For all those who worship at the altar of crisp croissants and chewy baguettes, the magical thing about Paris is that there’s a good bakery on most every street. All the same, there are amazing spots that should not be skipped on your next trip to the City of Light, offering everything from classic madeleines to trompe l’oeil entremets cast in the shapes of circus tents as well as lemon juicers. Don’t miss these five extraordinary pâtisseries.
Delicious and Authentic Bakeries in Paris
ABRA Pâtisserie
1 Rue des Mauvais Garçons (4th arr.)
A Bauhaus circus has come to the Marais’s already impressive pastry scene. Or at least, that’s what it feels like when you step into ABRA. Designer and pastry chef Tal Spiegel’s style is visible everywhere, from the graphic, laminated whorls atop the gianduja croissant to the pops of primary colors all over the shop. Most jaw-dropping are the trompe l’oeil (“trick-the-eye”) treats, including a popcorn- and caramel-flavored circus tent entremet and a lemon and yuzu tart that passes for a working citrus juicer.
Fou de Pâtisserie
45 Rue Montorgueil (2nd arr.)
Undoubtedly the most efficient way to sample a selection of Paris’s latest and greatest pastries is to stop by Fou de Pâtisserie on Rue Rue Montorgueil. The boutique curates a rotating, seasonal collection of entremets, tarts, macarons, and other sweets from Parisian chefs both well-known and under-the-radar. This fall, for instance, you might encounter the “Flankie” hazelnut flan-cookie hybrid from Cookies and Moons Bakery, the towering rosemary-fig tart by Jojo & Co Pâtisserie, and the vanilla Basque cheesecake by Pepite Boulangerie.
Pâtisserie Gilles Marchal
9 Rue Ravignan (18th arr.)
Famous across the Île-de-France region for its madeleines, Pâtisseries Gilles Marchal also offers perfect renditions of classic French pastries and subtly reworked twists on originals. Puffy brioche, bronzed palmiers, and powdered sugar-dusted kugelhops fill baskets on the windowsills, while the orderly pastry case sports everything from lush slices of strawberry Fraisier cake to hazelnut Paris-Brests smartly revised into éclair form for a more manageable portion.
Tartelettes
102 Rue Montmartre (2nd arr.)
In a shoebox-sized shop in the second arrondissement, Tartelettes takes the art of the French tart and then shrinks it down to a remarkably cute and delicious single-serve size. While every flavor is worth trying, the black sesame tartelette with its moody pool of onyx-colored sesame praliné and the subtly sweet vanilla-pecan — miles lighter and lovelier than any American pecan pie — are the coups de grâce.
Maison Aleph
20 Rue de la Verrerie (4th arr.) or 63 Rue des Abbesses (18th arr.)
Middle-Eastern flavors pair with French technique at Maison Aleph’s two boutiques in the Marais and Montmartre. The crunchy, fan-favorite “nids pâtisseries” (or pastry nests), are made of tightly whorled kadaif (angel hair) and then filled with creamy fillings like pistachio-orange blossom and lemon cardamom. Also worth ordering on warmer days in Paris are the ultra-creamy ice creams, which come in flavors like sheep’s milk with rose and halva chocolate.
Story by Caroline Saunders
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