Wednesday 17 April 2013

A Parisian cupcake or two

17/4/13 Wednesday
Yesterday we walked home via the Île de la Cité, along a little street just one block removed from the craziness around Notre Dame, with the intention of finding a shop I'd read about called Bertie's Cupcakery. I'd stumbled across it a few weeks ago while exploring the island, then came across it in a blog. We found it again no problem yesterday, but unfortunately it was closed.
So this morning we head there first, before we continue on to our next destination. It's open today and at the moment we walk in we're the only customers. The owner (and cupcake maker) is a Canadian lady by the name of Bobbie, who moved to Paris last year with her husband, and opened the cupcakery.  They're both behind the counter this morning and are friendly and interested in knowing where we're from. When we say Australia, they're even more interested because they've just returned from a trip downunder. And when they ask where in Australia we're from, it turns out they visited Perth, which they loved, and spent 3 days on Rottnest Island as well. We enjoy chatting with them, as well as buying our cupcakes - chocolate vanilla for mon amour (with a cute confectionary eiffel tower on the top) and strawberry lemonade pour moi.
We head to the river to sit in the sun and enjoy our delicious cupcakes. Here's a plug for Bobbie's shop and these yummy treats http://www.bertiescupcakery.com/ And here's a photo or two:




The cupcakes are truly delicious. Bobbie says that since she opened last year it's been fairly tough getting the business established. She thinks that being a street away from Notre Dame means that the typical tourist, who is just interested in seeing the main sights, doesn't even bother exploring the little streets, even just one block away. I'm sure she's right, and having been here on the coldest of days I can imagine that many people would just rush from one sight to the next, simply wanting to get it over with and get out of the cold. I suspect, though, that price may also come into it for many. At 3€50 per standard size cupcake (smaller than a standard muffin), she's competing with the well-established and very traditionally Parisian pâtisseries that charge the same for substantially bigger gâteaux. A glamorous cupcake in Perth costs around $3.50 (and the more you buy the cheaper they get) so these are definitely more expensive. At 7€ for two, and as lovely as they are, I'd baulk at going back for seconds. But they are truly delicious, the icing is light and fluffy, the cake is soft and moist, and the flavours are exceptional. And they are a visual feast too.


So if you're ever on the Île de la Cité then do pop in and have one, even if you only have one, just so you can experience the gastronomic delight of a cupcake from Bertie's.

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