It was a windy weekday as leaves swirled on the sidewalk and cloudy skies swept past overhead.

I had decided to go on a 45-minute walk from my hotel to visit Roselle’s location on King Street. Having heard great things about this fun and modern French-inspired bakeshop, I was eager to save all my calories and appetite to try a few different options.

The small seating area is brightly-lit, with white tables and chairs facing the window and an L-shaped glass case enclosing an abundance of tasty pastries; cookies, cakes, croissants, and madeleines beckon to me behind the clear glass.

Needless to say, it was a tough choice. Should I try some signature flavours so I can draw a clear comparison based on the classics? Or should be adventurous and try the Pistachio Honey St. Honore?

For an avid sweets consumer like myself, who consumes at least one dessert item per day, I had to consider which items would be indulgent but create a mess all over the pristine white tables and would be better consumed at the kitchen table at home - such as a flaky, buttery croissant.

*Leave with a bag of pastries in a Roselle bag.*

I let several other customers pass in front of me in the line up, because I couldn’t make up my mind between attractive options like the Earl Grey Milk Chocolate cake, Sesame Eclair, or the aforementioned Pistachio Honey St. Honore, Chocolate Croissant, Sea Salt Chocolate Cookie… and then there’s also ice cream(!)

After considering what I could feasibly consume in one sitting and that I wanted to settle in for an hour or so to read a new book, I decided that a slice of cake, a croissant, and a hot cup of tea would be the perfect combination for a quiet afternoon.

There were no other customers in the seating area, so I had the whole space to myself to relax and unwind with my baked goods. In the end, just as I was about to succumb to the Chocolate croissant, the Cinnamon Kouign Amann caught my eye - buttery croissant dough rolled with cinnamon sugar.

There are two dessert flavours I could not resist in this world - cinnamon and earl grey, which are the two options I decided on after extensive internal debate.

Finally seated a table by the window, staring at passerby hugging their sweaters and jackets tight to battle the wind, I sipped my Rooibos tea and started with the Cinnamon Kouign Amann. If you are expecting the texture and flavour of a moist cinnamon bun, this pastry leans more towards the crispy, flaky texture of a croissant (it is made from croissant dough), and the large cinnamon sugar crystals melt in your mouth as you bite into the pastry. While I have always been a big fan of gooey, buttery cinnamon buns, this was a memorable dessert creation incorporating two of my favourite things - croissants and cinnamon!

I had the Cinnamon Kouign Amann first because the Earl Grey cake would be sweeter, and for all sweets aficionados, we consume our desserts in a crescendo of sugar level to allow us to taste the sweetness in its entirety, right?

The Earl is filled with creamy earl grey milk chocolate mousse, bergamot cremeux, atop a moist earl grey vanilla sponge and crispy feuilletine bottom, the earl grey flavour cake is perfect if you are looking for an indulgent afternoon treat.

*Pastries and a hot Rooibos tea to accompany my reading hour.*

There are many other items I would have loved to try, like the Pitaschio Honey St. Honore, Coffee Carmel Cookie, Earl Grey Shortie and Black Sesame Eclair. I am sure there are more than a few that I forgot on this list, but I will have to save it for my next visit to Toronto!