France is well known for its cuisine and famous dishes like escargot (snails) and onion soup but perhaps less well-known but equally delicious are its outstanding bakeries and pastries. To give you a sense of just how important these are to the French, during the pandemic, all restaurants were closed (not even to-go orders), while bakeries remained open since they were considered "essential" under the stay at home order! Bakeries also stand out to me because, at home, we don't really have dessert places with delightful gourmet cakes on every corner like in Paris. The closest thing that I can think of to compare with back home is frozen yogurt, which does not even come close!
I have had the chance to eat so many pastries, and they are all so good and unique that it is hard to decide which I like best. I really like macarons, baguettes and eclairs, but among my absolute favorites are the fruit tarts, croissants and pain au chocolate (chocolate croissants). See some of my photos attached!
The first time that I had an authentic French croissant it was a heavenly experience. I had never tasted something so crisp and flakey, yet soft and airy. The buttery layers melted in my mouth and in that moment, I understood why the French take their pastries so seriously!
