Salut mes amis! C'est un jour magnifique aujourd'hui, non! Voici des patisseries et boulangeries que tres j'aime. Ils sont le populaire Le Pain Quotidien, le nouveau Takahachi, et mon préféré toujours patisserie pour macarons, le seul Madeleine Patisserie. Bien, nous commencons!
****
Hey dolls! Its such a wonderful day today no? Well what better way to celebrate than to share my first ever bakery/restaurant reviews. You asked for it, so I am here to deliver. Here are some bakeries that I adventurously wandered into this past week and like dvery much. They include the immensely popular chain Le Pain Quotidien (which I promise, there's one near you, so check their website), the new kid on the block Takahachi, and my favorite bakery for macarons thus far, the one and only, Madeleine Patisserie. Okay, let's go!
The tempestuous afternoon soon lended itself to a quiet and drizzly evening, where me and my new friends from English class decided to take a leisurely stroll in search of food to accompany our conversations. No one cared for anything in particular, so we grazed aimlessly until suddenly, after crossing West Broadway, there it was- Takahachi, the latest Tribeca neighborhood bakery slash bistro, beckoned me with its alluring grand blue doors and welcoming open layout. The entrance literally makes you feel like Alice in Wonderland, captivated with curiosity. The shop is in a newly constructed loft building, so inside it lacked the charm of my preferred French country decor, and mimicked a direct and clean ambiance, though the exposed brick and oversized chalkboards brought on the quaintness in satisfying doses. And not sooner had we all passed the cute sidewalk menu boards and entered did we see an array of sweet smelling breads, savory sandwiches, and a pastry display that seemed to be endless. I was tickled pink at the glimpse of some rather large looking macarons in exotic flavors like green tea, matcha, rosemary, and yuzu perfectly perched next to the usual suspects- vanilla, chocolate, pistachio, and raspberry. Everything looked divine and fresh from back of house, from various small pizzas, savory croissants, cakes, to traditional bread loaves, salads, and danishes. But since no one wanted to eat but me, I was craving sweets and chocolate. I spotted mocha on the menu, but at $4.50 a pop, that was not happening. Ultimately, I ended up with the raspberry and chocolate macarons ($2.15 ea) since I am a newly appointed macaron aficionado, and then dipped my finger in the jar of bold and daring to order my first ever mini choux! It was spectacular! Perfect, perfect sugar sprinkled choux dough, with richly sweet caramel pastry cream piped inside. In all, the experience was well worth the stop in, and being so close to my school, this is for sure my new hang out spot. The line can be a bit disorganized, but service is quick and painless. Oh and by the way, the sitting area is just so quaint and clean, with windows in the back walls overlooking the baking. When you see Mexicans in the kitchen helping with the production of French pastries, under Japanese management and American, European and Indian patronage, surely you know you are in New York!
the day: Saturday, 25 September
Twas a Saturday, so devoted readers are sure to know what I was busy doing. Window shopping at Barnes and Noble of course! And though the air had a slight chill, and the sun was reluctant to favor us, what a glorious day it was. Heading back from BN, I had to stop in Madeleine's, an authentic French bakery I discovered whilst being interviewed here for a job a few years ago (not a job at the bakery itself, it was the salon next door that was still in construction and no seating). Ever since then, I have always admired this gorgeous storefront, but never really had the mojo to go in. Sometimes genuinely French places scare me. I never know if the servers are French and rude, or if the customer base is snobbier than I can handle in one day. But nothing was stopping me this time, I finally ventured inside only to find a Pandora's box of sweet pastries all calling my name. I wanted to be daring, but boy are the prices at this place high. They only had coffee flavored eclairs left, so I just opted for macarons and a tart. $19 worth of macarons to be exact! Rose, chocolate, praline, pistachio, caramel, and so on. It was soooo worth it. I literally still have some in my fridge because these little cookies were so perfect, I am trying to savor them all week long. Perfectly crisp but not crunchy, and when at room temperature, the filling oozes out into your mouth. The best macarons in NYC hands down. The first time I was in, the cashier girls were a bit stuffy, but this day my server was as sweet as buttercream. She explained every flavor I inquired about, and waited patiently as I changed my mind a few times, picking out only the prettiest colors obviously. And the decor? Don't get me started! Tiffany blue floral wall paper, pink and gold menus, Provencial display cases and iron stands, not to mention the lovely tufted Louis chairs back in the communal sitting area. Just the way I would decorate my own shop. Ah, pure bliss!the day: Tuesday, 28 September
0 Yorumlar