patisserie | Sugared & Spiced

2013/04/062015/08/05

[Paris] Sadaharu Aoki

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Sadaharu Aoki

Add: 35 Rue de Vaugirard, 75006 Paris*
Tel: +33 1 45 44 48 90
Hours: [Tue-Sat] 11am~7pm [Sun] 10am~6pm (closed on Mon)
Website: www.sadaharuaoki.com
Price: €5~6/patisserie
Tasted on: Apr 2013

I knew about Sadaharu Aoki even before I discovered Pierre Hermé. The Japanese pastry chef is famed for infusing French pastries with Japanese ingredients and sensibilities, and has made a big name for himself in France, Japan, and beyond. I first tried his creations 2 years ago at his then recently-opened outpost in Taipei, and was disappointed by what I tasted. Thinking that perhaps it was just a consistency issue with the Taipei branch, I decided to give his Paris boutique a try.

*Additional locations available, check website for detail.

While Aoki is most famed for his Japanese-inspired pastries (think matcha, yuzu, azuki beans), what I eagerly wanted to taste was the tarte caramel salé (€5), which has been recommended to me by friends and professionals alike. And indeed it’s delicious. A spiral of creamy milk chocolate mousse, a buttery crispy tart shell, and – cut the tart open and out oozes – an intensely aromatic salted caramel. So intense that I had to save half of it for the second day. Stricly for caramel lovers.

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2013/03/272015/08/05

[Paris] La Maison du Chocolat

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La Maison du Chocolat

Add*: Carrousel du Louvre, 99 rue de Rivoli, 75001 Paris
Tel: 01 42 97 13 50
Hours: 10am~8pm (open everyday)
Website: www.lamaisonduchocolat.com
Price: €4.70~5.20/pastry
Tasted on: Mar 2013

La Maison du Chocolat, opened in 1977 by Robert Linxe (the “ganache magician”), is world-famous for its exquisite chocolate creations: ganaches, truffles, and mendiants in classic and not so classic flavors like basil, rosemary, and jasmine. I can’t claim to be a chocoholic, but am still very much attracted to its alluring assortment of chocolate pastries. These plain-looking éclairs, tarts, and cakes might not impress your eyes, but will absolutely wow your taste buds.

*Numerous locations available in Paris and around the world, check website for detail.

Les chocolats.

Les macarons et les patisseries.

Start with a tartelette chocolat (€5.20), which is perfect in every way. The chocolate ganache is smooth, shiny, rich in flavor but not too sweet, while the tart shell is crumbly and crisp even until the second day. So simple, so good.

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2013/03/032015/08/05

[Paris] Jean-Paul Hévin

paris

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Jean-Paul Hévin

Add*: 231 Rue Saint-Honoré, 75001 Paris
Tel: +33 1 55 35 35 96
Hours: 10am~7:30pm
Website: www.jeanpaulhevin.com
Price: €4~7/pastry
Visited on: Jan 2013

Chocolate bonbons, chocolate truffles, chocolate cakes, chocolate ganache-filled macarons, hot chocolates…why yes, Jean-Paul Hévin must be the ultimate wonderland for chocolate lovers. I don’t claim to be a chocoholic myself, but the chocolate desserts here are indeed difficult to resist. Good news for those in Asia: JPH also operates several boutiques in Hong Kong, Taiwan, and China!

*4 locations available in Paris, check website for detail.

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2012/02/212015/10/07

[Shanghai] Éclair at Andaz

shanghai

Éclair at Andaz

Add: Andaz Shanghai, 88 Songshan Lu / 嵩山路88号上海安达仕酒店1楼
Tel: 2310 1720
Hours: 7am~10pm
Website: www.andazshanghai.com
Price: 18 RMB/eclair, 30~50 RMB/coffee or tea
Visited: Feb 2012

Éclair at Andaz specializes in – you’ve guessed it – éclairs. But before we go on, here are a few words on Andaz for those of you who are unfamiliar with this hotel collection. It is Hyatt’s new line of contemporary, boutique-inspired hotels, located in hip cities around the world like London, New York, and LA. Shanghai’s Andaz, opened only a few months ago in October 2011, is the first in Asia and the sixth in the world. Next time you are in Xintiandi, be sure to drop by and check out its chic designs.

Back to Éclairs, where éclairs take center stage. These oblong-shaped pastries are made from pâte à choux, baked until crisp and hollow inside, then filled with flavored pastry cream and glazed with fondant icing. The word éclair actually came from a French word meaning “lightning” or “flash of lightning”…Why? Je ne sais pas.

Also available: a selection of chocolates, cupcakes, tarts, quiches, breads, and the likes.

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2012/02/082015/08/31

[Tokyo] Le Chocolat de H

tokyo

Like my FACEBOOK PAGE or follow me on TWITTER / 微博! Le Chocolat de H Add: Shibuya Hikarie ShinQs B2F, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo 2-21-1 / 東京都渋谷区渋谷 2-21-1 渋谷ヒカリエ ShinQs B2F Tel: (03) 54683167 Hours: 10am~9pm Website: www.lcdh.jp Price: Coffret du Chocolat ¥2,700~10,368 Visited on: Feb 2012 Hironobu Tsujiguchi, the youngest pâtissier to ever win La Coupe du Monde de la Patisserie (a.k.a. the World Cup of Desserts), has a small but very…Continue Reading “[Tokyo] Le Chocolat de H” →

2011/10/042015/08/31

[Taipei] Micasa Dolci 蜜膳屋

taipei

Micasa Dolci 蜜膳屋

Add: 1/F #462, Section 4, Ren-Ai Road, Taipei 台北市信義區仁愛路4段462號1樓
Tel: (02) 2345 7669
Hours: 10am-8pm (closed on Monday)
Website: www.micasadolci.com.tw
Price: 300~400 NTD/plated dessert
Visited: Oct 2011

Please note that this is an arranged tasting.
2014 update: chef Katena Keichi now no longer works at Micasa Dolci.

Taipei is in no shortage of patisseries, but Micasa Dolci is undoubtedly in a class of its own. At this dessert cafe, each gorgeous sweet plate is an elaborately orchestrated ensemble of alluring colors, fancy garnishes, and extraordinary flavors – and everything is conjured up à la minute. A must visit for those who are willing to splurge a little for some sweet indulgence.

The interior is cheery and sparkling, perfect for a girly afternoon tea date.

Here’s Katena Keichi, the pastry chef in the kitchen. Trained in Italy/France then followed by a few years at Tokyo’s Canoviano and Nobu restaurants, Keichi’s desserts are European-style with Asian elements – my current favorite combination.

I first tried the caramel gelato with with banana, praline amande, garnished with savory sabayon sauce (350 NTD). Crunchy almond is layered with slices of banana, a scoop of bittersweet caramel gelato, then topped with savory sabayon (a light, aerated custard) that has been torched to create a burnt, melting surface. Beautiful, rich, decadent. I recommend sharing this between two people as it really is quite a formidable scoop.

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2011/03/312015/08/31

[Taipei] Boite de Bijou 珠寶盒法式點心坊

taipei

Boîte de Bijou 珠寶盒法式點心坊

Add: 1/F, No. 10, Lane 209, Anhe Lu Section 2, Taipei 台北市安和路2段209巷10號1F
Tel: (02) 3322 2461
Hours: 10am-9pm
Website: www.boitedebijou.com.tw
Price: [lunch] 180~380 NTD [cakes] 120~150 NTD
Visited: Mar 2011

Tugged away inside a back alley behind Far Eastern Plaza Hotel Taipei, there is a small French patisserie where the aroma of freshly baked bread permeates the air, where gorgeous cakes sit quietly inside a glass display, where light music waltz in the space, where waiters and waitresses carry smiles so genuine you can’t help but want to snap pictures of them.

Welcome to Boîte de Bijou.

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2010/11/112015/10/07

[Shanghai] Chez Shibata

shanghai

Chez Shibata

Add: 24 Ziyun Lu, near Zunyi Lu / 紫云路24号, 近遵义路
Tel: 5206 5671
Website: www.chez-shibata.cn
Price: [pastries] 20~45 RMB [drinks] 23~38 RMB
Visited: Nov 2010

I love Japanese-French pastries. The alluring colors, fancy garnishes, and flavors out of the ordinary. It just so happens that Chez Shibata, the only patisserie in Shanghai serving such irresistibly beautiful pastries, is a mere 5 minutes away from one of my offices. I must have done a lot of good deeds in my previous life.

Standing in front of the Chez Shibata cake display is an utterly disorienting experience. I never know which one to pick. Fortunately, the waitstaff is quite patient in explaining each dessert, as long as you ask.