb was a bit damp and not honeycombed enough. It also seemed less buttery in flavor. Kind of a bummer as at one time, due to the recommendation of RD and CathyGreene, this was my favorite croissant in San Diego.
Wayfarer Bread & Pastry
5525 La Jolla Blvd.
La Jolla, CA 92037
Top left is the croissant from Relic Bakery & Kitchen. To me, of the three, it most resembles a classic croissant in shape and is currently priced at $5.
On this day, it was nice and golden in color, except for the two folds on the top which you can see seems over baked. It was nice and flakey, crisp, not falling to pieces. The interior was quite airy and light. Nice crisp ends and foundation.
I could make out the butter in this, in my mind it could use more as the salt to butter ratio seems a bit off.
A relative newcomer to the East Village/Downtown, this is my current overall favorite.
Relic Bakery & Kitchen
845 15th St.
San Diego, CA 92101
And then we have the $8.62 “Signature” Croissant from Izola. Now, I remember when Izola opened in the third floor of a business building Downtown. Where they’d actually deliver online orders by basket to the curb during Covid. At that time; the croissant was $3.75. Then Izola opened near Faultline Park with a bit of hype in 2024 and their croissants crossed the seven dollar mark. And now….well…you see the price above, right?
As I walked in, I took a look at the Croissant on display and had second thoughts….
It looked pale and somewhat soggy….but, I went ahead and ordered one. It was actually a 15 minute wait for my croissant after ordering….they are quite popular.
But here’s that $8.62 croissant. I gotta say, it’s quite hefty, and has that roundish shape…..
The laminate was not as crisp as Relic’s, but at least it wasn’t over baked. It was decently flakey as well, though one end was not very crisp.
It was decently honeycombed, but a bit on the wetter side. I was told that Izola uses butter from Normandy for their croissants.
There’s a light butter flavor, but for some reason, I detected some sweetness in this?
After doing this compare; I’m sticking with Relic for now. Izola is decent, but the price?
Izola
1429 Island Ave.
San Diego, CA 92101
Kenneth and I had a nice back and forth in our emails…..it was kinda fun!
Kenneth: “Well, if I had known that the croissant cost $8! It was good but not that nice. For that price I want tasting it to make me feel like I’m back on Montorgueil!”
Me: “Can you imagine what Parisians would think if a Patisserie on Rue Montorgueil charged like 7 Euros for a croissant aux buerre???“
Kenneth: “There would be rioting in the streets!“
So true! Thanks again for thinking of me and sending me the wonderful email Kenneth!
And I’m always open for croissant aux buerre recommendation for San Diego!
Almost 9 for a croissant. I know this is SD, but that’s crazy
Yes, it’s so pricey…even for San Diego ST!
The Parisians would indeed riot if croissants were that price!
There would be blood on the streets Franklin! ;o)
Nice comparison! Next time you hit up Izola it will probably be $10+ for one!
My gosh Junichi! Can you imagine over $10 for a croissant! Yikes!
I love Izola but ironically don’t love their plain croissants – the almond croissant (split in half since they’re enormous) and the Tahitian Vanilla swirl are my go-tos.
That’s interesting James! I’m not really into sweets much; otherwise I’d give it a try! Thanks for the recommendations though!
I haven’t grabbed a croissant from Wayfarer, mainly because I would crawl over broken glass for their english muffins.
Must be really good if you’re willing to do that Dereck! ;o)
wow I wonder how much the croissants at echire in marunouchi charge?!
Hmmm….Tabelog says the 50% butter croissant at Echire costs JPY 605…which is under $4/US Kat!
Based on the photos and your descriptions, I agree that Relic takes the win, regardless of price. It looks more traditional and I also thought the one from Izola was a bit too damp. As for the one from Wayfayer, they should ashamed of themselves! Thanks for keeping the flame for our eternal search for a good croissant in San Diego!
Thanks so much for the emails and inspiration Kenneth! I kinda enjoyed this one…..
I love Izola. I’ll have to try Relic.
I think you might like the selection at Relic Soo!
I love Relic but wish they were still doing the pop up in Miramar. Such unique items. I just pointed until my credit card screamed . I can’t hang in Downtown though haha.
I think you can still do preorder for pick up at Miramar on Thurs – Sat…I don’t think they do walk-ins there though Denver!
Bummer that Wayfarer has fallen off. Prices keep increasing and quality keeps going the other way for pretty much everything. So depressing. On a brighter note, 62 posts on croissants is epic! Love it!
I was kinda surprised that I had so many croissant posts RD! And yes, you’re right about prices and lower quality these days…..very depressing!