Maximalist croissants are having a moment in D.C.

The big picture: Croissant trends have been escalating — even "getting out of control" — since Dominique Ansel rolled out the first croissant-donut over a decade ago. A generation of viral hybrid croissants and frankenpastries followed.

• Now, chefs are re-embracing the core croissant in creative ways.

Dig in: You may need to set an alarm for the suprême croissants at Petite Cerise, which can sell out within 90 minutes. The style of rolled, cream-filled pastry originated at Lafayette Bakery in New York as a way to drum up pandemic business, and launched copycats across the globe, including at the Shaw bistro.

• It takes three days for pastry chef Carmelo Gil to create the showstopper suprêmes, filled with flavors like pistachio-raspberry or yuzu-blueberry and capped with torched meringue.
• You can snag one Wednesday through Friday at the pastry counter starting at 8am, or dine-in-only on weekends.

Between the lines: The French don't have all the fun. Two new Italian restaurants, Ama in Navy Yard and Cucina Morini in Mt. Vernon Triangle, are showcasing cornettos — "little horns," Italy's answer to croissants.

• At Morini's brunch, chef Matt Adler fills the fresh-baked pastries to order with Nutella and toasted hazelnuts, or pistachio cream and crumble.

🌍 The intrigue: In D.C. there's a world's worth of croissant flavors. Try twice-baked matcha croissants at Asian American bakery Rose Ave in Woodley Park, or Levantine croissants at Yellow in flavors like sweet cardamom-chocolate or savory soujek and cheese.

What's next: Flat croissants are the hot (and yes, very flat) croissant du jour, a trend out of South Korea. Typically day-old croissants are pressed, fried, and topped with fun sugary things.

• They may be blowing up as the latest thing on TikTok, but stalwart Shilla Bakery in Annandale's Koreatown has been crunching croissants for years.