Best Only-in-the-Bay-Area Pastry

La Farine

6323 College (at Alcatraz), Oakland, (510) 654-0338, www.lafarine.com

Tartine Bakery

600 Guerrero (at 18th Street), 487-2600, www.tartinebakery.com

Until Tartine came up with its own spin on the morning bun (its kitchen adds a touch of grated orange rind to the mix), the only place you could buy one of these legendary pastries (as the store itself modestly states) was at La Farine, a delightful French bakery in Oakland's foodie-friendly Rockridge District. Deceptively simple in appearance, the morning bun is made with croissant dough (with lots of butter) rolled out thin, spread with brown sugar and cinnamon, rolled into a log, then cut and baked in muffin tins. "Nothing short of decadent," La Farine boasts, but we find the pastry almost childishly endearing.