Sometimes in life, a pain au chocolat comes calling. When it does, always answer.

That’s what happened to me this morning. I woke up after a weird night’s sleep and I thought about making a smoothie bowl for breakfast. My head told me to eat fruit, but my heart told me to eat a pain au chocolat. I got in the car at 6:30 a.m. and stopped at Comet Coffee and Croissanterie on the way to work.

What makes Comet’s pain au chocolat better than the rest in St. Louis? One word: Authenticity. You won’t find another pain au chocolat like this in the St. Louis area, except maybe at La Patisserie Chouquette in Tower Grove.

The layers in Comet’s pain au chocolat are buttery and flaky, and the outside is baked to a nice, caramelized brown color, the same way it is in France. When you bite into the pastry, you’re not only tasting butter. You get multiple flavors including sweet, smoky, eggy and caramel. I read an interview recently with the woman who makes the pain au chocolat, and she said that a little kid said that the croissant tastes like cheese. I can see why; the flavors are more complex than in a cookie or piece of cake.

I paired my pain au chocolat this morning with a cappuccino. The baristas are talented at Comet and I haven’t had a bad cup of coffee yet. There’s table service so I got started on my pain au chocolat and then a barista brought out my drink. It was the perfect, relaxing start to my Friday.

Here’s a song that reminds me of this pain au chocolat. It popped into my head this morning when I was trying to decide between making a smoothie and getting a croissant.