Vietnamese people LOVE french baguettes. It has something to do with French occupation resulting in my older relatives knowing how to speak French and eating my curry with bread. (Grammar-wise, why are all my relatives eating my curry? I refuse to fix the previous sentence.)
I went on a journey through Pittsburgh in search of a good baguette. Of course, being a student, my first destinations were Giant Eagle, Whole Foods, and Trader Joes. After I finished sobbing with swollen gums, curled up at the bottom of my bathtub, I was determined to not give up. Then I found the outdoor bread stand at Strip District, Allegro, and BreadWorks Bakery. All three make fantastic bread and specialize in their own things, but the award for best baguette goes to BreadWorks Bakery. For now... DUN DUN DUN.
So of course, with every bakery, there is the option of buying and eating right away. But there is also the option for half-baked baguettes at BreadWorks, where the bread is not fully finished and you finish the rest of the baking yourself. Now, if you hear yourself saying, "Why would I do the rest of the job for them?" I don't want to be your friend. Who would not want freshly baked bread at home? Ugh, who are you? Anyways, I buy a bag of those, put it in my freezer, then finish it off in the oven whenever I need my baguette fix. (Seriously, I love this bread. My girlfriend is worried about my waistline).
So what makes a good baguette? It has to be crunchy and thin on the outside, but delicate, light, and soft on the inside. You don't fight the bread when you eat it (and it shouldn't win, for that matter... your poor gums after sub-par bread); instead, it should break and tear easily. The bread here has those qualities.
The rest of the breads are good. There are tons of varieties. The mini rolls are adorable. And I LOVE BREAD.
Besides the delicious bread, this stuff is also cheap, so huge bonus of awesomeness right there.