Does this bakery in Warrington have the best croissants in the UK?

For the second year running, Gourmand!, based on Sankey Street, has entered the official Best Croissant UK 2024 competition.

The bakery, a small independent business, is owned by husband and wife Julien Ramos and Olivia Le.

It provides authentic and traditional French recipes, and the couple are often awake from 4am each morning baking homemade goods.

But what it is perhaps best known for is it croissants, a pastry that Julien and Olivia say requires skills, time, patience, and great ingredients.

To make their croissants, the couple import two types of specific flours and two types of specific butters.

They are made entirely by Julien and Olivia and it takes them 24 hours to produce just one batch.

Gourmand!’s croissants are served without jam and butter. This is because it takes so long to produce them with such a specific taste, smell and texture, so they believe nothing else needs to be added.

This is also how they would be eaten in France.

“For us, French, the origin and the quality of the ingredients are very important in order to offer to the people of Warrington the real taste of an artisan croissant exactly like in any artisan bakery in France,” the pair told the Warrington Guardian.

“There is nothing wrong about a British twist, but our aim is to make our local community to discover or rediscover the traditional taste of French food.”

Julien and Olivia are hoping to represent Warrington in the Best Croissant UK 2024 finals in London in September.

To support them in the competition and vote for them, visit: https://snkt.io/ISM-UK-Best-Croissant-2024

Voting closes July 10.