[Paris] Teatime at Plaza Athénée

Plaza Athénée

Add: 25 Avenue Montaigne, 75008 Paris
Tel: 01 53 67 66 65
Hours: [tea time] 3-6:30pm
Website: www.dorchestercollection.com/en/paris/hotel-plaza-athenee
Price: [tea set] €48 [a la carte pastries] €18-20
Visited: Sep 2015

Having afternoon tea at Plaza Athénée has always been a dream. I remember talking about doing this with Ferrandi classmates when I first arrived in Paris three years ago, all of us in awe by what we’ve heard about chef Christophe Michalak and his fantastic pastry creations. As this luxury 5 star hotel soon went under renovation, I didn’t get to come until very recently…thanks to Carin who suggested that we spend an afternoon here. Unfortunately I wasn’t able to get many photos of Le Galerie as there were too many guests around, so you will just have to visit and see this beautiful place for yourself.

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On this afternoon, we decided on Le Goûter by Michalak (€48 including a hot beverage) to try a selection of the chef’s creations. For tea, I chose the Mélange Plaza, a particularly fruity tea flavored with figs, grapes and quinces, while Carin went with Pouchkine vert, a green tea with bergamot from Calabria, citrus fruit, and peels  (included in the set, or €14 a la carte).

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On to the pastries. Le Goûter by Michalak, inspired by the reopening of Plaza Athénée, is composed of 11~12 sweet bites created by Christophe Michalak and Jean-Marie Hiblot. On the day of our visit, this included: two ice-cream bites (chocolate and lime), fig tart, tropezienne, strawberry macaron, caramel chou, mille feuille, chocolate mousse, lime verbena tiramisu, saffron panna cotta with peaches, and honey sesame financiers.

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[Paris] Michalak Masterclass

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Michalak Masterclass

Add: 60 rue du Faubourg Poissonière, 75010 Paris
Tel: 01 42 46 10 45
Hours: [Tue-Sat] 12~7pm
Website: www.michalakmasterclass.com
Price: €3.50~6.50/individual pastries, €120 or 260/pastry lesson
Tasted on: Mar 2014

Christophe Michalak, the head pastry chef at Plaza Athénée since 2000 (and until the luxury hotel went under renovation at the end of last year), is one of the top high profile pastry chefs in France. He has published a dozens of recipe books, hosted “Le gâteau de mes rêves” on Teva, been the judge on “Qui sera le prochain grand pâtissier“, yadi yadi yada. Naturally, he generated quite a buzz with the opening of his very own Michalak Masterclass in September 2013, a combination of pastry boutique, atelier, and classroom. This cool video is its best intro, do watch it.

paris michalak masterclass

paris michalak masterclass

The boutique area itself is quite small, with a concise display of pastries at the counter. What you can find: Les Fantastiks (an in-between of tart and cake, freshly made in the morning using seasonal products), Les Kosmiks (verrines in various flavors, more on this later), Konfifruits (confiture), and a few other miscellaneous products (even branded pencils and badges). 

paris michalak masterclass

paris michalak masterclass

Here is a sneak peek of the atelier space. Sleek, isn’t it? The classrooms are upstairs so I didn’t get a chance to see them, but the pictures on Masterclass’ website are certainly looking very nice. It costs quite a fortune to attend one of these classes though, with the regular lesson priced at €120, and a Michalak lesson priced at €260 – but hey, that’s what you’ve got to pay for some private face time with a celebrity.

paris michalak masterclass

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