Cotton-top Pastries - Helena

- **Glazed Donut Cruffin**: The thin glaze was just the right amount of sweetness, not overpowering at all. - **Caramel Bun**: This had a lovely crispy, sweet glaze on the bottom. It was absolutely delightful when warm and paired perfectly with our coffee choice, Black Rifle Coffee. - **Pumpkin Crumble Muffin**: Very moist and not overly sweet. - **Cauldron Cake**: I wasn't particularly fond of this one. The frosting was decent, but the cake seemed to have a darker cocoa that resulted in a bitter taste. The sweetness of the frosting just couldn’t balance it out. - **Chive Biscuit**: This was okay but needed to be eaten right away; it became quite hard by the end of the day. I did warm it up, and the buttery inside was a nice touch. - **Ham Cheese Croissant**: My favorite breakfast pastry! The croissant was light and flaky, and the ham was delicate. They even warmed it up upon request. Holly is an incredibly talented baker, and indulging in her creations truly feels like a treat. She infuses so much creativity, focus, energy, and love into her baked goods, and every pastry is made to perfection with seasonal, locally sourced ingredients. The prices are quite reasonable too. The only downside I noticed was that my order's packaging could have been handled with more care; everything was just thrown into a bag. I would have preferred a neatly arranged box instead. Remember, the early bird gets the worm! If you want to enjoy these special treats, make sure to arrive early. The storefront may be small, but it's quaint, so don’t be deterred if you have to wait outside. Cotton Top Pastries will definitely be worth the wait!

Ok yeah it’s worth the hype…and waiting outside in a line. Bought one of everything and it’s all top tier and not too outrageously priced. Of course wish they were open more than two days. Hire more bakers. Thnx. Espresso chocolate thing and the strawberry crmuffin are favorite for sure.

Walked to here on a Saturday morning at 9 am and no line. I tried the ham and cheese croissant. The strawberry on jam and cheese, sitting on top of flakey croissant style. An amazing canelé de bordeaux that everyone behind me said to try and it was fabulous. Walked to the farmers market which didn't have much produce. Lots of arts and crafts. We did get a dozen eggs and a bag of spinach for $3.50 each...and a variety of meat (pork chops, tenderloin and lamb chops) Then we drove to Whitefish.

I kinda don 't want to leave this review simply because I want to keep Cotton Top a secret, but I feel like it 's too late for that anyway.I 've yet to encounter the mystery person behind these overwhelmingly mind blowing pastries. All I know is whenever customers try to compliment the counter staff on how wonderful their products are, they cheerfully say: Yes, we 're very proud of her. I don 't know who this her is, but she 's clearly hitting it out of the park. Helena boasts some fantastic pastries at many bakeries, laminated or otherwise, but Cotton Top is a tier above the rest.A must try is the churro cruffin. It 's a croissant shaped like a muffin and tossed in cinnamon sugar. Biting into one results in a shattering whimsy resulting in a showering of flaky confetti, which is exactly what should happen. The interior crumb is a complex weaving of airy layers with a flavor of just the right combination of buttery goodness complemented by a perfect amount of fermentation.I could gush on about the rest of their products as well, but I feel it might be best to encourage anyone reading this to visit Cotton Top themselves. Arrive early though. There tends to be a line and it 's not uncommon for them to sell out by around noon.

The best bakery I’ve ever been to in any context. Ridiculously amazing, easily stands up to any big city pastries.