The Crème of Crème Brûlée in ATX

Emma Cain | October 19, 2022

Crème Brûlée happens to be my favorite dessert, and it is difficult to get right. It is a creamy, usually vanilla bean-flavored custard, sprinkled with sugar, and torched to create a crackly caramelized sugar crust. I have tried multiple times to make a crème brûlée at home and failed miserably every time, so I began my search for the best in Austin, and here is what I found. 

Best Classic Crème Brûlée 

Perry’s Steakhouse in downtown Austin is notorious for amazing steaks and sides, but their desserts are on par as well. I think Perry’s has the best classically prepared crème Brûlée in Austin. You can see the vanilla bean in the custard, and it is always the perfect creamy consistency. The brûléed top is nicely crispy. It is served with berries, mint sprig, and a dusting of powdered sugar. 

Most Unique Crème Brûlée 

When I first tried this dessert, I absolutely loved it, but when I wanted to try it again, I couldn’t remember where it was from. I searched periodically for about a week until I finally found it. The brûléed cheesecake from Capital Grille. It is served with a sweet and tangy berry compote and some fresh fruit to accompany the brûléed cheesecake. This dish is not traditional at all, but it is served in a similar style and is wonderfully delicious. 

Runner Up Crème Brûlée 

Péché is a wonderful French restaurant downtown on W. 4^th Street. The food and especially the cocktails at this restaurant are worth going back for, but their crème brûlée is also amazing. It is served in the classic style but is also accompanied by rotating pasties. Sometimes they’ve had Kouign-Amman pastries, a buttery and crispy layered dough with sugar in between the layers. They are perfect for dipping in the custard or eating by themselves. Other times they have even had white chocolate macarons. 

I’ve tried many crème brûlée’s in my search for the best and these two are the most memorable for me, and the two I keep going back to order. However, some other notable places to check out include Justine’s Brasserie and Tiny Pies.