New York City! (part 3)

When it comes to places to try, I always trust KK. So when I decided to head to the Big Apple I asked for her suggestions of where to stop. She equipped me with an index card scribbled with bakeries and cafes. It gave me the structure I lacked for a day in the city.

I showed my card to LM after brunch and she conveniently knew which stops were in walking distance. She marched us right over to soho, making a recommendation or two of her own along the way. In all my trips to NYC I have never spent much time in this neighborhood.

LM's addition was Ceci-Cela, a tiny hallway of a bakery that had a little room off the back for sitting. Stuffed in this narrow rectangle was a case brimming with rows and rows and columns and rows of colorful, cheerful macrons (stay tuned for more on this subject). In baskets and on trays were many other very French pastries and out of drawers poked serve yourself take-away savory pastries. Oh, I just adore macrons and these were true to their form!

We then went to Balthazar, a grand looking restaurant with a tiny and elegant bakery next door. LM swears by their chocolate bread. I ordered an almond croissant, a petit fore, a madeleine, and an éclair. Later in the afternoon I discovered the croissant was flaky; the petit fore with a marzipan bottom had a moist, perfectly square cake and dare I say it, supple fondant; the madeline was not too sweet and not too soft, the éclair disappointed me, but that is mostly because I had expected vanilla pastry cream pouring out but instead it was a wilting chocolate cream.

With two bags of treats in my hands, LM pointed us towards Once Upon A Tart, and said good-bye. Hot and tired, IAM and I decided to sit down at this next stop. A nice shoppe, with nice food, but something was missing. We refreshed ourselves but were not as taken by the atmosphere or the food. We nibbled, drank our iced beverages and went back into the stuffed streets of the city. Discovering the edge of a park, we stepped over a fence, reclined on the grass and laid out our spread of sugar, flour and butter from the bakery crawl.

Sunshine and treats…need I say more…

Perfectly content, we hopped on the subway. We had a live radio broadcast to see, after all!