Category: ESCAPADES

1789 Café, by Cyrille Courant

Add: 97-1, Section 2 Renai Road, Taipei / 台北市中正區仁愛路二段97-1號
Tel: (02) 3322 2089
Hours: [Tue-Sun] 11am-8pm (closed on Mon)
Price: 120-150 NTD/éclair
Website: www.1789.com.tw
Visited: Feb 2015

Chef Cyrille Courant has been roaming around the world for a while. He started his cuisine training in France, and subsequently worked in Germany, England, China, and eventually Taiwan where he decided to settle and open a pastry boutique (more details on his professional career here). I first met Cyrille and his wife Sabine back in 2013 at a little cafe in Paris, where we shared our pastry stories (his being infinitely richer than mine) over a few of glasses of wine and some saucissons. He was still in the planning stage of his boutique at the time, and – without having tasted any of his pastries – I could already tell that he is someone passionate for and dedicated to his profession. Cyrille opened his boutique in early 2014, and during my current trip to Taipei, I finally had the chance to try his creations.

Cyrille’s boutique, named 1789 Café, is dainty and efficient. It starts with a bright pastry display, a few tables just behind to the left, a chocolate display corner, and an exhibition kitchen with counter seats for those who want to gawk at the pastry chefs at work. The boutique opens at 11am, but I went in earlier to see the kitchen during their morning prep time. Here are some action shots…

When I arrived at 9:30am, Cyrille and his two pâtissiers were in the middle of finishing the éclairs – piping the cream, glazing the top, decorating with chocolates and fresh fruits, etc. Seeing them at work reminded me of my days at Fauchon, where I garnished and glazed endless éclairs day after day…I really wanted to roll up my sleeves and join in on the action!

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