Random Bakeries and Patisseries in Paris

Elsa and Ryo spent 4 and a half days in Paris and had many food adventures. This one is focused on the many bakeries and patisseries we visited.

Aux Délices de Paris – our ‘Local’ Bakery

Elsa, Ryo and Elsa’s sister arrived in Paris and were lucky to find this bakery on their first evening arriving in Paris! The bakery was fairly close to where they were staying and in total they went three times, each time loaded with treats which lasted at least a couple of days and of course on the day they were flying back to the UK, they bought goodies for family/friends.

Aux Délices de Paris

Interior/Displays

Elsa: The displays were what drew us to this place to begin with; they were bright, colourful and enticing! It just looked like how I imagined a typical French bakery to look, identical to any cartoons or illustrations I’ve seen. I’m amazed at the variety of stuff they had from tarts, macarons, chocolates, bread, cakes and cookies! They all looked amazing, it was really tough to select which ones to try.

Ryo: It wasn’t a big place but the variety of bread/pastries/cakes they had was amazing. They even had some handmade chocolates! I also liked that it had the unassuming ‘local bakery’ feel to it, rather than looking like an industrial chain/posh patisserie.  All tarts and cakes looked delicious and fresh and it was extremely difficult to choose what to have. I think we stood there for good 5 minutes but the shop keepers were very patient and friendly. Parisians are nice, seriously! 

Our choices

Brioche

Elsa: I believe this was your choice, Ryo? I love the colour on this and wasn’t going to say no to it! The brioche was really nice and soft with a nice denseness to it. Unlike the few brioches I buy in the UK, it wasn’t overly sweet and buttery which made it easier to eat.

Ryo: Yes, it had the beautiful golden brown colour  so I couldn’t resist! Good brioche is surprisingly difficult to find (they are either too dry and coarse or overly sweet) but this was buttery without being greasy. A perfect loaf of bread for spreading some jams!

Apple Tart, Flan and Mixed Berries Macaron

Elsa: The photo above only shows a third of the apple tart and a third of the flan we bought. My sister really wanted to try the flan as she and I have a bit of a thing for egg or custard tarts. We’ve never tried flan before but we were not disappointed by the taste. It was smooth and creamy. We were amazed at the size of the macaron and the fresh fruits inside, which made this a delight to eat. The apple tart was also very tasty with a nice flavour of apples, good sized apple slices and was not overly sweet.

Ryo: If I had been on my own, I wouldn’t have gone for the flan tart – not because I don’t like egg custard tarts or flans but because it is just too difficult to find a good flan. Having said that, I’m glad that Elsa and her sister went for the flan. It was creamy and not overly sweet. The texture was also very good – sometimes you end up with this rubbery mess but this flan had the just right bounciness to it. The macaron was very generous and the fruits and the cream were fresh. Given the price we paid (I think they were around €3.5), it was a very decent macaron.  I think I might have chosen the apple tart as well since I always go for apple tarts. The pie dough was very thin but crispy, just the way it should be! 

Mirabelle Tart, Lemon Macaron and mini Speculoos Cake

Elsa: Having tried the mixed berries macaron, we wanted to try more. I was semi curious by the lemon macaron, which turned out nice but was not as nice as the mixed fruit one. Curse my curiosity! The speculoos cake was AMAZING! I wish speculoos was a more popular flavour here, I love it so much. The mirabelle tart was chosen on Ryo’s recommendation, as she stated that you cannot get mirabelle in the UK. Mirabelle is an awesome fruit, and the tart was just as gorgeous as the apple tart if somewhat sweeter due to mirabelle being a sweeter fruit.

Ryo: Yes, the lemon macaron was nice – but kind of predictable nice. It still was a good value for the price. The speculoos cake looked quite dense and heavy but it had this light speculoos mousse inside, so it didn’t feel heavy at all. I don’t know why speculoos flavour is not that popular in the UK… but maybe it’s for the better. I would soon have the waistline of a whale. The mirabelle tart was also good although I prefer one with just a bit of sugar on top rather than with the egg cream custard filling. But that it’s Paris (Mirabelle fruits are more Alsace/Lorraine speciality), I shouldn’t complain too much.

Oh, apparently there is one wild mirabelle tree in Liverpool and some others are dotted around in the South region according to Wikipedia! So I might be wrong about not being able to get mirabelles in the UK 😉    

Overall Comments

Elsa: I really, really like this bakery. They have friendly staff who spoke some English, although Ryo’s French was good so we were able to order largely in that. I would definitely seek out this place again if I were to come back to Paris again.

Ryo: Oh, Elsa. You are sweet! But I remember the lady at the counter in the end couldn’t take my French any more and started speaking English. I don’t blame her…   And yes, I would come here as well especially for that brioche. That was gooooood. 

INFORMATION

Address:  33 Rue de Reuilly, 75012 Paris, France

Pierre Hermé

Clockwise from top left: Huile d’Olive à la Mandarine (Olive Oil with Mandarin Orange), Jardin en Corse (Nepeta from Corsica), Yasamine (Jasmine, Mango & Candied Grapefruit), Velouté Ispahan (Yoghurt & Rose, Lychee, Raspberry)

Elsa: These macarons are the best I’ve ever had. They flavours are very interesting with a delicate balance of each ingredient, but with a strong rich filling of which there is plenty of! They were very pricey at €3? for each one, but worth it! I’m glad the three of us decided to share each one, so in reality we only each paid €1 each.

Ryo: The bestest macarons I have ever had. All of them were seriously so good. I want to shout this in capital letter but I’m going to refrain myself. They melt in your mouth but leave delicate yet intense (I know, it doesn’t make sense but it really is delicate and intense at the same time) flavours. The only one I wasn’t sure about was the Jardin en Corse (Nepeta from Corsica) as it had this odd herby grassy flavour but it wasn’t bad – just unexpected. They are certainly not the cheapest macaroons but they seriously are worth every penny.

Elsa: Actually yes, the Jardin en Corse was very unusual. It wasn’t bad tasting but I wouldn’t buy that one again. Like Ryo said, it’s a very grassy flavour and probably true to how nepeta would taste (having never had it, I cannot confirm this).

INFORMATION

Website: https://www.pierreherme.com/
Addresses

• 18 Rue Sainte-Croix de la Bretonnerie Paris, France
• 72 Rue Bonaparte Paris, France
• 39 Avenue de l’Opéra Paris, France

Worldwide locations including UK branches on Pierre Hermé website

La Badine de martine

Croque Monsieur from La Badine de Martine

Elsa: We walked by here on the final day with a goal of finding breakfast and this was exactly what I wanted. Having had a continental style breakfast for the past few days, I really wanted something savoury and this ticked all the right boxes with it being hot, cheesy and generously topped. Each bite was moreish, although I was starting to regret having one to myself towards the end as there was a lot. My final and memorable breakfast in Paris.

Ryo: That was a very good croque monsieur. So good that I came back home and made my own and cried that it was nowhere near good. I think the baker added something to the bechamel sauce (maybe petit suisse?) that made it extra creamy. I thought adding some onions on the bechamel sauce was also a very nice touch as it cut the grease slightly.

Oh, this bakery is in front of the Aligre market – one of the best local markets in Paris. It’s slightly out of town, but there are very good eateries around the market (and all over the 11th and 12th district). I really think 11th/12th district serve better/more reasonably priced food compare to the more hyped le Marais area… so venture out!

La Bandine de Martine

information

Address:  74 Rue Crozatier, 75012 Paris, France

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