Dessert review: Boulevardier’s immaculate bread pudding sends manners out the window

by Jayme Campbell of Confection Confessions

Ditch the fork: Grab it in your hands and go to town.

Photo by Jayme Campbell

Eat the crumbs off of your friends' shirts. Lick the plate. Take the plate home with you and sleep with it under your pillow, because the brioche is a dream.

OAK CLIFF — Every once in a while, you have a dessert that is so close to perfection that even though you just had one, thoughts of said dessert consume you and you can’t stop thinking about having it again. Maybe some women feel that way about a guy, or a pair of shoes. For me, nothing gives me butterflies like a near-perfect dessert.

This dessert is the bread pudding from Boulevardier. I consider myself a pretty good judge of bread pudding, considering as much time as I spend in New Orleans. It can’t be too soggy, but it can’t be dry and dense either. Density is OK as long as it is creamy and perhaps includes a sauce. (Bourbon is good.) There are so many variables to consider when making the perfect bread pudding. In addition to that, imagination reigns supreme. There is so much you can add and do to bread pudding to make it completely different than the next bread pudding.

If you’re a traditionalist and want a regular bread pudding, it is all about a perfect brioche to make this bread pudding stand out. Boulevardier has the most important component of the bread pudding down. The delicious, buttery brioche made this dessert.

My husband and I were dining with friends that evening. I would like them to remain our friends, so I ate little girly bites of bread pudding with my fork, when what I really wanted to do was take a piece in each hand and go to town. Ever the lady that I am, I refrained.

I know everyone is raving about the crawfish beignets. It’s true, they are amazing. Don’t fill up too much on all the delicious savory foods that Boulevardier has to offer, however; you don't want to miss out on the bread pudding.