I didn't understand the love of canelés until I had one in Bordeaux where they originated. Now they…read morehold a special place in my heart next to macarons and kouign amanns! I fell in love with the amazing contrast of caramelized chewy outside and the fluffy, eggy center. Not to mention they taste like the best vanilla cake with a hint of rum. There are two main canelé producers in Bordeaux with many outlets around town - La Toque Cuivrée and Baillardran. Having tried both, I preferred La Toque Cuivrée slightly more for their stronger rum flavor and better outside chew. It's also nice that the price is a third of the other brand. Both brands make canelés in a small, medium, and large size. After many taste tests (and some more for good measure), I found that the medium size had the best ratio of outside chewy crust and soft inside. Baillardran had notable visible specks of vanilla bean in their largest size and prominent vanilla flavor, but La Toque edged them out with their superior rum taste. Either way though, you can't go wrong. Now if I only I could find this level of Canelé in the US!

This small window-store bakery on the Promenade of Saint Catherine is a great place to grab some…read moreCandelés de Bordeaux. -- Food -- This bakery has a very small selection. They mostly sell Candelés de Bordeaux with a few other pastry items on the side. The candelés were great! They are small sweet pastries with a crunchy sugary shell and a chewy center. Definitely a must try when visiting Bordeaux! We were able to get a box of 8 medium sides candelés for 4 euros. -- Service -- This is a walk-up window bakery. They do not have a public area inside or seating. They do accept credit cards and speak enough English to make a purchase without any issues. -- Location -- The bakery is located on the Promenade of Saint Catherine, near the Apple store. It is a great location for people staying near the many tourist areas or if you're shopping on St Catherine.

Excellent gelato!!! We had the praline, brownie, and dark chocolate. Oh, la, la!!! Very creamy and…read morevery decadent. Hit the spot just right.

Kept seeing line out the door and wondered if it lived up to the hype, so we finally decided to…read moretry it ourselves. I got melon and pineapple sorbets and my friend got cherry and chocolate ice cream flavors. And we were both completely floored by how good it actually was. We were a bit bummed the place had sold out of both our first choices, which had been a function of how busy the place was, but the ice cream was amazing nonetheless. Definitely worth the wait in line.

Tres tres bon!!! My gosh the ice cream was good here. The vanilla was SO potent and creamy, and…read moresince I went so basic the first trip there, I naturally had to go bolder the second and final trip (why'd I only make two?! Le regret!). Mint and chocolate chip, and creme brûlée that I'll be damned, ACTUALLY tasted like they had taken a blowtorch to the sugar. Maybe they had?! All in a delicious cone. They're situated in one of the many picturesque squares in Bordeaux - do yourself a favor and go to that charmant town, and don't skip the ice cream here.

Probably the shortest review I will ever write but two things you must know: 1) 2.50 euro for a…read morescoop! Amazing! 2) The rose flavored ice cream is where it's at. I am so distraught that the one near Gambetta shut down. It was my go-to treat on my walks home. I prefer this place a lot more than Amorino. If you're craving ice cream this is the place to go!

Fabulous chocolate shop that our tour guide Emma recommended. As soon as you enter you want…read moreeverything. We grabbed a plastic bag and went around filling it with white, milk, and dark chocolates wth pralines, nuts, fruits, and caramel. We meant to take it home with us but it didn't last too long as we went through half of it on the bus ride back to port. OOPS! We did manage to get a medium sized jar of salted caramel which we haven't tried but I assume it's going to be awesome. I got a handful of chocolate covered raisins and they blew Raisinets out of the water! Friendly service and she spoke some English. Merci Beaucoup!!! Great find in Bordeaux.

Items Selected Duos - Kouign Amann atop Gateaux Breton…read moreKouignette - Original, Almond, Cointreau, Strawberry, Pistachio, Rhum Raisin, Chocolate, Lemon, Salty Caramel Raisin Hazelnut Cookies Caramels, Chocolates, Rochers, Candies Actually visited an evening prior, the proximity to Bordeaux's most famous purveyor of chocolates difficult to resist when playing tourist in the surrounding center city, it was after an early morning run around Pessac that goods from Maison Georges Larnicol were tasted, the high quality of the goods as prominent to taste as the store was glorious to browse. Known predominantly for their chocolates, the house established in several French cities fabricating everything it sells on site, Georges Larnicol shines as a gleaming jewelry box next to the Grand Hotel de Bordeaux and with caramels, truffles, and confections in any number of shapes and sizes the phrase "kid in a candy store" barely summarizes the look on faces of those passing by, let alone those choosing to stop in. Well stocked with servers friendly and fluent in languages ranging at least English, French, Spanish, and Japanese selections at Maison Larnicol run the gamut from baked goods to bon-bons, most items paid in weight and although not inexpensive, price appropriate to ingredients and execution. Suggested to be rewarmed, the instructions on the box easily followed thanks to my host from Airbnb, the tour of Georges Larnicol began with his signature Kouignettes, a one-of-each flavor sampling showing a substantial amount of butter as well as sweetness ooze forth with each bite, the original and pistachio truly outstandng while the fruited versions trended a bit soggy, tasty but lacking a crisp top, Generally not taken by chocolates, though the espresso and salted caramels as well as the candy shellacked eggs were memorable bites, the cookies at Larnicol are of the crisp variety and electing for a stack of "Torchette Nature" the flavor of raisins and hazelnuts were extremely prominent, as too was the amount of sugar in each bite. Tempted by Gateau Breton and Macarons in varying hues, it was eventually in an item noted simply as "Duos" that the €26.45 order would end, and featuring layers of Kouign Amann atop a custard layer of the soft cake from Brittany a "best of both worlds" experience was presented, the tray easily big enough to serve a small family...or one happy traveler slowly picking at it throughout the day.

I was initially skeptical since they're a chain, and I had a bad experience with Baillardran, but a…read morelocal friend taught me to ask for a more toasted canele since I like the ones with more of a crust, and it was a brilliant idea. Their caneles are actually the cheapest, at only 70 cents for the regular size. It had good rum flavor and wasn't too sweet. It was a bit dense inside but had a great crust outside. They take credit cards for bigger orders, but I think they prefer cash. Tip: definitely ask for the more toasted ones for better texture.

This place has great chocolate and vanilla choux. We didn't try anything else- but we also didn't…read moreneed to.

The closest boulangerie to my place! I had to check it out ;)…read moreThey have everything you may need: baguettes, bread in general, pastries, etc It's fresh and in the usual price range! You can also buy and enjoy their products on the terrace, which can be cool if there are no cars in the street! The service is ok too :)

Wowsers. There's no…read moreshortage of tourist-oriented gelatarias in Europe, always in your peripheral vision when strolling busy thoroughfares. This is not one of those places. Just along from Le Petit Commerce and opposite L'Alchimiste Ginetaria, this place looks like the rest but tucked in amongst popular-with-locals restaurants and bars, the menu is something special. Pastis flavour sorbet? Yes, and damn it was good, just like something you'd sip on a warm afternoon sitting in a streetside French cafe. Following a theme, I spotted what looked like 'fennel' in French. Fennel seed gelato. A knockout: herbaceous, anise and zesty. Pistachio is my yardstick when it comes to gelato. This was a winner, all nutty and subtly sweet, with none of the crazy green colouring that features in lesser versions.

We stumbled upon Perrin while exploring Bordeaux and decided to stop inside for some high-end…read morepastries. It was absolutely fantastic! I ordered the lemon tart and my boyfriend ordered the chocolate eclair. We were both blown away by how good both choices were! The tart was the perfect balance of sweet and tart, just small enough to eat on-the-go while we continued our walk. The eclair was very tasty as well. They paid a lot of attention to detail in making the filling, rather than just blasting it with as much sugar as possible like many bakeries do. We actually ended up coming back here the next morning to get a box of snacks for our train ride to Arcachon. We snagged a delicious strawberry pastry, a rocher, another eclair, and a chocolate cake-like pastry. The strawberry pastry was much milder than the other deserts and a great way to start the day. The rocher was a very rich chocolate moose encased in a hard chocolate shell mixed with nuts, and topped with a gold flake. Note, I only tried the sweet deserts. There was a large selection of artisan baked goods, ranging from eclairs to gold-foiled tarts. They also had a large selection of cookies, gift bags, cakes, breads, scones, sandwiches, and cheaper breakfast snacks. This is a must-try in Bordeaux.

This place has lots of beautiful desserts and cakes, but on one side they also have your routine…read morebreads. We went for a Parisian baguette, which had a great crust on it. The baguette is best consumed within a few hours of getting it. It wasn't very salted, so it's best with some salted butter or cheese / charcuterie.

From the owner: Pâtisserie, chocolaterie, boulangerie, traiteur et salon de théread more

Trop trop bon !! Passion et cookie pécan vraiment gros banger. Merci encore à Lucas et Nathan (on…read moreespère que c'est les bons prénoms lol) pour l'accueil 5 étoile du mardi :)

Oh mon dieu. This ice cream was incroyable. After inspecting all of the original and…read moredelicious-looking flavors, I grabbed lime and basil, as well as date and orange blossom. My man called the date and orange blossom the best ice cream he'd ever had in his life, and he has a point. It is DAMN GOOD. Like "watch out berthillon/humphrey slocombe/bi-rite" good. I would go so far to call this a must for any visit to Bordeaux, and I can't wait for an excuse to go back.