Fancy seeing you here, Eric Kayser

It's a beautiful sight, isn't it?

All those rows and rows of pretty, petite gateaux.

I was thrilled to hear Eric Kayser arrived in New York last week. I have les souvenirs heureux of his bread, chocolate chip cookies, viennoiserie and cakes.

I don't if all these people do too, but it sure seems the rest of New York is excited for the boulangerie's arrival.

The selection is smaller here than in Paris. They do have cookies, financiers, croissants, pain au chocolat and pain aux raisins. Plus a whole restaurant.

But for now they seem to be focusing on les gateaux individuels.

So, in addition to a pistachio brioche with an airy center...

... we tried a Paris-Brest. 

The créme praliné was plentiful, oozing from the pastry ring.

Some golden almond slivers and a wee tile of dark chocolate stamped with his initials.

It could be that my memories are better than reality will ever live up to. Or that things taste different 3600 miles away. All I know is that I'm going to have to return to see if I can experience that over-the-moon feeling I used to have in Paris because I didn't taste yet here in New York.

A last hurrah at Boulangerie Julien

They’re about as naughty as they look: praline brioche pastry, there on the left, and the chocolate-pistachio option on the right. filled with cream.

As fond as my experiences had been at Boulangerie Julien, I had to go back for one last breakfast run.

The praline brioche was much more subtle.

But then again, with the number of chocolate chips in the other, how could the chocolate pistachio be considered anything but over the top?

The most charming baker in Paris

Christophe Vasseur confesses: “I’ve always been good with my hands.”

Add this to the fact that he wanted to quit school at the age of 12 to become a baker—who were like magicians to him, “transforming something so simple into something so good and beautiful with their hands.”—and it makes sense that he’s running one of the most esteemed and delicious bakeries in town: Du Pain et des Idées.

Where to begin? With the bread? (Bonne idée!)

There’s the famous pain des amis, a wonderfully slightly nutty flatbread that is now served at Alain Ducasse’s Plaza Athénée restaurant.

Le Rabelais, a dense brioche with saffron, honey and walnuts.

The mini paves, jammed with deliciousness like sundried tomatoes or spinach and goat cheese.

But really, it’s all about the sweets, isn’t it?

Just look at his viennoiseries: millions of layers of crisp and flaky dreaminess.


They take 34 hours to make. Of course they do, he makes his own (divine) pastry dough.


The chausson aux pommes, made with real apples, not minced jam.

And, my favorite, the tendresse aux pommes, a dense brioche flan with raisins and apples and cinnamon.


Greedy me, I am already plotting my return visit so I can get my own hands on more.

Creamy, chocolaty brioche

Does this look familiar?

Different viennoiserie, same boulangerie.

I can’t help it. Boulangerie Julien has a magnetic pull. At least once a week as I’m walking to work, I must go in.

Usually I just press my nose against the window.

Other times, like when I see a chocolate chip brioche, it's all too easy to give in.