法國遊記 - 餐廳酒店景點行程旅遊指南 - 開飯遊蹤 - France Travel - Restaurant Hotels Attractions Itinerary Guide

Original Inventor of the Opera Cake.

共22篇遊記

France Paris Desserts Trip (法國)
(旅程日期: 2012-06-13 至 2013-01-22 , 旅程性質: 商務公幹, 消閒度假)

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遊記 : 第4日

發表日期: 2013-01-28

2013-01-28

Dalloyau Salon de thé (巴黎)

Chess Cakes and More

Macaron Selections.

Canele

Dalloyau Opera Cake

Pamplemousse French Grapefruit Juice

Canele Autopsy

Front Entrance

Salted Caramel & Cognac Champagne Remy Martin

Dalloyau is one of the most oldest and traditional style French food shops dating back to 1682, but seems to have dropped off the radar or lost its lustre during recent years. They’re not making much noise lately. Yet, they continue to garner a big following in it’s Japan outlets but I was more keen to revisit the Paris stores instead – once again I chose the bigger one of their shops in Bastille which carried the best range.    This store runs as both as deli as well as a Tea Salon, which definitely suited my purpose. There are to be No Photos allowed, but somehow I took a lot of them before I got told off again, just like my experience at Pierre Herme.

- Dalloyau Opera Cake -
This is their famous Dalloyau Opera Cake, which everyone else in the world copied from! Although not my 1st time trying it, it’s always good to revisit it a few years down the track.   Invented as the Opera cake in 1955 by Cyriaque Gavillon from Dalloyau, this cake borrowed ideas from similar sliced cakes and created to show visible layers of various ingredients, to be eaten in a single bite to release the various layers in taste.   Joconde biscuit is soaked in coffee liqueur, then layered with coffee buttercream and then there are 2 layers of chocolate ganache in between.

- Canele -
Trying a traditional Canele de Bordeaux here makes sense. The exterior crust on this was spot on, slightly caramelised but not hard crispy. The inside was slightly hollow in the middle, but at least not wet like the one in Laduree Paris.   This didn’t have as much rum and vanilla taste though but was still detectable, but had a good egginess instead.   It’s not perfect – but it is better than most that I could grab on a regular basis!   ~   8/10

- Salted Caramel & Cognac Champagne Remy Martin Macarons
I liked the Cognac Champagne version more, with just a hint of Cognac spiking the macaron sandwich.   It was decent. You can find prettier macarons out there, but this passed the taste test. The Salted Macaron one was also good but a little too sticky and chewy. ~ 7/10

評分: 味道4 服務3 環境4 衛生4 抵食4

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共22篇遊記

France Paris Desserts Trip (法國)
(旅程日期: 2012-06-13 至 2013-01-22 , 旅程性質: 商務公幹, 消閒度假)

整個旅程 (共17篇遊記)

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遊記 : 第4日

發表日期: 2013-01-21

全世界最巨名氣的 Lenotre !

2013-01-21

Lenotre (巴黎)

I must first admit that for some reason, my mind never associated this shop with the prestigious pastry school and Michelin restaurants headed by Gaston Lenotre, who passed away in recent years.   May be my French is so poor I assumed many shops might end up with similar names and 2ndly much of the food here look slightly pedestrian commercialized.   Upon further reconfirmation, in fact the chain of Lenotre catering shops you see in different suburbs are really part of the bigger Lenotre Pastry and Restaurant group.   They are also the official supplier to many politicians and noble families.

The Whole Concept of these Lenotre outlets reminds me of Fauchon. There’s a large variety of pre-made savoury and sweet items for a quick bite. The Peach Tart was amazing, the Fish Tart was also decent.   The macarons on the other hand were so average that day and disappointed. Just go for the other stuff I suppose..

Viennoiseries and Pastries Section -
It was kind of like a Deli, with both savoury and sweet items -
The way they present their ready-made food indicates they are more of a take-out shop.

Small Croissant -
It looked neat. The inside also looked alright and it had a mild buttery taste, but seemed slightly too soft and bready inside when non-reheated in the oven. In Paris context, this won’t go into my Top 5 list and was a little too sweet for me.   But if I have to choose, I would eat this over the HK Robuchon L’Atelier version, which is becoming a little too inconsistent and puffy.. ~ 7.5/10

Tarte Sablee de Sole et Petits Legumes – 9,90€
A pretty looking Sole fish, eggs and beans pie, eaten cold.
This was something I don’t find often so instantly attracted my attention.   Really liked it and no point describing the taste anymore. That bit was predictable but execution was good.   ~ 9/10

Tarte aux Pêches -
One of the signatures here is the Strawberries tart, but I saw this and instantly knew I had to have it.   Actually so far the experience has been mixed. Some items were great like this one, with very fresh tasting Peach slices on a decent enough pastry tart base. ~ 9/10

Lenotre Raspberry and Salted Caramel Macarons -
The tant pour tant mixture was balanced, but the texture of these were just so averagely cake like… not helped by the fact the fillings taste were also muted. Very disappointed actually.   Out of so many Macarons I’ve eaten and which some shops I have revisited a few times, Laduree Paris definitely remained the one to beat in terms of balance. Fillings wise, the gong firstly goes to Gerard Mulot (who worked for Lenotre before) but the shell remained too sickly sweet & sticky.  Hugo & Victor is like Laduree & well balanced overall, especially that to-die-for Salted Caramel one. All the rest like Sadaharu Aoki, Pierre Herme (who also worked under Lenotre), Dallayou, Fauchon, etc were still decent enough. The ones I ate here were at a level below these somewhat, you just wouldn’t really rate them.   ~ 5/10

評分: 味道4 服務5 環境5 衛生5 抵食4

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Jacques Genin is about being a Perfectionist

共22篇遊記

France Paris Desserts Trip (法國)
(旅程日期: 2012-06-13 至 2013-01-22 , 旅程性質: 商務公幹, 消閒度假)

整個旅程 (共17篇遊記)

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遊記 : 第4日

發表日期: 2013-01-21

2013-01-21

Jacques Genin (巴黎)

I have wanted to check out this place since it opened just from a few years back but felt sick and stayed mostly in the hotel. Please be warned 1stly, the Opening Hours googled online don’t really reflect the true opening hours, sigh. I found out the hard way but luckily this was at my 2nd attempt and I already ate my 1st round.   I probably didn’t divulged this information before as it might confuse people - I actually re-entered Paris twice during mid 2012 and the 1st time I came to eat at Jacques Genin, the massive size of the desserts made me realize I should put on hold ordering the extra Paris Brest and famed Lemon Tart to eat it all by myself.   I knew I have planned in mind to come back anyway to finish it all.   Well I did come past a 2nd time eventually, since I had plans for dinner around the block anyway, but despite the opening times saying it closes at 7pm, when I came by around 6pm it was already shut, talk about misleading. So please do plan carefully & arrive well ahead of schedule as a warning. After 11am is going to be your safest bet.

Very Neat Products from a Modern yet Traditional Style Chocolatier -
These looked all shiny and perfect.   I kind of felt Jacques Genin is my style type of guy. Creative, but within reasonable restraints. Perfectionism and execution is valued over re-inventing the wheel, the rule of the game is to be just ahead of it’s times but not overly trying hard otherwise?    I hope I guessed right…

Salted Caramels –
These are actually a Signature here, it’s one of the 1st things the locals and staff recommends.
I have got to say these were perfect in terms of balance of taste and texture.   At least they weren’t too wet and sticking to the wrapping. ~ 9/10

Salted Caramels –
These are actually a Signature here, it’s one of the 1st things the locals and staff recommends.
I have got to say these were perfect in terms of balance of taste and texture.   At least they weren’t too wet and sticking to the wrapping. ~ 9/10

Chocolate Éclair -
This is just text book perfect,
and being a Chocolaterie as well, obviously the chocolate ganache glazing & the chocolate crème patisserie were also sophisticated in taste, minus the sometimes associated bitter note. The choux pastry was fresh and most importantly, you can actually taste that well baked aroma, also eggs and butter! This was just really great than amazing, but tell me an equal quality replacement? Yawn. ~ 10/10

Mango Fruit Pate, Tea Toi, Tonka Teck Chocolates, etc -
I bought an extra few pieces of the chocolates on top and they were just amazingly impressive in balance and looks. These looked and tasted as they should and weren’t overly sweetened or dry like many famous shops, but equally don’t expect your chocolates to perform 3D performances like monkey dances. Expectations often impinge our chances to enjoy in tranquility. But seriously, what more can we ask for really, from a few pieces of chocolates? They won’t give you foodgasm at will, unless ur that sensitive ~ 10/10

評分: 味道5 服務5 環境5 衛生5 抵食5

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Colorful Cakes but Taste is not as good..

共22篇遊記

France Paris Desserts Trip (法國)
(旅程日期: 2012-06-13 至 2013-01-22 , 旅程性質: 商務公幹, 消閒度假)

整個旅程 (共17篇遊記)

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遊記 : 第3日

發表日期: 2013-01-21

2013-01-21

Fauchon (巴黎)

  Fauchon is kind of like an upscale épicerie fine-traiteur, café, boulangerie and pastry shop all thrown into one equation.   It is colorful, modern and there is certainly a lot of flair in the design of the products.   It sort of reminds me of being a mix between both Hediard and Maxims, but also offering a vast range of ready made food resembling that of the more down to earth but equally regarded Lenotreof the highly regarded pastry school fame. In comparison, the latter doesn’t really offer as much coffret cadeau gift products as here. The selections here are pretty for the eye and no wonder the tourists love it as well.

The Traiteur Deli offerings -
Apparently, the savoury options are very good and I don’t have doubts about them, as they looked even more interesting than the link: Lenotre offerings.

Le Deauville éclair -
Éclair with strawberry cream with red and white stripes.
The choux pastry seemed a bit tired plus it didn’t have much taste, unlike the one at Le Patisserie des Reves, and was definitely not up to the high standards set by Jacques Genin. ~ 7/10

Malaga Wild Strawberries Tart -
The fact that this was compiled ‘fresh’ on the spot in front of customers and it carried the exotic wild Spanish strawberries, I simply couldn’t resist ordering this other strawberries dessert.   Whilst the berries were no doubt great, the tart case itself had a very hard-to-break shell. Kind of surprised at this bit. Overall it was barely a pass. ~ 6/10

Macaron Gerbets of Citron Menthe, Praline -
I already ate some Fauchon macarons from Hong Kong airport side. Their shells are the chewier type and slightly bordering on cloying, but their fillings are fairly decent. The Mint Lemon intrigued me as they are a well tested combo. Unfortunately the sweetness killed the fruitiness. The Praline version also interested me, as I secretly hoped that it’s of the more crunchier caramelised nuts filling, but in fact it is the smoother praline cream type only which was more ho hum..  Oh well.   ~ 7/10

評分: 味道3 服務4 環境5 衛生5 抵食3

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1 Trick Pony - Only order anything Ispahan !

共22篇遊記

France Paris Desserts Trip (法國)
(旅程日期: 2012-06-13 至 2013-01-22 , 旅程性質: 商務公幹, 消閒度假)

整個旅程 (共17篇遊記)

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遊記 : 第3日

發表日期: 2013-01-20

2013-01-20

Laduree (巴黎)

This was very luckily for me, a write up of a culmination of my last 3 visits to Laduree Paris.   I also visited their London store but the taste of the macarons is not exactly the same, which is slightly surprising.   They will be opening a new store in Hong Kong soon and I hope it will maintain the Paris standards!   This review is on top of my earlier visit to Laduree (I) which was equally impressive.   As a side note, I noticed a lot of Pastry Chefs don’t really rate Laduree highly and think it is beaten to death commercialized, but after cross-checking a few times, I have got to say their kitchen really makes the most consistently good macarons, even counting in the fact they use the more sugary Italian Meringue formula these days.. Personally the final taste is always what I concentrate on!

Pastries and Cakes -
There were some new items on display.
*Excuse about the lower quality mobile phone photos, most pastry shops don’t allow photos.

Fraise Coquelicot (Strawberry with Poppy Seed),
Salted Caramel, Fleur d’Oranger (Orange Blossom) -
I have been eating macaron gerbets for a long time, but after so many visits to here and other shops, I have got to say Laduree is consistently the one to beat. Call me biased. Call me uneducated. I know there are shops which does better fillings than here and I appreciate them. But the texture is always textbook perfect here despite adopting the Italian Meringue method nowadays.   The weakness lies in the slightly non-natural tasting fillings. I am happy to compromise though ~ 9/10

Plaisir Sucre -
A little dense and nutty chocolate.
It was good but it wasn’t exceptional either. ~ 7/10

Ispahan Ice Cream -
The famous Laduree meringue dessert has been plagiarised all over the world, but guess what, they still make the best version here. I find that surprising because usually people copy and improve on the formula. Well the Ice Cream version of the Lychee, Rose Petal and Raspberry combo is equally as impressive and absolutely adorable and you can taste each individual flavour!! ~ 10/10

Jardin Bleu Royal Tea -
Made with non-smoked Chinese and Indian Tea, with additional Rhubarb and Wild Strawberries flavours, scattered with Corn Flower and Helianthus Petals.   Suggested by the staff as I have exhausted my list here, this was very enjoyable actually as it is exuberating that fruitiness fragrance with elegance. It is not easy to find good teas outside of France, it’s all about the tea culture. (UK teas I think are more up front in style in comparison but also great, but less blending.)

Lemon & Lime Guimauve, Liquorice, Strawberry Candy Guimauve -
Very impossibly good! Some people find Laduree macarons a little confectionary. So might as well order their more candy like flavours. All pretty decent and yes, candy like

Haha. Rose Petal and Strawberry Jam -
Anyone want to share with me? I only bought 2 jars and already gave out 1 to a friend !

評分: 味道4 服務4 環境5 衛生5 抵食3

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Nice Matcha Eclair and Apple Tea

共22篇遊記

France Paris Desserts Trip (法國)
(旅程日期: 2012-06-13 至 2013-01-22 , 旅程性質: 商務公幹, 消閒度假)

整個旅程 (共17篇遊記)

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遊記 : 第3日

發表日期: 2013-01-20

2013-01-20

Sadaharu Aoki (巴黎)

Mr Sadaharu Aoki from Japan first opened his first patisserie in France. For a Japanese Pastry Chef he didn’t seem at all putting up a direct challenge with the local Frenchies. He is doing very well actually, on an earlier visit to his Paris store,   I swore he made the best macarons in Paris during that trip beating even Laduree.   But on yet another visit it was still good and may be still making into the Top 3, but just.   The determining factor was going to be the other offerings.

Matcha Green Tea Éclair -
Even in Paris, many know this is meant to be one of the best eclairs.   The choux pastry texture wasn’t as decent as Jacques Genins,   but wasn’t far off and the Green Tea flavour was accurate!   Choux-wise it was better than my Fauchon experience, which were also colorfully presented. And it was fresher also than my Patisserie des Reves experience in Paris.   ~ 9/10

Mini Croissant -
Ever since my last visit and looking back at the pics, I lament the fact that I didn’t order these, even if I have tried the Tokyo stores but can’t remember much.   This was very very buttery, something u take for granted. The texture is crispy on the outside but still too soft inside, it wasn’t the best croisant I ate in France or even Europe. But compared to Hong Kong context, this would come out on top easily bar Robuchon Macau. ~ 8/10

Macarons -
Matcha Green Tea, Pistachio and Raspberry.
The texture this day was a little too dense. A lot of other shops have different problems of being either too hard or too sugary-syrupy. The filling flavours here are still good enough. ~ 7/10

Ispahan Inspired Macaron Dessert -
It was definitely an interpretation of the Pierre Herme and Laduree version.   The shell was good if not a bit chewy this time. It also didn’t seem to have lychee in it.  Absolutely no need to order this. ~ 7/10

Cassis Chocolat -
With an almonds chocolate biscuit, cassis blackcurrant and white chocolate cream, and feuilletine praline. This was enjoyable because the amount of cassis fruity flavour was good. I think this wasn’t so interesting as a tray cake but it tasted alright enough! ~ 7/10

Apple Tea -
This is a signature tea by Sadaharu Aoki. It has a pretty strong dried Apples flavour over 2 tries and balanced with the tea leaves. I miss this tea so much! ~ 10/10

評分: 味道4 服務5 環境5 衛生5 抵食4

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共22篇遊記

France Paris Desserts Trip (法國)
(旅程日期: 2012-06-13 至 2013-01-22 , 旅程性質: 商務公幹, 消閒度假)

整個旅程 (共17篇遊記)

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遊記 : 第2日

發表日期: 2013-01-20

Bretagne Crepes ok喇

2013-01-20

Creperie Suzette (巴黎)

Owner of Creperie Suzette is from Brittany, and her shop sits alongside a more local area next to the Metro station of Le Motte Picquet – Grenelle. This area is usually off limits to tourists but since my friend lived in the area and also because the best Sadaharu Aoki shop is only 1-2 stations away by foot, this area has become one of the must visits whenever I go back to Paris.

-Cidre Fermier -
This is an award winning, artisanal farm house styled Bretagne cidre, which according to the owner, is totally unavailable to find in most Creperies in town due to the prohibitive cost of selling one. This rule especially applies to the shops amongst the Montparnasse creperies.

- Galette La Complete -
By default complete with Eggs, Ham and Cheese and a real test to the shop’s performance.   As mentioned numerous times already, many French Creperies serve just ordinary quality galettes and crepes.   It is akin to many shops in Hong Kong serving mediocre quality Wonton noodles, unless you visit the best of the crop!   I thought that despite this shop being owned by a Breton, the buckwheat galette de ble noir or sarrasin was slightly too weak and moist.   The Ham could also have been better quality, but the egg was cooked well.   It is all subjective… ~ 6.5/10

- The POIRE is totally addictive and refreshing.
I have always been at awe at why Normandy makes so many of these pear ciders, but the neighboring Brittany region only makes farmhouse apple ciders.    This shop might be of Brittany origin, but at least they were open minded enough to carry their neighboring region’s cider offering.

評分: 味道3 服務5 環境3 衛生4 抵食4

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Hot Chocolate, Chestnut Cake and Eclair

共22篇遊記

France Paris Desserts Trip (法國)
(旅程日期: 2012-06-13 至 2013-01-22 , 旅程性質: 商務公幹, 消閒度假)

整個旅程 (共17篇遊記)

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遊記 : 第2日

發表日期: 2013-01-20

2013-01-20

La Maison Angelina (巴黎)

差

Angelina in Paris is of Austrian origins but nevertheless is one of the must visit institutions much like the lauded Laduree.   I haven’t been back here for too many years and last time I walked by I was preparing to have a big meal at Le Meurice next door, so this time around I came back to take some pictures.    According to almost every guide book, their 2 most famous items to must order are the Hot Chocolate L’Africain and the Mont Blanc cake, and the former still definitely holds true to this day, but those in the know have probably been previously disappointed by their slightly too hyped up Mont Blanc chestnut cake!   The must order item here is probably their more unique Vanilla Crumbled Eclairs.   Since I’ve eaten both before, this time around I just concentrated on my croissant and the hot chocolate this time!

Mont Blanc & Vanilla Crumbled Eclairs -
All the guide books will tell customers to must order the Mont Blanc cake,  but to me it was never that great and I will even avoid it. On the other hand, their unique Crumbled Eclairs have been more special with it’s special choux pastry texture.. which a similar éclair can also be found in Melbourne at Chez Dre.

Hot Chocolate L’Africain -
The one I compare this to directly is the La Maison du Chocolat version. This is also very viscous thick but probably less intense in bitterness, although at the same time also less fruitier. This is very well balanced… Probably less challenging or hardcore, but as an everyday drink this would be my more preferred choice over the VERO or La Maison du Chocolat version. It’s good, if only the shop provides any air conditioning!   ~ 8/10

Croissant -
The Viennoiseries here are great as always.
The laminated dough looked superbly layered, with a crispy crust but was probably a too soft inside and could do with more butteriness. On it’s own, this is already a good croissant. But I have had a few which were even better, including Le Grenier a Pain, Sadaharu Aoki, Pierre Herme, etc.   ~ 7/10

評分: 味道4 服務4 環境2 衛生4 抵食2

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Amazing Pastries and Salted Caramel Macaron

共22篇遊記

France Paris Desserts Trip (法國)
(旅程日期: 2012-06-13 至 2013-01-22 , 旅程性質: 商務公幹, 消閒度假)

整個旅程 (共17篇遊記)

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遊記 : 第1日

發表日期: 2013-01-20

2013-01-20

Hugo & Victor Patisserie (巴黎)

Not often do I give a place, a perfect mark. But I think they have done more than enough to attract the crowd and be given due credit. The owners of Hugo & Victor were either trained in Pierre Herme or 3 Starred Michelin restaurants such as Le Bristol and subsequently at Guy Savoy, and the other partner was working in the jewelry field. Hence the beautiful display of the pastries and chocolates here. This pastry shop was definitely one of the best shops I have visited recently.

- Pistache – Euro 5.20
This is a St Honore choux pastry with Pistachio based flavour, with Pistachio Chantilly Cream, roasted Pistachio and a Mille-Feuille Pastry which was at the top of it’s game with a caramelised top layer. ~ 9/10-

- Pamplemousse Tart
The tart pastry case was more on the hard side but succumbed to pressure when it mattered and broke into the right pieces. The slightly bitter pieces of Grapefruit as already forewarned by the English sign was spot-on. This was a bit hard overall but flavour wise was so balanced. Encore ~ 9.5/10

- Mango Ice Cream and White Chocolate Crisp Pie
Can’t rave enough about this. The mango flavour was spot on and the white chocolate coating on top was so summery and balanced. The slightly savoury biscuity base was equally good. ~ 9/10

- Salted Caramel Macaron
In terms of flavour, this was on my personal opinion the best Salted Caramel Macaron I tried so far. ~ 12/10

- The Financiers were unfortunately, as good as they say it is…
It had a bitey and caramelised exterior, and the sponge cake inside was perfectly balanced between dense and fluffy, with buttery goodness. Never did I knew Financiers can become this good. Lucky I did plan with foresight this time around and researched… ~ 10/10

每人消費: 約25歐元 (下午茶)
評分: 味道5 服務4 環境5 衛生5 抵食5

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