Des Gâteaux et du Pain :: Saint Honoré Pistache-Griotte
By Paris Pâtisseries in Des Gâteaux et du Pain, Pastry Reviews
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Although I’ve given Des Gâteaux et du Pain a hard time in the past, I actually do enjoy their pastries quite a bit. I’m also suspicious that they might occasionally read the site here, given a response of “see you very soon” to a recent comment I left on a recent Des Gâteaux Facebook posting. Yikes! So, please Madame Damon and all the wonderful chefs there, when I come in in a few weeks, know that I love you. Also rest assured I will be in disguise, just as a precaution. And, if I’ve offended you in the past, let me atone for my sins with today’s review, which will be quite favorable.
Perhaps what I enjoy most about Claire Damon’s creations is that they’re imaginative without being weird. Something like her Tarte Fraise Fleur d’Oranger is pleasantly offbeat – delicious and original – but far from being like the inane pastries of a certain Arnaud. Other work, like the Tarte Framboise, provides a tasty spin on a beloved classic. There’s a style that isn’t duplicated in any of the other shops; she has a voice that stands out and one that adds something to the Parisian pastry scene. There might be no better example that her Saint Honoré Pistache-Griotte.
My notes give a definitive, “Excellent. Extremely excellent.” The scarf-like draping of pistachio crème Chantilly is sublime. Silky smooth and delightfully perfumed with fully present pistachio tones, I only wish other shops could so deftly handle their Chantilly. And the texture of the choux puffs? Resplendent. Tender, light, perfectly cooked golden orbs of yum jammed with gobs of intoxicatingly gooey and expressive pistachio crème onctueuse. So delicious that I would gladly pay for a ½ kilo pastry bag I could perch at my lips and casually fill myself with. And let’s not forget those intense and beautifully prepared griottes nestled in the heart of the pastry. Divine. The summed effect of all these amazingly palate-tingling bits is nothing short of . . . a joy.
I might say the cherry atop it all was a bit subdued, but I imagine that was intentional, as not to distract from the force of the cherries within. And the pate sablee at the base of the patisserie? Quite pleasant – and a highly appreciated depature from the pate feuillete used in other shops’ Saint-Honores, which tend to get unpleasantly rubbery. Crisis averted here at Des Gâteaux et du Pain.
Now, with my return to Paris fast approaching, I’m wondering how many of Des Gâteaux’s latest treats I’ll get to capture on film. The same goes for the other shops. Splitting my pastry love between old favorites and new shops in 2011, I might only get to highlight 5 or so goodies from each haunt over the coming year. Should I just select the prettiest work from each shop to put up on the site? Or should I eat the 20-30 pastries every shop has, before selecting the ones to be immortalized? Decisions like these are the cross I bear.
So, yes, do snag a Saint-Honoré Griottes Pistache from Des Gâteaux et du Pain. I mean, how could you not want to jam the above into your face? I even hear they have another Saint Honoré that’s mango/caramel/spices. Imagine that! And their cassis-violette version is soon to make its spring debut. Thank God I’ll be back to Paris in a mere 14 days.
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