Wednesday, December 22, 2010

pâtisserie Sadaharu AOKI paris (Bamboo)

Taiwan is gastronomically blessed with many things--night markets, niu rou mian, Din Tai Fung, Robuchon, and the list goes on and on...

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Among that which we are culinarily endowed with is Patisserie Sadaharu Aoki. As far as I know, this god of a pastry chef only has locations in three countries: France, Japan, and now Taiwan. I can't walk past the display case without having a serious urge to purchase one of the meticulously crafted creations. Each one has a different color scheme and flavor profile that is curious, yet intriguing. I've yet to try all of them (I'll be honest, I kind of want one of each for Christmas) but my favorite, hands down, is the Bamboo. I plan on having many of them during my two week stay in Taiwan.

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pâtisserie Sadaharu AOKI paris
Bellavita, B2
28, Song Ren Rd
tel: 02-8729-2759

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Similar to an Opéra cake, the Bamboo is the perfect fusion of French technique with Japanese flavors. With repeating layers of matcha infused joconde, chocolate ganache, and matcha buttercream, in alternating shades of green and brown, it is a thing of beauty and perfection. Not too sweet and perfectly balanced, each bite has the texture of the almond biscuit and silky creaminess of the buttercream. The slight bitterness of the matcha flavor counteracts the sweetness of the chocolate. Granted, the flavor of the chocolate is not very apparent, but I believe it's presence is still subtly felt.

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Reasons why I love the Bamboo:
1) it comes in amazingly cute packaging
2) green is pretty much my favorite color...especially when you put multiple shades together
3) matcha powder has recently become one of my favorite thing to bake with
4) look at that pristine layering! (I think Aoki and I may share similar OCD tendencies)
5) it's simply delicious

Be jealous.

5 comments:

  1. I Am Jealous. Can't stop staring at your pictures! The layering is so meticulously done!

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  2. Wow, these look amazing! We may have to pick some up to bring home when we go to Robuchon tonight!

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  3. What are the chances of you sneaking one back from Taiwan for me?!

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  4. @Gastronomer: it's a little too late for that, but I plan on attempting to make something like it in the near future. key word: attempting haha

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