Patisserie Aigre Douce エーグル・ドゥース

Stepping into this shop is like entering an old pastry shop with warm wooden tiles decor. This is Patisserie Aigre Douce, a popular patisserie in Mejiro with ratings higher than most pastry shops which I have reviewed so far. The first thing that struck me was the wide selection of more than 10 petit gateauxs. Second, the kitchen seems rather efficient at stocking up the cakes as hardly any item ran out of stock despite the steady flow of customers.
Chef-owner Terai Norohiko opened his shop in 2004. He directs his energy towards producing cakes that must be delicious and rigorous on techniques. Any fanciful decor is largely frowned upon. His signature item is the long pound cake sticks which I have absolutely ZERO interest in.  

But it did have one petite gateaux that made my heart flutter and that is the Salted Caramel Tart. Once my knife to cut through it beautifully to expose the neatly divided inter layers, I knew this would be awesome. Indeed, I found myself dumbfounded by the magnificence of this simple creation.

Milk chocolate mousse, gooey salted caramel ganache and caramel nuts in a crumbly tart shell. The components are so straightforward, but yet very few had succeeded to stir emotional responses within me. This what I call a TRUE salted caramel tart.  

The Ivoirine (560 yen) reminded me of a flamboyant campfire with its poking meringue sticks. It looked gimmicky, but nothing more than white chocolate mousse, orange compote and a moist sponge. Nevertheless, the texture was extremely airy and pleasurable.  

The Tiramisu Eclair (560 yen) was less crusty than the ideal cookie choux crust like the ones by Le RCinq. It was literally a tiramisu transported to the middle of an eclair shell.All the necessary components like the coffee soaked finger sponges and mascarpone cheese were on standby. And the dust of cocoa powder on top was definitely was not in scarcity, for I was nearly choked by the thin layer of cocoa-covered chocolate layered on the eclair.However, the Caramel Chantily was a more dependable cream puff as the choux puff was crunchy, toasty and stuffed with an unbelievably amount of custard cream beneath the caramel fresh cream despite the featherlight weight.

Gilotto (cassis chocolate mousse, white chocolate mousse, cassis and sponge) 

Delice Au Poire (Pear Gelee, Pear Bavaroise, Sponge, Sable Base)  

The Gilotto and Pear Mousse Cake are colors apart but they were both too sweet. The distinct flavour of cassis and pear were muted and the structure lacked sophistication, considering the fact it is one of the highly reputed patisseries in Tokyo.I cannot not add a few packs of the shiny florentines into the shopping basket. Shaped like a flattened cookie sandwich instead of rectangular bars, the black sesame version is filled with real bitter chocolate while the Earl Grey version contained really assertive white honey. They are as nutty as those by Atelier de Florentines, but chewy and pliable. So good that they are more invest-worthy than the mousse cakes. 

Overall, I did not find myself falling in love with this place as much as I wanted. The hasty service did turn me off on following visits too. But the Salted Caramel Tart and Florentines will be something I would remember of Aigre Douce.  

Aigre Douce  エーグル・ドゥース

Thurs-Tues 10am-7pm 

Closed on Wed 

Shinjuku-Ku, Shita-ochiai 3-22-13 

Nearest station: JR Meijiro 

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Honmura An: Modern Classic Soba

Honmura An might not have a rich old legacy like Kanda Matsuya but it could one day reach the same position in future. This Michelin-starred soba shop is actually the Tokyo venture of Koichi Kobari, whose same name restaurant in New York's Soho district is one of the most well-acclaimed and celebrity-patronized one. 

No one would disagree that the menu's backbone is its solid, handmade soba noodles.

The Traditional zaru soba with sesame dipping sauce did offer some magical respite from the harsh winter outside despite the fact that the noodles were cold. Since winter is the best season to savour the plump oysters, the place created a special Curry oyster soba. Interestingly, the oysters are coated in curry-flavoured dough batter and deep fried, retaining the taste and fragrant of spices even though one cannot identify any visible speck of curry in the oysters. Surprisingly, this soba shop served decent Oyakadon too, but still it might be better to head to Tamahide or Honke Abeya for the real thing.

Apart from the soba, it also boasts an array of classic izakaya fare. They are not that exciting or creative, but made with an understated elegance and finesse. The yuba tofu soup with winter vegetables (1000 yen) is deliberately made bland as one was supposed to ladle the broth into individual porcelain bowls filled with spring onions and add the amount of shoyu as desired. However, I thought price leaned on the steep side for homely vegetables dishes such as Sesame Sauce marinated Watercress (900 yen). Perhaps that's because the watercress was harvested from Mt. Fuji.  Likewise, the assorted tempura (2100 yen) were crunchy but they could turn the plate more enticing by adding in some juicy prawns.

Aside from food, service is friendly and unpretentious. Some might think that service is generally assured in most restaurants in Japan but this is not guaranteed especially towards foreigners. But at Honmura An, guests feel no pressure and can dine at ease just like at home. English menu and a selection of craft sake or shochu are available.

Curry Oyster Ala Carte

Honmura An

7 Chome-14-18 Roppongi, Minato, Tokyo 106-0032
English menu available 
http://www.honmuraantokyo.com/eng/

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Hokkaido Fair: Eat till you drop!

Among all the regional food fairs are held all over Japan, Hokkaido fair is one of the most popular and frequent food fair. There are definitely a larger number of souvenir brands and famous food stalls at the local fairs than in fairs held outside Japan. While the exhibitors are largely the same, it is still possible to find new and seasonal edition items every time. 

ISHIYA (Shiroi Koibito, etc...)

One of the brands I check out is Shiroi Koibito, though not for its famous white chocolate langue De chats. It's parent company has actually more than 10 other sub brands selling popular sweets such as White Baumkuchen and Candied Chocolate Bars. The Shiroi Koibito Parfait is one perfect chance to try a bit of everything because it contained the Shiroi Koibito cookie, Tsumugi white Baumkuchen slices, Miyuki Millefeuille and of course the irresistible sweet and creamy milk soft serve mixed with tangy raspberry sauce.

There is also a long shiroi koibito white roll cake but I ended up with the Hokkaido Melon Roll for its rarer to find roll cakes in this flavour. Amazing soft texture, but so delicate and soft that it is difficult to slice it properly at aircon temperature. Plus, it does not taste artificially sweet.

LeTAO

LeTao is another regular shop that is renowned for its luscious cheesecake. During Spring, they have the special matcha double cheesecake called The Vert. I also enjoyed the smooth bitterness of the matcha and Darjeeling chocolates shaped like mini pyramids. Surprisingly, it also stocks up some tasty Langue De Chats that has won the Gold award of Monde Selection. The Fromage belongs more to the savoury camp and the cheese filling in the centre is in golden proportion to the buttery round cookies. The Sweet Chocolate is not sweet but rather dull in comparison to the Fromage.ROYCE

And of course there is Royce and its ubiquitous Nama chocolates. But one should skip that and head for its Salted Caramel Macarons. Sold in 3 per box (680 yen), each macaron is slightly drier and chewier than freshly made ones but it doesn't matter because the butterscotch-like salted caramel ganache has made a lasting impact. Another limited edition item: Chocolate Almond Tablette with SALT!! In conjunction with Royce's 30th anniversary, Royce has also come up with a box of assorted Chocolate Wafers that contain 5 flavours (Chocolate, Strawberry, Citrus, Tiramisu and Matcha) . All very delish.

Ryugetsu

I still can't comprehend the popularity of Baumkuchen but the locals love it, especially this Sanpouroku by Ryugetsu. But i must say this was one of the best baumkuchen I've had. Made with Hokkaido butter and flour, it was tenderly soft and not too dry. The winter flavour was Maple and for spring, it's matcha. Regular flavors are Plain and Chocolate. I usually go for those individual packaged sweets as I would be bored having to take at least one month to finish the entire Baumkuchen by myself. Ryugetsu has some interesting sweets sold in single package. 

The Bonne is a rich chocolate butter cake spiked with Grand Marnier and double coated in white and milk chocolate. The custard cream is supposed to flow but it did not. Instead of the Bonne, the Milk Manju was more palatable. It's a typical Wagashi filled with white bean paste, but less cloyingly sweet because of the blend of milk. Soft, creamy and fragrant.

Tokachi Tottepo Factory
It's hard to find fault with any of the puddings, bottled milk or yoghurt from Hokkado. This can be the BEST PUDDING in my life (even better than matcha pudding). Salted Caramel Pudding
WARAKUDO
Last but not least, this mochi-like cheesecake cubes is my most prized finding from the Hokkaido fair. Named "Moti-moti", the texture is beyond words could describe as it was my first encounter with this delicious invention. Each bite was unyieldingly soft and creamy despite the chilly temperature. Both Matcha and Tiramisu flavours were excellent. 

The end?? Not quite yet

Stay tune for the spring/summer edition of Hokkaido food posts......

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