North Shore Boulangerie Is a French Delight

North Shore Boulangerie. Photo by Cari Taylor-Carlson.

Croissant aficionados take note, because you can’t go wrong at North Shore Boulangerie, where a glass case displays multi-colored macarons, single-serving classic French Opera cakes and a selection of buttery croissants.

At this Shorewood bakery, the baker has mastered the art of turning flour, butter, and yeast, into croissants to relish, whether solo, as accompaniments to soup or salad or as sponges to soak up extra sauce from the boulangerie’s Chicken Francoise.

This Plat Principaux dish, one of four on the current menu, is a tender breaded chicken cutlet served with lemon caper sauce. You will not want to leave behind a drop of this creamy, rich sauce with its multiple capers and a hint of lemon. Also on the plate, haricots verts (green beans), and red potatoes, to absorb some of the addictive sauce.

Like the Chicken Francoise, the other three Plats Principaux, Quiche Lorraine, Chicken and Mushroom Crepe, and Beef Bourguignon, owe their culinary roots to France. You will want to get to the restaurant early if you want the bourguignon; it was sold out twice when I was there at noon. It is a classic, beef cooked in red wine with carrots and onions, and garnished with pearl onions and bacon. They serve it with house-made pasta.

The Quiche Lorraine, a light lunch, is another classic. For this dish, the chef combined Gruyere cheese and bacon in an impossibly creamy egg custard and served it with Potatoes Gratin, crisp pieces of deep-fried potato coated with grated cheese, not a lot, but enough.

The Chicken and Mushroom Crepe, another light lunch, was smothered in a tasty mornay sauce, and like the lemon caper sauce, it called for a croissant to sop up every delicious drop.

For a healthful taste of autumn, you will want to order the Salade Marches de Producteurs, or farmers market salad. This tour de force overflowed my large bowl. Field greens were topped with roasted baby carrots, roasted cauliflower, cinnamon-spiced apple slices, candied pecans, and roasted Brussels sprouts. A sweet-tart vinaigrette enhanced the flavors of the roasted veggies and everything tasted fresh, as if it had just arrived from the farmer’s market. For the record, there appeared to be enough pecans for a pie!

If you are hungry for a sandwich, there are choices. A companion’s Saucisson Sec, dry-aged salami, asiago, greens, roasted red pepper, onion and mustard aioli, read more Italian than French, but semantics aside, everything was packed in a toasted baguette, and it was delicious. The accompanying “Petite Salad” was hardly petite with its field greens, carrots, cucumber, radish and tomato, tossed in a light vinaigrette.

If you are especially hungry, order the Salade de Poulet, or chicken salad sandwich. This sandwich, made with thick-sliced country bread, was a tasty mix of roasted chicken, both white and dark meat, shallots, almonds, and fresh herbs in a creamy dressing. Like all the sandwiches, you have to choose between a petite salad or potatoes au gratin.

A traditional choice for a companion was the Croque Monsieur, ham and Gruyere cheese sauteed like a toasted cheese sandwich and topped with bechamel sauce that had been briefly run under the broiler. A cup of tomato soup with roasted tomatoes was an ideal accompaniment to the cheesy sandwich. Also on the menu, Soupe a l’Onion Gratinee, would make a good partner to a cold sandwich on a chilly day.

Other sandwiches include Tuna on Rye, the Dinde, sliced turkey and cheddar and for cheese lovers, a French-style toasted cheese sandwich made with three-cheese bread, roasted tomato, garlic aioli, asiago and cheddar.

Because this is a bakery, you will see an enticing array of breads and pastries, including the Cheese Danish another companion ordered to pair with her bowl of tomato soup. Both were delish; one was sweet and the other tart. The Danish reminded her of how the French love their butter. Almost everything on the menu reminded us of how much the French love their cheese.

If you want French cuisine, come visit this boulangerie in Shorewood, where lots of butter, cheese, and bakery delicacies will delight you in this charming café.

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• Location: 4401 N. Oakland Ave.
• Phone: 414-963-2153
• Hours: 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mon-Sat, 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sun. Kitchen open: 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Mon-Fri. Brunch: 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sat-Sun
• Website: https://www.northshoreboulangerie.com
• Twitter: https://x.com/NSBoulangerie
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NorthShoreBoulangerie/