Vendome Patisserie macarons...

"The only one to rival Laduree - NY Times"...and I'd say it's pretty close. Other than Kee's, I'd say this is one of my faves in the city. Laduree can be a little too sweet for me, and Kee's is the only one with 'weird' flavors like Vendome Patisserie has--I def dig the campari macaron! Julia got a bunch but I nibbled on some for research purposes...heheehehehehehe.

If I remember correctly, they're only open on the weekends (near Rucola, on 104 Bond St. in Boerum Hill)...


I can't remember all the flavors but there was your usual pistachio, jasmine, etc...

But also champagne cocktail, peanut butter, and of course...CAMPARI!! :) Mixed with what I read as "pample mousse" from my way over exposed photo :) Super friendly peeps, I like.

And...here's an obligatory shot w/ a half eaten macaron :)...

Kee's Macaroons!!...

Went to pick up Angie's bday chocolates last wk--and then...got carried away with macaroons and bought one of each :P

There were only 11 there that day...

That smashed one is i think passion fruit. The green tea jasmine one was a nice touch b/c of the jasmine--green tea is a little overplayed to me in pastries (but i still likes mah goodies!). Rosewater lychee one was subdued and the lychee added to the general flavor. The Madeleine macaroon with rosewater was so overpowering (and ugly blemished macaron top part!) that it really reminded me of eating soap or those...skin toners :(

lavender was just plain pretty photograph :)

^_^ weeee!!! My favorite so far--TRUFFLE OIL macaroons!! strange right?? It hits u as an after-taste the way the thai chili chocolates gets you. I'm not big on truffle oil in my pastas and this def was...an oddball choice but YUMMAAAAAAAY!

Sour sap--the orange one--very tasty! a little tart, can't quite place it. Not a citrus flavor. I wanna say in the same family as...tamarind-y kind of tart/sour.

Verbana mint was all right (that's the speckled looking one next to the blood orange stripes. I've been spoiled by Parisian macaroons and whatnot :P Blood orange was pretty nice but...eh. Kaffir lime--I thought it'd be kitschy as too much like lime candy or key lime pie, but nope! still very restrained :)

Bottom line? Quite pretty, very flavorful with lots of interesting combos that add an edge what macaroons tend to be. I wish the chocolate lining wasn't so "chewy" but I'm assigning that to the temperature it was stored. Kee's gave me one to try @ the store b/c I was pretty much fawning over the wares :P (and mentioned the blog hehe and my inability to ...well...not buy everything all at once for the sole purpose of photographing them and not to indulge in some phantom sugar glutton :P). She's really nice!

Like the chocolates, the ingredients come across really well articulated on ur palate but of course restrained, very enjoyable and...gleeful! :) It's been such a long time since I've had my Sadaharu Aoki macarons, but this tides me over a bit. I do wish the cookie part of the macaroon was a little more substantial. I know they're always really airy and light--but it felt like there was...no cakey part to be airy, just a really good crust and then some bits of the cookie on the bottom. Can't complain though, they were all refreshing ^_^

preview of Kee's chocolates...

OMFG.
got an xmas gift: box of Kee's chocolates...ended up ordering a box of 12 to bring back to CA for the holidays--this is just a light smattering of...the silkiest, delicate/ephemeral, intoxicatingly complex flavored, hand rolled chocolates you'll find anywhere. Godiva/Lindt/et al. be damned! *shakes fist!*

not gonna tell you what these are just yet--or what I ordered...but with flavors like yuzu, kaffir lime, lemon basil, honey saffron, creme brulee, fennel, smoked salt, thai chili, cognac, elderflower, pistachio, black sesame, different teas, honey kumquat....i just realized that's A LOT of the menu I gave away :P

but she makes macaroons too!! So much for "preview"...

WELL...you'll just have to wait for the pictures of them half bitten! :)

NYC macaroons @ Madeleine's...

Madeleine Patisserie (no website yet) on W. 23rd st b/w 7th & 6th ave has a pretty badass selection of macaroon flavors (Margarita anyone? White Russian?...lots of other ish i don't remember =/. I did eat the ones mentioned by name in this entry, but in the summer Michael also got some Blueberry, Lemon, and Coffee which is just meh!)
My faves so far are the Rose, Coconut Cassis, Porto White Chocolate, and Blood Orange (so clean & not to mention i LOVE blood orange--apparently the ones imported are more bitter than the ones they use in Europe. When I was in Florence they always garnished my mixed drinksies with a blood orange slice instead of our usual bland orange crap!).
Service is a little um...interesting, but I suppose depends on who's there. My roommate got coffee there--it's a cute litle place on garden level so adds a little more to it. Cute, doesn't try to do too much...it knows it's not in Paris so why bother mimicking :) ^_^ Will be back again to post more. Here's Julia holding up her half eaten ishes!
Don't they just look so delicate and moist?! ^_^ Ahhh le sigh. (see post below for more macaroon love)

Sadaharu Aoki Macarons!!!...<3<3<3...

...the time has come...for my SADAHARU AOKI/macarons post!!! Now, according to my notes these are the flavors: pistacchio, caramel salé, violette, chocolat, fraise, framboise, pêche canalle (beats me but sounds like fish!), sesame noir, chocolat umé (prune salée), macha...there were tons, bite me if i didn't get it all!!

*golf clap*, *scattered golf clap*, *bowing and waving of the hand feverishly*. *ahem*.
So somebody on Flickr has pretty badass pics of the macarons big & small, with fresh fruis and alll!! ^_^ I nicked these next two off of Canon S3 IS in France's flickr b/c the shots were taken in the Jardin du Luxembourg (about a 3-5 min walk from Rue de Vaugirard where the St-Germain-des-Prés outpost for Sadaharu Aoki is...)

Anyhoodlekins, one notable thing is how DELICATE the shells were...AND SMOOTH! ^_^, and it was sweet and punchy but not saccharine and underwhelming as much as the rest of Paris and London was. :P

AND THEN THERE WERE GIANT MACARONS!! ^_^ my GOD it was glorious...I didn't eat it. I actually had another pastry upon recommendation, complete with a little Macha Green Tea macaron clinging on to the ample, singular, bosom of the lovely Macha Duomo via swirl of red bean paste. Dramatic? Yes. Glorious? YES. MY GOD..........yes.
(*whispers*: i love you. sweet, sweet dome and cancer looking/budding protrusion ^_^) I also had the house tea (aweeesoem). Here are pics of other ish I got--financiers (cakey things). What I didn't get were my own pics of the macarons (melted upon flight back to Oxford) AND the 2 citron tea cake, and earl gray cake :( I *had* to eat it b/c I had a week and a half of work @ Oxford before flying back to ny OH the BURDEN of eating it all so it wouldn't perish ^_^
I don't particularly care to post any other pictures of Sadaharu Aoki. just go to the site. oh the PICTURES. okay maybe one (or two) more... citrus/macadamia duomo and some bon bons! ^_^
Oh who am i kidding--here's some more! little sampler plates :P (last 4 pics courtesy of the sadaharuaoki site)