More Franglais baked goods surface in Paris

Rose, Merce, Merci… there’s a new kid in town. Another cute, clean, contemporary café that serves upscale, Anglocentric bits and bobs.

Meet Claus. He quietly opened on rue Jean-Jacques Rousseau back in August.

Behold, poundcakes and carrot cake!


Scones, madeleines and muffins—er, financiers!



And cookies looking oh-so-American (and delicious).

Breads and viennoiserie come from Eric Kayser.

But the sit-down menu, including everything from scrambled eggs and muesli to tomato mozzarella salad and club sandwiches, is deliciously housemade.

March Tour: Sweet madeleines, savory pâtes and all kinds of deliciousness in between

Just as there are many under-the-radar restaurants that pepper the 11th and 12th arrondisements—Bistrot Paul Bert, Le Square Trousseau, La Gazetta, to name a few—there are also some killer sweet spots straddling le Faubourg Saint Antoine.

Start your sweet explorations with the most notable on the list, Blé Sucre (7, rue Antoine Vollon), founded by ex-Bristol patissier Fabrice Le Bourdat. The patisserie is petit but it has a massive selection of viennoiseries, cakes, chocolates, breads and other douceurs that make the decision of what to try very painful. I ended up settling on the madeleine, which—moist and light; dense but crispy along the ridge; coated with a thin layer of sugar glacage—seemed like the right choice.

A couple blocks to the east, La Ruche à Miel (19, rue d'Aligre ), a North African patisserie/salon de thé offers a small selection of very small sweets. The Cigare, for example, flavored with almond and orange, is shaped like a cannoli, but can be put away in a mere three bites. Maybe that’s why the giant pâtes de dattes caught my eye. Heftier than an American Pop Tart, it was as savory as it was sweet, with a course and exotic texture that I found addictive.

Venture north into the 11th, where the scent of chocolate will greet you inside Pause Détente (98, avenue Ledru-Rollin). There's a whole case of bonbons in the back—milk and dark, ganache and praline, vanilla, cassis and mint—but to get there, you have to pass all kinds of other delights, including macarons, viennoiseries and beautiful, elaborate gateaux.

Finish with a tinier, but no less lovelier, piece of gateau at Cupcakes & Co (25, rue de la Forge Royale). With over 20 varieties, split amongst buttercream and cream cheese frostings, fruity and savory toppings, and several cake flavors—all made with natural and organic products—it’s next to impossible to choose just one treat. Coffee and hazelnut? Poppy seed with orange cream cheese frosting? Vanilla bourbon cake with glazed figs and pine nuts? An impossible choice, indeed, but one we could all be so lucky to have to make.

Blé Sucre’s madeleine: best in the city?

Before I went to Blé Sucre, I trolled through the blogs to figure out what was a must-order. I had a big eating agenda before me and had to make every pastry bite count.

I arrived with a short-list: pain au chocolat, madeleine or financier. I figured I’d eyeball them and then place my order according to what looked most irresistible. Logical, right? Silly girl, logic doesn’t work in a Parisian patisserie.

Of course the pain au chocolat, madeleines and financiers all looked divine. But then so did the pain aux raisins, raspberry bressons and chaussons de pommes.

And so did the chocolates and other bite-sized treats.


And so did all the sweet little cakes.



After such decadent displays, would a modest madeleine suffice in sating my sweet tooth? Would it be enough? In a word, oui.

The cake was moist, light and airy. Dense with just enough crispness along the ridge. And, with a thin layer of sugar glacage on top, it was indeed sweetly satisfying.

Sampling madeleines

When I fall for something, I fall hard. (I'm a Scorpio: fiercely loyal.)

So after my first Petrossian experience, I was smitten and immediately a fan of the place.

Even the building that houses Petrossian is gorgeous. It's really a sight to see.


So I'm willing to overlook a gaffe or two.

In full disclosure, I’m not a madeleine fanatic. But I've had better than the cranberry and chocolate varieties I sampled.

The lemon and tart cranberry flavors popped nicely. But the pastry was too moist and greasy. Can't it be fluffy without so much oil?

For some reason, the chocolate worked. Rather than borderline soggy, the density of the cake was lighter and airier. Not unlike Lady M's petit chocolat.

I have my eye and mind on other Petrossian treats. Redemption can only be a bite away.

911 Seventh Ave between 57 & 58
212.245.2217