Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
(
Brussels (14km/9 miles).
(rue Marché aux Herbes/Grasmarkt 67;
&
32/2/513 78 92
), a crowded, busy shop
that sells a variety of pralines by top choco-
late makers from all over this chocolate-
loving country.
L
$$$
Le Dixseptième,
rue de la
Madeleine/Magdalenastraat 25 (
&
32/2/
502-57-44;
www.ledixseptieme.be). $$
Mozart,
rue du Marché-aux-Fromages 23
(
&
32/2/502-66-61;
www.hotel-mozart.be).
Chocolate World
466
A Chocolate Tour de Paris
Les Chocolats Supremes
Paris, France
The French take chocolate
seriously
. True,
the French take all culinary matters seri-
ously, but over the past few years Paris
has seen a sweeping resurgence in the art
of chocolate-making, led by a posse of
master chocolatiers who've won rock-star-
level celebrity. Using only the most refined
ingredients, these
artistes du chocolat
turn out confections too exquisite to be
gobbled heedlessly.
The name most aficionados breathe
first is
Christian Constant
(37 rue d'Assas,
6e;
&
33/1/53 63 15 15
), who has been
selling his delectable chocolates since
1970. It's the quality of his ingredients that
draws fans to this swanky shop near the
Luxembourg Gardens—velvety chocolate
scented with exotic flowers or herbs, or
whipped into delicacies such as raspberry
ganache,
aiguillettes
of Sicilian mandarins,
or toothsome truffles. While you're here,
head up the street to
John-Charles
Rochoux
(16 rue d'Assas, 6e;
&
33/1/42
84 29 45
), where luscious chocolate is
crafted into amazingly intricate edible
sculptures. (If the art seems too precious
to eat, don't fret—you'll also find satiny
chocolate squares and hand-dipped con-
fections here.)
Superstar chocolatier Robert Linxe
came along in 1977 to open
La Maison
du Chocolat
(225 rue du Faubourg St.
Honoré, 8e;
&
33/1/42 27 39 44
) in Paris's
toniest shopping area. Renowned for his
silky ganaches and a particularly sweet
chocolate flavor (La Maison uses only 65%
cacao to avoid bitterness), Linxe soared to
immediate fame. Lately some chocolate
fanciers complain that La Maison has over-
expanded—there are branches in London,
New York, and Tokyo, and six other shops
around Paris—but the shop on rue Fran-
cois 1er (
&
33/1/47 23 38 25
) is also par-
ticularly worth visiting for its special tasting
sessions. Head east toward the Tuileries,
where the Faubourg becomes simply rue
St-Honoré, and you'll find two other top-
notch artisans:
Jean-Louis Hevin
(231 rue
St-Honoré, 1e;
&
33/1/45-51-99-64
), known
for surprisingly heavenly combinations of
chocolate and cheese (don't scoff until
you've tried it), and
Michel Cluizel
(201
rue St. Honoré, 1e;
&
33/1/42 44 11 66
),
whose fanatical attention to processing his
own carefully selected cocoa beans results
in wonderfully complex yet balanced
chocolate flavor. If you haven't overdosed
yet, continue east to the Marais, where
Josephine Vannier
(4 rue du Pas de la
Mule, 3e;
&
33/1/44 54 03 09
) offers fan-
ciful gift chocolates in a little shop just off
the Place des Vosges.
Back on the Left Bank, near Les Invalides,
La Maison alumnus
Michel Chaudun
(149
rue de l'Université, 7e;
&
33/1/47 53 74
40
) is justly famous for his whimsical choco-
late sculptures, though even a simple milk
chocolate bar from this shop is a treat.
