Potential Gold

Lessons at Dolciarte

My friend Carmen Vecchione from Dolciarte in Avellino, Italy has opened up her pastry shoppe to small lessons.

If you find yourself in the southern town of Avellino I highly recommend a class with Carmen.  Carmen's skills in pastry arts are excellent and a couple of years ago I had the privilege of working alongside Carmen and enjoying her delicious sweets.

Download Calendario corsi settembre - ottobre 2009

You can reach Carmen for more info by e-mail: carmenvecchione 'at' yahoo 'dot' it

Le Pain Quotidien

This gem sits on the busy Ventura Blvd. just a few steps from Il Tramezzino.  With eleven franchises in the Los Angeles area and fifteen in New York, this little shop is on the move.  Although the company is large, with franchises all over the world, the feel inside is that of a well run, privately held cafe. 

On my first visit the cheese plate was disappointing but what I really loved is the coffee.  Served similar to the fashion that Cafe Fanny serves their coffee, in a bowl, the rich cream and great brew just lit up my face.  Add a touch of sweet agave nectar (instead of sugar) and I'm a happy 'yamper'. 

The Best Baguettes in Paris (2008)

The verdict is in...

The two bakeshops below scored highest in a blind tasting at the Chambre Professionnelle des Artisans Boulangers-Pâtissiers, located on Quai d’Anjou (on Île Saint-Louis), in Paris, France.  On February 12th, 143 artisans brought their freshly baked baguette to the contest.

A few were automatically rejected due to size and weight conflicts between what was allowed and what wasn't.

The winner this year, from a Tunisian background, is Anis Bouabsa, 28, who won the Grand Prix de la Meilleure Baguette de Paris 2008.

He can be found at:
Au Duc de la Chapelle

32, rue Tristan Tzara

75018 Paris

Tel: 01 40 38 18 98

In second place this year was Fabrice Pottier; another young baker who supplies Alain Passard's restaurant, L’Arpège - daily!

Porto's Bakery - Burbank

Porto's is a true phenomenon.  Upon arrival to this magical place, you get awestruck by how many people are in line and how massive of a project this really is.

How Porto's Started

It's always nice to walk into a place and watch it run, and this place sure does run like a well oiled machine.  There is plenty of staff and the long lines pass quickly - try it if you're in the area.

We often stop there on the way to the Burbank Airport (Bob Hope) as it's right on the way.

Make sure to try the Cuban influenced snacks and save room for some sweets.

Boule - Not What I Expected

I was a bit dissapointed at the following:

I (Alibi PDC) catered a party a few weeks ago and the hosts mentioned not to hold back in any circumstances...so I didn't.  I tried for the best of the best and it was all flawless until the cake from the famed Bakery in Los Angeles, Boule, went under the knife.

Please don't get me wrong, I think that Boule is an amazing store and the proprietors are really helping LA and its food scene - but a bit more love should go into the products they offer.

I special-ordered my Boule cake a week before I needed it and on Friday afternoon when I went to pick the cake up, it was still not ready and we had to wait at least 15 minutes for them to get the cake to us.  For $58.00 and a weeks notice I would expect a bit more.

I asked if pre-slicing was available and it wasn't so I knew the task would get tricky but not as tricky as it really was.

The Boule cake was delicious, again, don't get me wrong; it just looked like poop.  All the cutting tricks I had up my sleeve weren't tough enough for this super moussey cake that died and deflated as soon as the knife punctured the surface.

I guess there isn't much to say about it, just that I was dissapointed and that I hope it doesn't happen to many others out there.

Yes, I kept it in the fridge.  Yes, I used the sharp knife with hot water.  Yes, I made sure my blade was clean every new slice I went in for.  Yes, what you see is really what I served (unfortunately).  Yes, it really cost $58.00

Yes, they ate it all!