macaron

Macaron Day in NYC

~ Jill ~ 1 Comment

Today was Macaron Day in NYC.  Participating shops handed out the delicious treats….free!  Anita and I picked up where we left off last year and made it to 2 spots near the office.  The good old Macaron Cafe was first.

The next spot was an odd location:  499 Park Avenue.  From the outside, it just looks like a glass store.  Oh, but I saw the macaroon tree from the outside.  And in the back was Mad Mac macarons.  Florian was more than happy to pose for pictures.

Now, some ladies took this event very seriously.  They had their punch cards and maps in hand, clearly trying to make it around the city to all of the participating shops.  Next year…

Related articles
Enhanced by Zemanta

Lauduree: Success!

~ Jill ~ Leave a comment

We attempted to purchase macaroons from Lauduree back in September.  The line was just too long, I wasn’t willing to wait half an hour for a macaroon.  Anita and I tried again, but were thwarted by rain so went nearby to Macaroon Cafe, right around the corner from the office.

Finally, it was time to try Lauduree again.  No line outside the story and only a short line inside.  Success!

They don’t like pictures inside, but if they don’t see you, it’s okay.  Since I was here, I had to get four:  Cassis, Black Forest, Pistachio and Cinnamon Raisin.  I ate the Black Forest on the spot.  Flavors were delicious, but it didn’t have the crunch that some of the others have.

I brought three home to try with M.  They barely made the trip in the little paper bag.  As you can see, there was some mingling of crumbs.  I think the pistachio flavor is a good test of a macaroon, you can really do a good comparison that way.  And this one was delicious.  At $2.70 each, it’s a bit of an indulgence.  Though I watched someone get 4 boxes and well over $100 on them.  If you go that route, they are very well packaged.

The tasting isn’t done.  We still have Maison du Chocolat nearby, then we’ll have to go further from the office to hit Francois Payard and bisous.ciao.

Maison Lauduree:  864 Madison Avenue (@ 71st Street)

Even Better: Lunch Followed By Macarons

~ Jill ~ 1 Comment
Last Friday I caught up with and old friend from a past employer (who brings good things to life). I was coming from work, he was coming from an errand, and we happened up the Macaron Cafe somewhere in the middle. It’s a cute little spot on Madison and 59th Street. Totally delightful. They have a choice of sandwiches and you can grab an open table in the back. We both took the daily special (a great tuna with avocado on wheat bread, I’d go back!).

And then followed it up with a 6-pack of macarons. I’d have to say that my favorites were the almond and pistachio. The rose-lavendar was good in concept but not in reality. Bouchon might still be my favorite, so will have to keep on trying!
Macaron Cafe: http://macaroncafe.com/