This past weekend was my family's big birthday trifecta, as my mom, dad and brother have three in a row birthdays. We celebrated with our closest family and friends, at my parents' house, and needless to say, we indulged in a lot of delicious eats. My mom made tasty traditional Slovak foods including fasirky, Slovak-style potato salad, and other goodies. Lots of scrumptious dessert was had as well, and I always try to do something special and festive, which I surprise my family with. Last year it was Thea's stiletto and soccer ball cake, while this year it was personalized French Macarons from Dana's Bakery.
About Dana's Bakery:
I first found out about Dana's Bakery through following her posts on Instagram and I fell in love with her colorful confections. After doing some research online, I decided they were the perfect treats for my family's celebration, especially because you can personalize them.
Based purely online, Dana's delivers (literally) beautifully crafted French Macarons with an American twist. I love how colorful (and sometimes mismatched) they are, with the filling differing from its meringue cookie. They feature 11 unique flavors, as well as a surprise flavor of the month. Focusing on American-style nostalgic flavors, you can find these confections in red velvet, thin mint, cookie dough, fruity cereal and other interesting varieties. This month's flavor of the month happens to be banana split, with sprinkles, fudge and a cherry inside.
Macarons:
As you can see, I ordered an assortment of macarons for my family's big birthday celebration. Loving all the beautiful colors that formed this birthday medley, people dug in with excitement and I myself only got my hands on two macarons - one of them being the peanut butter and jelly as well as the s'mores. Out of those two the former was absolutely amazing, tasting both nutty and fruity, just like a real PB&J sandwich. All you had to do was close your eyes and imagine your favorite childhood sandwich. Dan had a bite too and agreed this flavor was stupendous.
The s'mores macaron was nice too, but not as pronounced in flavor as the PB&J. Other flavors that received high marks were the Cup of Joe coffee flavor as well as the fruity cereal, which supposedly tasted exactly like Fruity Pebbles.
Service and Cost:
I absolutely loved the way my order was serviced, including a really quick response from Dana via email and an even faster expediting process. Placing the order just two days in advance, I was able to receive my Macarons quickly and picked them up at a convenient location in Midtown Manhattan. They also deliver for an additional fee, but I believe that's limited to Manhattan.
Costs are expensive but worth it for something special at $2.50/macaron and an additional $15 for the personalization.
3 Sweet Mmmms
www.danasbakery.com
As you know, I’m always intrigued by the latest local foodie craze, the cronut being one prime example. But aside from this dessert sensation, there are other such creative eats that are keeping me up at night such as a macaron ice cream sandwich, I’m about to share with you.
I found out about the Macaron ice cream sandwich last week through my daily Scoutmob newsletter and it tickled my sweet tooth craving. For those of you who know me, can vouch for my insatiable sweet tooth in general and for my strong penchant for French macarons. Last winter, I even ventured out on an NYC macaron crawl to taste the best this city has to offer.
The idea behind the innovative macaron ice cream sandwich comes from the folks at Francois Payard Bakery, one of the first stops in fact, in my aforementioned macaron crawl adventure. Situated in the West Village, I scoped it out last week with my co-worker, Sarah.
About Francois Payard:
Known for exquisite French bread and pastries, Francois Payard is a trusty baked good staple, located on Houston Street, just East of 6th Avenue. The bakery itself is quite large and inviting, and serves as a comfortable meeting place for a small or large group of friends, or for an impromptu meeting with a co-worker, as in my case.
There’s a large colorful display up front of all the pastries, their macaron selection being front and center. I was happy to see that the macaron ice cream sandwiches advertised on the premises, assuring us we were in the right place, and giving us hope that they were still available.
Macaron Ice Cream Sandwich – A few varieties made up the macaron ice cream sandwich offering including strawberry cheesecake, coconut mango, chocolate on chocolate with cocoa nibs, and their most popular flavor, the pistachio raspberry. I was debating between that and the coconut mango, but when I asked for a staff recommendation, they pointed me to the former right away, so I went for it.
The sandwiches came wrapped in clear cellophane, adorned with a pretty sticker that displayed its unique flavor. I loved that they were super cold; helping to break the heat we were feeling from walking outside.
Once we unwrapped our treats and took a bite, I was in heaven. Loving the subtle pistachio flavor of the meringue cookie, and the way it hugged the raspberry vanilla ice cream, this was truly a different kind of ice cream sandwich. The ice cream itself was made of really good quality ingredients, which didn’t give me a tummy ache, as some rich desserts do, and once the meringue cooled down a bit, it was pleasantly chewy and even more delicious.
Service and Cost:
The staff at Francois Payard took care of us, but nothing was so out of the ordinary stellar that I feel inclined to highlight. I’d say that it’s your standard order-at-the-counter experience – however without all the crazy lines that can be found at some other neighboring bakeries that shall not be named :)
We paid $5 for each ice cream sandwich, which I think offers decent value, considering its generous size. If you’re looking for just a little sweet bite to tide you over, I’d even recommend splitting one with a friend.
3 Mmmms
Francois Payard Bakery – 116 West Houston Street, New York, NY 10012
212.995.0888
1 Train to Houston Street
www.payard.com
As many dutiful foodies in this city, I like to involve myself in all sorts of food activities and social media groups. One of those is the NYC Food Crawl group on Facebook, and I joined with the intention of attending these meetups, but unfortunately have never got around to it.
My determination to go to these events is of course influenced by the subject we're exploring, and this month's theme got my curiosity in a bunch. Macarons! Those wonderful little meringue cookies that come in all colors of the rainbow and are stuffed with the most inventive fillings - ranging from chocolate, passion fruit, espresso, green tea, caramel, bacon and much more.
Food Crawl Format
The rules are simple and clear - learn about the crawl on Facebook, RSVP, show up, form a group and then go! Really, it wasn't very complicated and that's why I think it worked so well.
We showed up at the given meeting point, the Southwest Corner in Washington Square Park, to meet our organizer Amanda. I loved that she was friendly and welcoming and did a good job of introducing us around. While some people showed up with friends, others (including me) came solo. I thought Amanda did a great job of fostering conversation and camaraderie and she asked everyone their names and paired people off into small groups of about 5 people. I met two nice guys, and they expected two other friends to join, so there went our group of five.
It was recommended to appoint one group leader to collect money and order for everyone, but we opted for handling that individually, which made things easier and didn't weigh heavily on one person's shoulders. We each received a map of the crawl locations and set off for a sweet adventure.
My Fellow Crawlers
As I already mentioned, my fellow crawlers were a nice group. We had two guys and three girls, including me. Everyone was really open-minded and into sweets, which was nice. I especially bonded with a new friend, Hayon who seemed to love chocolate and gourmet treats as much as me. Coincidence had it that she's an LICer, so I of course told her all about my food favorites there and in Astoria.
Overall, I think this crawl presented a great platform to meet new people with similar interests. Everyone was open minded and intelligent and easy to get along with. I would happily mix and mingle with this group again.
Macarons
The best part of this evening though were of course the macarons. Macarons galore! We hit four different locations in the Soho/West Village/Greenwich Village areas including:
Francois Payard - Boasting a beautiful macaron pyramid that you see above, we ooh'd and ahh'd as soon as we saw it. They had many classic as well as unusual flavors, and I ended up choosing the oreo macaron. The filling was delectable and rich, tasting like the famous nostalgic cookie, but the actual meringe was hard and dry, and not my favorite. I also ended up getting a ham and brie baguette to tide me over, which was also just OK. Not fantastic. 116 West Houston Street, New York NY 10012. 212.995.0888
Kee's Chocolates - Our second location looked promising. While it was a small storefront, the goods found inside were beautifully crafted. The macarons looked gorgeously substantial and colorful, and I immediately went for the lavender cookie with a chocolate filling. I adore lavender and have previously incorporated it into desserts. Taking a bite, I had high hopes, but similarly to the Payard macaron, this one also didn't measure up. The filling was too chilled and the meringue was too dry and caused a gap between the outer and inner layer. 80 Thompson Street, New York NY 10012. 212.332.3284
Mille Feuille - A relatively new cafe in Greenwich Village, I didn't know what to expect. The employees of this place stayed open an hour later just for us, so that right away showed they were in it for the right reasons - the people! There were a few varieties of macarons (about a dozen) and I chose the chocolate praline that I ate on the spot and also a salted caramel macaron for Dan. As soon as I took a bite, I smiled. This was the real deal - not unlike the deliciousness I tasted in Paris just two months ago. The meringue was soft and chewy and blended beautifully with the rich, room temperature filling. It was simply awesome and a clear winner of the night. Dan affirmed this when he took a bite out of the salted caramel macaron later that night. 552 Laguardia Place, New York NY 10012. 212.533.4698
Bosie Tea Parlor - The last place we hit that night, I think it was the most unique. It was a cute sit down place that seemed like a nice place to come to with a date or a small group of girlfriends. Specialty teas decked the walls and it smelled divine. We found the macarons at the front counter and my eye right away zeroed in on the maple bacon. The latter ingredient sets my heart aflutter pretty much on command and I of course got this macaron for myself and for Dan too. Its texture was also very good and the filling was smoky and sweet, just like maple glazed bacon. Although I liked it a lot, it still wasn't better than the purely perfect one at Mille Feuille. 10 Morton Street, New York NY 10014. 212.352.9900
I had such a great time at the NYC Macaron Crawl that I'll definitely consider doing something like this again. Can't wait to find out what December will bring.
One of the other countries I covered on my recent European business trip is France, having the amazing opportunity to visit Paris. As it was my first time there, I was literally salivating at all the specialties I would try, especially desserts.
Deciding to take a traditional French foods tour of the Latin Quarter, it was one of the best things I did (but more on that later). Here I want to highlight a most lovely dessert I had on the last day of my trip – the almighty and these days, very trendy macaron.
For those of you not overly familiar with these treats, however I think most of you may have had one or several before, they’re little, delicate meringue cookies stuffed with different flavored fillings. What makes them so beautiful is their color, giving hints to the flavors inside.
While you’ll find macarons in most sweet shops around Paris, I was immediately drawn to the selection at Maison Georges Larnicol, which looked elegant and sophisticated. I could tell this would be no ordinary cookie.
Atmosphere:
Fortuitously stumbling upon this boutique bakery just by chance, it’s located right off the Latin Quarter near the busy Odeon metro stop. What drew me in immediately was their chic display of macarons, simply but beautifully placed into long tubular boxes, showcasing a rainbow of vibrant colors.
Once inside, I noticed the macaron display didn’t stop there, as the center of the store was graced with a huge macaron bar, with a head macaronist (if you will), helping you with your unique needs and packaging them individually for each person. What attention to detail!
I approached the display cautiously, surveying the goods ever so carefully. I knew I just wanted one precious bite, so I had to be strategic. But it was a hard task, with over 20 different flavors confronting you head-on.
Macaron – Given the 20+ different flavors of macarons including lemon, pistachio, raspberry, rose, dark chocolate, praline, coffee, salted caramel and more, I finally narrowed it down to one single one, the praline. I had some doubts about my choice, but those were all gone once I bit into this baby. Flaky, airy and wonderful as far as the cookie was concerned, it hugged the dense, richness of the praline filling like a glove. The filling was the best part, as it was creamy, slightly chilled and not overly sweet. It was the perfect way to finish off an already rich gastronomic journey.
Service and Cost:
As I mentioned, the service is uniquely individual, showcasing the high quality of this place. After you get your macarons, your macaronist places your individual baggie at the main counter for which there was a line. It was expedited quickly and in an organized fashion, giving you the perception that this is a tightly run ship.
Each macaron is 85 cents, which is about $1.10. Expensive on first glance, but given the high quality and superior taste, worth every last bite.
If you'd like to get a better idea of the other amazing goodies at this place, including their intricate chocolate sculptures, take a look at this video from Espadrilles & Champagne.
3 Mmmms
Maison Georges Larnicol - 132 Boulevard St. Germain 75006 Paris
+33 (0)1 43 26 39 38
Metro: Odeon
www.chocolaterielarnicol.fr
