Laduree New York!

Laduree Rue Royal Paris

Ooh, la, la!

Pop open the French bubbly...

it's finally official:

Laduree New York's Grand Opening is next Friday

August 26th at 1:00 PM. 

Wish I could be there!

Laduree New York

Laduree

864 Madison Avenue

New York, New York  10021

Hours

Monday to Friday 9:00AM to 6:00PM

Saturday 9:30AM to 6:00PM

Sunday Closed

Bienvenue Laduree to the Etats-Unis!

Let me know if you get to Laduree New York before I do! 

(Laduree New York Sketch from the Laduree Web Site)

Bienvenue Laduree!

 Laduree 

21 rue Bonaparte

It's no secret...

Laduree is my favorite Paris Patisserie

and

French Tea Salon!

Laduree at Harrods

Did you know,

you don't have to travel to Paris to have the Laduree experience? Today Laduree has locations all over the world including three locations in London.  

On our recent holiday in London we had to "pop" into Harrods just to see the Laduree at Harrods.  Of course, we had to try some macarons to compare them to their Parisian counterparts.   

I was curious if the macarons for the London branch were made in London or shipped in daily from Paris.  I politely asked the Laduree clerk and found out that they are made locally in London.  They tasted the same but for some reason, my husband and I agreed...

macarons are just more magical in Paris!

Laduree is a smashing success in London and they will soon be opening even another branch in trendy Convent Garden.

Laduree

Champs Elysess

Americans adore Laduree so wouldn't it be grand if Laduree would open

here in the States?

Well it's finally coming true..

Laduree is opening this July in New York City. 

Several years ago there was a rumor about a New York City branch opening, but it never happened.  This time it's really happening and America will soon have it's own Laduree branch at 864 Madison Avenue! 

I can only hope (and keep my fingers crossed) that Laduree will eventually expand to other fashionable cities in America, like San Francisco.  For now, New York City sounds a little closer than Paris for a macaron fix!

les Macarons

Bienvenue Laduree to the Etats-Unis!

(Welcome Laduree to the United States!)

Taking Tea at Laduree

Tea at Laduree

I can finally check having tea at Laduree off my Paris list!

Finally on our 5th tip to Paris my dream of having tea at Laduree came true.

All I can say is...

it was worth the wait
and

"merci" to my wonderful husband for being my Laduree date. 

16 Rue Royal

There are a number of fashionable locations for dining at Laduree in Paris.  I selected the Laduree Tea Salon at 16 Rue Royal.  It's one of my favorite Laduree locations on the elegant Right Bank.  It's also the original Laduree location which Louis Ernest Laduree created in 1862 as a bakery. 

On our first day in Paris, our first stop was 16 Rue Royal to make reservations for lunch the following day. 

The Tea Salon

After a fabulous first day in Paris it was time to enjoy Laduree on day two. 

Stepping into the Laduree tea salon was like stepping into another era.

Being a decorator, I was in awe of its beautiful hand painted cherub fresco ceiling and wood panels throughout.  Laduree's soft pastel trademark colors are apparent everywhere you look..even on the china. 

 Saint- Honore

Our reservation at Laduree was for 1:00 PM. 

My husband and I shared a delicious crab sandwich from the lunch menu followed by luscious Laduree desserts and tea.

From the les The`s Laduree menu, I selected The Melange Special Laduree tea.  It is a delicate blend of citrus fruit, rose, vanilla and cinnamon.   It was served in a silver tea pot, of course! 

For our French treats we shared a Tarte Citron, Laduree's signature Rose Raspberry Saint-Honore and a few Macaroons. 

Laduree's Saint-Honore pastry was the most wonderful and beautiful dessert my husband and I have ever had!  Just imagine cream puffs, framboise (raspberry) and rose all executed in a breathtakingly beautiful pastry with a rose petal on top. 

 Table #16

Our Laduree experience was perfect in every way. 

We were seated by a friendly monsieur at table #16 with a wonderful view of the salon.  

I'm calling Table #16 now our special table at Laduree.

We were married on May 16, 2001 and honeymooned in Paris.  We were now in Paris 10 years later celebrating our 10th wedding anniversary and were seated at table #16 at 16 Rue Royale!

The next time we're in Paris...
I'll be asking for table #16 when I make our reservations!                 

les Macaroons

Laduree is truly a very special place in the world

and
I'm so happy my dream of having tea at Laduree came true!

Now I dream of going back to Laduree and...

 table #16.

Tea Dream Comes True!

Afternoon Tea at Laduree

My dream to have afternoon tea at Laduree in Paris came true last week! 

I loved having afternoon tea at Laduree's Royale Tea Salon.  It was the most elegant experience of my entire holiday and I loved dining with all the fashionable French people!

I'm still too jet lagged to do a proper write-up on this elegant experience. 

Do stay tuned though...

 for pretty photographs and my story of having tea at Ladureee coming soon!

PS:  There are two new summer macaron flavors just introduced that I was able to try in Paris:

Strawberry Mint and Melon. 

They were lovely but my favorites are still Chocolat and Citron (Lemon). 

Au revoir for now.

The Laduree Dream

 Marie Antoinette Tea
(All the way from Paris!)

I'll be in Paris in a few weeks...

and it is my dream
to have afternoon tea at Laduree.

 Macaroons
(All the way from Paris)

Laduree is always one of our very first stops in Paris.  My husband and I just adore their French macaroons and their beautiful shops certainly let you know, that you have arrived in Paris! 

Through the years, I've sneaked a peak at various Laduree restaurants and tea salons around  Paris but I have never had tea at one. I'm hoping that this trip to Paris makes my dream of having tea at Laduree come true!

Laduree Treats

I've already had a taste of how wonderful Laduree's afternoon tea is going to be.  My dear friend's daughter who lives in Paris brought me Laduree's Marie Antoinette The` (tea) and macaroons when she came to California last year to visit her mom. 

I have felt quite spoiled at home drinking my Marie Antoinette tea. Just as you would imagine, this black tea has rose floral notes and comes in a pretty pink canister.  Marie Antoinette most definitely would approve!

Now let's just hope I can get a table for two
and have my Laduree dream come true....


Be sure to watch this beautiful clip from Laduree's web site called
 The Laduree Dream. 

It will have you dreaming of Laduree,too!

Laduree's Sucre

Laduree's Sucre

Sucre is a sweet "little gem" of a book. 

It's from my favorite Parisian Patisseire Laduree. 

I have a sweet spot for anything Laduree.  Laduree is always one of my first stops whenever I visit Paris. 

Sucre is a book to treasure.  It comes presented in a Laduree trademark pastel green box wrapped inside lavender tissue paper. The book's covering is a soft pastel green velvet with gilded pages. Oui, it's quite regal! 

Sucre is like a present when you open it for the first time.

My book was a present to myself for my birthday last month.  I found my copy at the charming San Francisco boutique, Nest.  You may be able to find it online or you may just have to hop a flight to Paris and pick one up!

Sucre

Sucre in French translates to sugar in English. 

Sucre features 100 sweet recipes from Laduree Pastry Chef, Phillipe Andrieu.  The book was originally only available in French.  Merci Laduree for making it available in English!

Bilingual food and travel writer, Kerrin Rousset translated the book to English.  I wonder how long that actually took her?  You can read more about it on her blog. 

Sucre is filled with perfect photographs so sweetly styled.  They will certainly make you crave Laduree's  sweet pastries.  I'm not sure if I will actually ever try to "whip" up any of it's recipes.  In my opinion...the book is perfect "eye candy" just sitting on my cocktail table!

So here's a petite peak inside Sucre for you:

Pyramid of Macaroons

The book begins with the story of Laduree. 

In 1862 Louis Ernest Laduree opened his bakery in the heart of Paris at 16 rue Royal. 

You can still visit this original location today as well as other locations in Paris.  The first French macaron I ever had was at the Laduree salon on the Champs Elysees.  It was love at first bite!

Macaron Amande

(Almond Macaron)

What would a Laduree book be without their world famous macarons? 

 Luckily for us, the first section in the book is Les Macarons.   There are recipes for:  Macarons Amande, Chocolat, Citron and Framboise.  The latter three just so happen to be a few of my husband and my favorite flavors!

Cake au Citon

(Lemon Cake)

Laduree's Cake au Citron looks like a perfect tea cake to me! 

It features a lemon cake batter with a lemon syrup and lemon glaze over it.  I think this would be lovely to pair at tea time with Laduree's Earl Grey tea. 

Financiers

I think Financiers are perfectly suited for a cup of tea!

I've made Financiers before.  They are similar to Madeleines.

These little tea cakes are called financiers because their traditional rectangular bar shape resemble little bars of gold!  Sur La Table now carries (online only) a mini financier mold made in France. 

So Treat Yourself!

This book makes a lovely present to yourself and anyone who loves:

 Laduree, Tea Time, Baking and French Sweet Treats. 

 I hope you treat yourself to Sucre!

Laduree Macaroon Mangue Jasmin

Macaroon Mangue Jasmin

(Macaroon Mango Jasmin)

By now you know how much I love French macaroons. The best ones are at Laduree in Paris. Each new season, Laduree introduces a new macaroon flavour. For Autumn they have just introduced Macaroon Mangue Jasmin (Macaroon Mango Jasmin).

Ooh, la, la. Don't they sound exotic? What a wonderful macaroon treat for Autumn. Oh, how I would love to try this seasonal flavor and be in Paris in Autumn!

Laduree Designers Guild Boxes

Designers Guild Box for Laduree

There's a saying: "good things come in small packages". I agree!

I adore these pretty boxes from my favorite Parisian patisserie, Laduree!

Tricia Guild recently teamed up with Laduree and designed three boxes for their spring and summer macaroon flavors. The pretty pastel boxes are Rococo inspired with flowers and wreaths just like Designers Guild wallpaper patterns. They are available for a limited time at Laduree locations throughout Paris and at Laduree at Harrods in London.

A pretty Aqua Laduree box filled with lemon, praline,

rose petal and violette macaroons.

A lovely lilac box filled with the most famous treat in Paris!

If you happen to be going to Paris or London soon...would you mind picking me up all three?

l' exposition Marie-Antoinette

Marie-Antoinette 1755-1793

Queen of France

I miss Paris! Since I can't hop on a plane to Paris this year, I do my Paris exploring and shopping not on foot but on the Internet.

The other night I was looking at my favorite French patisserie site Laduree http://www.laduree.fr/ . I always like to see what flavors are new and what French delights I am missing out on. I believe, they make the best macaroons in Paris.

Oui, of course, there will a future post about Laduree!

Their web site is filled with beautiful photographs. Currently there is a photo of a green (trademark Laduree color) French coach filled with scrumptious macaroons and patisseries. The title says it is for the l'exposition Marie-Antoinette. (Laduree made all of the cakes and patisseries for the 2006 movie Marie-Antoinette by Sofia Coppola). Since the description was in French, I had to do some further research. Oui, Paris is paying tribute right now to Marie-Antoinette with an incredible exhibit.

The exhibit is at the Galeries Nationales du Grand Palais. If you are lucky enough to be going to Paris soon, it runs thru June 30, 2008. The exhibit brings together 300 works of art, furnishings and documents from all over the world. (Sadly many of her possessions were scattered during the French revolution). This is a pretty big event. The last French tribute of this magnitude was the Marie-Antoinette exhibit at Versailles back in 1955.

The last time we were in Paris...we saw Marie-Antoinette all over town. Movie posters where everywhere promoting Sofia Coppola's 2006 movie Marie-Antoinette. Since there was such a buzz about Marie-Antoinette all over France, it was the perfect time to go explore Versailles and see how the French royals lived.

Entrance to the Chateau Versailles

I had heard mixed reviews about giving up a day in your Paris vacation to go to Versailles. I am so glad that we did. Being an Interior Designer, I loved seeing the opulence and the decor at Versailles. It was truly fit for Kings and Queens.

Marie-Antoinette a' la rose by Madame Vigee-Lebrun,

her favorite court painter.

It is her most famous portrait.

Marie-Antoinette was not born French. She was the Austrian born Queen of Louis XVI. In 1774 when her husband became King, he gave her the Petite Trianon from his grandfather's estate. It was a small chateau on the ground of Versailles. It was her private retreat away from court life.

Petite Trianon

She had exquisite personal taste. She was given free rein to renovate her Petite Trianon. She commissioned new English style gardens for the grounds. She commissioned beautiful furnishings and was known as a patron of the arts.

She was such a natural French style maker and trendsetter. She was known to be a very lavish spender. She had the nickname of "Madame Deficit". No wonder I love her decorating!

She is undoubtedly France's most notorious Queen. In 1793, sadly her life ends by guillotine at the height of the French Revolution. Her crime is treason. She undoubtedly lives on to due to our fascination with her and her fabulous good taste.

So if you can't get to Paris to see her exhibit, here is a glimpse into her world at Petite Trianon at Versailles:

Sitting Room

Gilded furniture in the neoclassical mode. I just love the Aubusson rug!

La Chambre

Queen Marie-Antoinette's bedroom. Trelliswork furniture by G. Jacob made for this room in 1787. Still upholstered with it's original embroidered cotton damask (the original bed has vanished).

La Boudoir

Her boudoir was called the room of moving mirrors. The mirrors where mobile and could be placed in front of the windows to shut out the light.

I just love her decorating style. French is, after all, my favorite furniture style of choice!