A little paper bag filled with joy on my lap as we sat on a park bench facing the fountain in front of the Église Saint-Sulpice.
We had stopped by the Pierre Hermé shop (that I have written about on previous trips to Paris), and picked up a plain butter croissant…
…that was utterly delicious. It was perfect in almost every single way. A beautiful golden crust that was as flakey as could be, and an airy but flavorful and appropriately chewy interior. It was redolent with flavorful french butter (but oddly not greasy in any way) and if I could have one of these beauties fresh out of the oven for breakfast for the rest of my life, it would be simply amazing…
It isn’t fair to compare a croissant ordinaire from Poilâne with a croissant au beurre from Hermé, but let me just say the butter croissants are much, much better in my opinion. I would have rated this a 9.5/10.0, only because there is always room for better though I didn’t come across one on this short trip to Paris. It probably helped that this croissant seemed to be INCREDIBLY FRESH, and I am not sure how they did that as I didn’t see any ovens at Hermé (maybe in the basement?) and just assumed they were brought in from somewhere else.
Just when you thought you had had a taste of heaven, we unwrapped this utterly sublime croissant ispahan — a butter croissant filled with rose almond paste and raspberry and lychee compote. It was also topped with some sugared rose “dust” and taken in it’s entirety it was a little work of art. Wow! Totally blew our socks off, and possibly the best 2 euro we spent on the trip.
I am not fond of fillings or added flavorings to a plain croissant, but I had to change my mind with this variation of Hermé. Beautiful and delicious.
With a sugary glaze of some sort to help the rose bits adhere to the crust, this was a bit sweeter than normal, more like a dessert really.
Since we were already there, and may not get a chance to come back for more goodies, Mrs. MM also picked out two macarons with unusual flavors, one with epice de Noel (or Christmas spices) and the other, a chocolate and foie gras macaron that oddly did not impress.
I am sure there are lots of fabulous croissants all over Paris, but the ones we had at Herme were pretty darned good and the place is relatively easy to find if you are near the famous Église Saint-Sulpice. It’s also really near the original Yves Saint Laurent (YSL) Rive Gauche boutique. :)
My old post on Pierre Hermé, here.
7 Responses
I would have to agree that dessert croissants are always disappointing. Good to know that a delicious one does exist.
“if I could have one of these beauties fresh out of the oven for breakfast for the rest of my life, it would be simply amazing…”
I am not a carb addict but butter croissants turn me into one. If the front of my shirt remains devoid of shattered crust (?) then it’s not a good specimen. :)
Bring memories of my vacation in Paris where the hotel we stayed at baked its own croissants every morning. The buttery smell that wakes you is just heavenly and yes the croissants were deliciously hot as well.
MM, someone suggested a lechon croissant in one of your Christmas posts (2013, I think)… Why not give it a go with your 4-tier Cebu oven? Maybe some lechon sisig (more finely chopped?) instead of the rose almond paste… It’ll be a big hit, I bet. I sure would want a dozen or two of them. :)
Totally agree with Pierre Herme… the best, IMO, better than Laduree. Couple of years ago we stayed across PH (Hotel Bonaparte). There was always a long line everyday, anytime day/night. Finally, on our last day, braved the line and has pastry/macaron overload. Very much worth all the calories… sublime, even the packaging and shopping bag they provide are work of art (still have it, after all those years, just beautiful)!
Enjoy those while you’re there, MM. No comparison…
I had that croissant ispahan at PH last year. Nothing I have ever tasted (or seen), so flavorful and rich I wasn’t able to finish it. So not like me. But the experience was unforgettable.