La Duree's rose macaroons--my favourite flavour! 
On Wednesday the 14th my mom and I spent the day shopping for hostess gifts at Printemps and Galleries Lafayette. We were leaving for Rennes the next day to visit some wonderful friends my mom had made on her last trip. In the end, we came back with some AMAZING macaroons from La Duree. They made a great hostess gift--I think Monique was rather pleased, and I think everyone enjoyed eating the cookies!
I have to say that in spite of the jaw dropping cost of La Duree's desserts, they are definitely worth it. Each one is a little work of art! While we were there, we couldn't resist having some tea and cookies! I sampled their celebrated macaroons, while my mom had a spectacular confection--the Ipsahan--created by taking a rose macaroon, filling the center with rose cream and lychees, and decorating the entire thing with fresh raberries. Both were delicious (she graciously let me sample hers!). Mom's dessert was crowned with a fresh rose petal.
For tea I had "Marie Antoinette" tea (of course) and a sampler of four of their mini macaroons--violet cassis, pistachio, lemon and cherry. Each and ever one was a dream, but my favourite was the violet. After all, how often do you get to eat a violet-flavoured desserts? And it was not just interesting, it tasted spectacular and not at all weird. My other favourite was the rose, which my mom had (again, extremely tasty and strangely unstrange). The French seem to love not only having their flowers, but eating them, too--and they have certainly perfected the art!
This picture of us was taken at the La Duree Tea Room at Printemps by our extremely congenial waiter. It's a little blurry, but I'm glad to have it, since you aren't supposed to take pictures at La Duree!(I'm not sure why). 
Afterwards we got stuck in a torrential downpour at a charming little cafe. Here you can see the Parisians dashing about madly in an attempt to escape the rain! I was really impressed at how many of them had umbrellas--it has been extremely hot for days and the rain came from nowhere. Parisians are well-prepared for whatever comes their way!
After we got back from Rennes, I decided to get my husband a box of macroons. They seemed like the perfect gift. I wasn't completely sure whether he would really appreciate them or not (after all, he's not a girl and I've never heard a guy gushing about La Duree). We sampled several of the macaroons on thursday and he LOVED them! (Of course, who wouldn't?).
Photo of rose macaroons courtesy of La Duree.
This post has been featured in Heather on Her Travels' Carnival of Europe.
Saturday, May 24, 2008
Shopping in Paris at La Duree
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4 comments:
I was tempted, on the basis of your recent posts, to apply for a summer teaching gig in Paris. I chickened out for health reasons, but maybe next year . . . At any rate, one thing I really admire about the French is their willingness to pay for good food. I think we're beginning to awaken to the fact that one gets what one pays for, and quality should cost more than junk, but it'll take a considerable effort to purge the American belief that we're entitled to low-cost food just because we're who we are. Morris had trouble convincing people that high-quality design had to cost more than cheap and nasty stuff. Those of us who think that we should pay more for what we truly value (and reward the people who work hard to produce it and make it available to us) are having an equally tough time of it in this century.
And now I have macaroon envy on top of it all!
Thank you for visiting my blog. You can learn to knit if you want to. See if there is a yarn shop in your area, and someone there will probably be willing to give you lessons. If you don't have a yarn shop there are plenty of videos at www.knittinghelp.com.
You have a very nice blog as well. I've enjoyed looking around over here.
Hi Margaret,
Geez, girl, how did you make it through all those wonderful desserts at La Duree? Those rose macaroons would not have lasted around here for very long at all! I've been enjoying your Paris adventure ~ it's been great for me to take a virtual trip with you!! :) Loved visiting the Cluny Museum especially!
Hugs, Bebe :)
Oh my!! Those luscious goodies have my mouth watering! What a fun trip. I'll keep an eye out for an amazing umbrella stand for you. You never know what you can find on ebay!
xx Nancy
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