Three months after having my first cronut I felt like the food memory was fading so of course I went for another. This time I did a pre-order which maxed out my phone bill for the month (oops!) from excessive dialing but it was worth it not to wait in line again. This time around I got to try September’s fig and mascarpone cream.
With all the talk of cronuts, one can easily overlook the fact that it is Dominique Ansel Bakery, not Cronut Shop that has the line around the block every morning. I promised myself after my cronut adventure I’d go back to try the other items so they wouldn’t feel neglected, or so I tell myself to justify going four times in one week. For those that may be out of luck on getting the coveted cronut, the bakery has plenty to offer and those hours waiting will not be wasted. I promise. Plus, the bakery plays the best music. You cannot go in without wanting to sing along.
What is it? Is it worth the wait? This hybrid pastry, a combination of a croissant and donut has fascinated more than just the food community. It has become a topic of discussion on talk shows, news broadcasts and even celebrities have sought out this in-demand sweet. I must say creator, Chef Dominique Ansel is doing a remarkable job of keeping up with the media frenzy through very active communication on Twitter, to the point that I think PR has become his full time job and yet that is not true at all. I was pleasantly surprised to find the chef was right by the register, boxing and bagging cronuts this past Saturday when I ventured out for my cronut.
Along with my macaron tasting, I was able to fit in some cookies without having a sugar overload. My latest find, the cookies at Levain Bakery, were so good, I had to make a second trip for more so everyone at home could experience them. Okay and because I wanted another for myself. Here are some snapshots of Levain and my other favorites in the city.
It’s hard to miss this Upper West Side bakery as there is always a crowd spilling out onto the sidewalk. To get to the shop, you walk down a set of stairs as if entering a basement and are welcomed with the sweet smell of cookies. If it weren’t such tight quarters inside, only a few bar seats by a window, I would stay in there just to inhale more of the aroma.
On my latest trip to New York I decided to make it a macaron trip, the idea mainly inspired by the opening last year of Ladurée, the famous Parisian tea salon that finally has come to the states. I hope Pierre Hermé will follow suit but for now I will settle for a little piece of Paris in Ladurée, literally, as the macarons are flown over every week.
And before I get into the little details of each macaron, here is my blurb, macaron tasting 101, because I take it that seriously. It’s like wine tasting.
Ladurée’s pastel green is as recognizable to sweet lovers as Tiffany’s blue is to shopaholics. In the midst of the rainy weather, the window display on Madison Avenue was a welcoming spring combination of green and lavender. This is the only photo I have of the shop, as true to the Paris locations, photography is not allowed inside. I figured the window was acceptable since it is viewable from the outside.