La Roux Patisserie

Bakery: La Roux Patisserie 
Address: 519 Fisgard St, Victoria BC 
Website: http://www.laroux.ca/
Style: French, North American 
Price: $$$

On my last full day in Victoria, I tried to get in as many final bakeries as possible. It was difficult and there were still ones I had to leave behind, but I did nonetheless manage to get a few more great stops in. Like La Roux. This patisserie on the edge of Chinatown is a desserts-only affair with lovely, whitewashed and mirror-filled seating area and a smaller selection of French-inspired sweets than what is available on their website; it's at once chic and not overly pretentious (I'm not sure if you could ever take that maker of emoji macarons too seriously...), though they're generally more expensive than the other bakeries I visited on my trip. Many items, such as their croissants, lemon tarts, eclairs, are classic French recipes, while others are fancier takes on homestyle baking like brownies, cookies, etc.

Having taken a peek at their website beforehand, I knew what I had to have: the almond French toast ($3.75). There was no question about it. It was not an option, and so I don't know what I would have done had it not been there. Thankfully, it was there: a slice of sweet brioche bread soaked in rum and then baked with almond cream and slivered almonds on top. I know; how can one possibly resist? The lighting for the photo may have been horrible, but this delicious slice of bread was soft and flavourful thanks to the layer of almond cream on top. I found the middle of the bread a little dry and lacking in the rum syrup around the edges -- nothing could beat biting into that crust! Yummy~ *-*

Rating: ***1/2