Items Selected:
Pomme de Pepin…read moreCoffee Éclair
Paris Brest
Guglhupf
Raspberry Financier
Verrine
Apricot, Salted Caramel, Pistachio. Strawberry Macaron
Located directly in the shadow of my hotel, but not opening until 9am and thus preventing a visit on days when other boulangeries beckoned as early as 6h30, it was late evening on 1 July that I entered the brightly lit space, and greeted by a young lady whose limited English complimented my primitive French a 10-part order was pieced together and carefully boxed, the goods intended as breakfast and 'road food' the following morning en route to Laguiole and lunch at Le Suquet par Michel et Sebastian Bras.
Owned by Nicholas Pepin, a native of the Loire, and originally starting in the 7eme with subsequent expansion to the Confluence district, Patisserie Pepin is perhaps the most Parisian shop of its kind in all of Lyon and with several cakes, entremets, gourmandises, and petit fours alongside a full selection of chocolates the most difficult aspect of a visit is largely that of limiting ones order, my late arrival not even seeing a selection of breakfast breads and viennoiserie that I'm also told fare quite well.
Being sure to refrigerate the bulk of the items in order to best assure freshness for the 4-hour drive following a morning trip to the gym it was with the sugary guglhupf that a tasting began and studded with golden raisins with texture that remained a buttery wisp despite its age the flavors a good first impression was made, the follow-up "pomme de pepin" an equally pleasing bite with aromatic apple cream and a cakelike center resting atop the cinnamon-rich base.
Allowing macarons enough time to warm, and slowly progressing through flavors that saw bold jams highlight both Apricot and Strawberry iterations before moving on to pistachio and intensely salted caramel selections that unfortunately seemed to have suffered a bit of sog in storage, it was next from a delicate raspberry verrine that spoonfuls were enjoyed, the juxtaposition of chocolate chunks, cream, whole berries, jam, and granola equaling something far better than the simple sum of its parts while le financier de framboise was equally well prepared, a substantial bit of butter enriching every toothsome bite.
Intentionally attempting to save the best for last, and hoping that choux had not suffered despite a full night in the fridge, suffice it to say that any skepticism was set aside after the first bite of an éclair loaded with espresso imbued cream, the atypically shaped Brest featuring a similar crisp break before giving way to the smooth flavor of pralines with just enough added sugar to see the sweetness balance the nuts.
