The Criossant Walk

After living in Paris for this long, I still find myself discovering the city as if it is the first time all over again. A couple of months ago, I decided to look for new activities to do here to feel more productive while doing my academic research. I didn’t find a better way than checking Airbnb as I noticed how many people worldwide were giving feedback on many activities they have done and I got really excited to try, too. Today, I managed to try a very fun activity called ‘’The Croissant Walk’’. Although, I could go on my own to any bakery shop as I usually do and I can get a croissant myself but this walk was very unique and I was looking for a unique experience.  

The host’s name was Adele, a very nice and friendly French woman whom I joined her with other participants. I was so excited to learn the history of the French croissant from the reputation it has around the globe. France is well known for its pastry and bread and contests run all year long to find the best croissant and bread with specific measures and lengths.  

The tour started off from Pont d’amelie bridge in the 10th district. We went first to a bakery called Sain which is a French word for organic and they are known for their sourdough croissant. I have never tried sourdough before and I was amazed that the taste of the croissant did not change much and it was even better than the traditional croissant! Even though it was during the early morning on a Saturday but people were queuing up in a line to get their bread and pastries. This boulangerie (means bakery) opened a year ago and it was supposed to be a restaurant but the chef and owner decided to put the restaurant on hold and change it into a bakery and it is now one of Paris’s most famous bakeries.   After we got our fresh croissants, we went to a very cool coffee shop called Caoua (which is the French slang word for coffee and it is pronounced as قهوة kahwa in Arabic). I have previously published an article about 7 Coffee Shops You Must Visit While in Paris  and I am definitely adding this one to my list. The place was small and cozy and Adele told us more stories on how to make croissants and how delicate the process is. It requires a specific atmosphere and temperature and it is important for the chunks of butter used not to melt during this process otherwise, it will be completely ruined! 

We talked and asked more questions but then Adele presented to us a pastry called sesame roll (picture indicated to the left) made of vegetable charcoal and it was completely black. It was not burnt and it looked different from what we are used to. This type is made in a very famous bakery called Utopia and the funny part is that I was planning to go to Utopia to try it out as I noticed how special and different it was. Adele told us that it is made as a roll and not the croissant because the latter, requires specific technique and delicacy.

   After trying the first two types, we tried the traditional croissant. About 10 or 15 years ago, Paris didn’t have many coffee shops and Americans managed to bring the coffee shops style and it was infused into the French culture. It is known here that coffee can be in place or take away (sur place et a emporter) and the price differs as in place would cost higher as you will occupy a space in the shop.  

I mentioned earlier that croissant is very tricky to make. Some bakeries during the summer do not have air conditioners and this can put more pressure on the making process. Having an AC can cause dust to get into the room and might get into the dough and thus it is not recommended to have ACs in bakeries. Throughout the years, the French weather is adapted to croissant making.  

Pain aux raisins (which is the raisins roll) and it is called in some regions, like the south of France, ''escargot'' which means snail’’. Pain is the French word for bread. Let us not forget that croissant is originally from Vienna when the queen brought it from her to France when she married Napoleon Bonapart as something to remind her of home. 

 

Bakeries in France usually close on Mondays as it is important that they open on the weekend to provide bread and pastries to people and it is in a way to make it up for working on Saturdays. If the bakery is closed on Saturday, this means that the bakery is one of the top bakeries in the country. Through the tour, we walked until we reached Le Marais region in the third district. It is one of the oldest areas in Paris. Paris consists of 20 districts. This region is famous for its Jewish Quartier and expensive French stores. In this district, we walked through the Jewish preserved buildings and memorials and they had many Jewish fast food shops and we passed by a very famous patisserie called Yann. We went inside and pastries looked mouth-watering. So yum! 

After we got other types of croissants and pastries, this bakery is famous for its condensed croissants. The last bakery stop was Petit Versailles de Marai and it is open since the 18th century and the oldest bakeries in France existing since the 17th century. We got eclairs and pain au chocolat and they make the pastries with balanced quantities of sugar. It was on point! The design of this bakery represents the mirrors of the Versailles palace. 

We ended the tour with stopping by an old wine storage place and they happen to offer the best coffee I have had in Paris so Far. We finished the talk with more stories and more pastry eating alongside the coffee which was superb! I enjoyed my time greatly and learned so much about croissants and discovered new bakeries in this mesmerizing city.