Musée Du Chocolat Théobroma, Diable

Sunday, I started with this small item, which I got as my 4(+1 for a cake-off win)th cake from Musée Du Chocolat Théobroma, though most past purchases have been via their Cocoa Store shop nearer Yoyogi Park. This is Diable and is just what it looks like, chocolate custard on a chocolate puff pastry. It was definitely good, which is both better than I expected of the item just based on the concept and actually the second best "cake" I've had from this shop, so I was satisfied. 

Wako Annex, Saint-Honoré Orange & Charmant Fraise

Was busy this weekend, but was out at Ginza Mitsukoshi Saturday later afternoon and was able to skip ahead (alphabetically) and visit the Wako Annex for cake for two, which is one of three holiday/weekend-only two-cake quite fine shops. I really like some saint-honoré, so I went with the Saint-Honoré Orange. The other chosen cake was Charmant Fraise, which is white chocolate and strawberry.

The first is a good quality saint-honoré with some orange compote, maybe, in the center. It seemed like a good idea and well executed, so I'm willing to say that it was excellent. The Charmant Fraise was also good, though less appreciated by me. I was hoping for more flavor from the white chocolate maybe, but its nice if mild strawberry cake with a moussy texture.

Origines Cacao, Saint Honoré Pistache Framboise

Finally got over to Ginza 6 to visit Origines Cacao and get a new cake from them. This falls under new cakes from superb shops, because right now Origines Cacao is a candidate, but based on less than half the cakes I've sampled from the current list, so it's going to be a long process to make the leap.

To day and walked and ran (in 4 min intervals, 6 total of the running) and got the Saint Honoré Pistache Framboise, since I like saint-honoré in general and the other one I had from them was excellent. Even with 24 minutes of running, it's a long round trip, taking 1 h 45 min, so maybe tomorrow I'll go to a shop by bicycle, even though that's also my plan for Thursday.

I'll also rate this as excellent. The pistachio and raspberry harmonized well and the choux pastry provided texture to contrast the cream. Definitely much better than the last saint-honoré  I had from a different shop.

(Mon) Toshi Yoroizuka: Choux à la Crème and Saint Honoré Caramel

Went to the Tokyo Toshi Yoroizuka on Monday afternoon after a failed trip to Jean-Paul Hévin (the typhoon blocked the shipment of special pastry, so I reserved one for the special delivery on Wednesday) and shared three cakes: Baba, Choux à la Crème, and Saint Honore Caramel. The Baba is a repeat but worth mentioning, as I dismissed the whole cake type previously as uninteresting but am now willing to appreciate it and say that, even among baba, this one was excellent. The unusually feature (besides the strong warning about the amount of alcohol) was the fig. Another type of cake (?) that I've disparaged is Choux à la Crème, and in fact I got a really fancy one from Toshi Yorizuka just last week and was not impressed at all. This, however, was excellent. In fact, it's just what I said custard needed, something to contrast with it. I was thinking of a custard tart with a dense shell, but this cream puff was fairly thick, though not sense but rather had some air in it but it was baked enough to caramelize it much more than an one I've had before, and it really worked to make contrasting tastes that went together. (It's like, they are professionals, or something.)

The third cake was my choice and was a Saint Honoré Caramel and was definitely excellent. Not sure what else I can say about it. Also choux and cream/custard, but with a strong caramel taste that I liked (even though I'm not always a fan of a stronger, smokey caramel taste). 

The running was another failed attempt to run just my neighborhood course, which I can't stop fiddling with (which is what I do instead of playing computer games, which I also rarely finish). I confirmed some new parts but then got lost and found a couple things I didn't like so I've revamped it completely again (though the sights are the same, so the paths are not so different). My plan for Thursday is to make the next attempt of the approximately 20 km for the Yotsuya 3 chome SE & SW and surrounding Shinjuku Gyoen west, south, and east. In the unlikely event that I complete it without finding any parts that need to be further fixed, I've already confirmed that I can expand southwest without working out the details. The map thus far is here. 

(Friday) Jean-Paul Hévin: Éclair Constanza

I went to Tokyo Midtown for lunch and got cakes which were shared for dessert, along with Madagascar and Ghana hot chocolate (I'll stick to just showing the cakes). The Duja I've had many times before. It's a hazelnut biscuit chocolate cake that is excellent; pretty standard though fancy chocolate layer cake. The other is a new éclair for this month only, Éclair Constanza, and is also excellent, though I definitely prefer the tart to the éclair. 

This was a café visit rather than solo-cake, so running is not necessary, but in the evening I did have time and did another Marunouchi to Ginza loop, this time skipping JPH but checking Frédéric Cassel. Still no new information. In general, August does not seem to be a time to introduce new cakes. To motivate myself, I did get another snack, from Le Boulanger de Monge at Ginza Six: a Croissant d'Almonde. They threw in three kinds of bread samples as well, cranberry, walnut, and mixed fruit and nuts. The croissant was kind of dry and not better than good, but at least with butter, the bread was all excellent.

Frédéric Cassel: Saint Honoré Pêche de Vigne

Pretty hot again today and I forgot my water, so in running to Ginza, I went underground at the main scramble and walked to the Mitsukoshi, but
still was close to 9 km/h for that 5+ km. Walking back, I came out in Hibiya Park so that I could get a drink in the park, so it was 4+ km back at 8 km/h (uphill).

The cake was the seasonal Saint Honoré-Pêche de Vigne, which refers to some sort of peach/nectarine. It's fairly mild, but certainly suitable for summer. It was the usual excellent cake from them. This month specials in cake cover both July and August, so I'll probably run out of new cakes before I get them caught up, but that's fine. There were still a couple more today and maybe there will be something different next month.

Frédéric Cassel: Saint Honoré Fraise Vanille

Ran to Mitsukoshi to visit Frédéric Cassel and got the Saint Honoré Fraise Vanille (756 yen). I can report that it was 6.2 km there (not a very direct route) going down 69 m and up 40 m (Google Maps now shows an elevation chart: neat). Too many long runs this week, so the speed was only 9 km/h. Going back Google says approximately flat, because I took a direct route that rose less gradually, so apparently 30 m over 5 km isn't enough to interest it in making a graph, so this is the output it usually gives me. I'll have to experiment with routes to see what the rules are. Speed was only slightly slower.

The cake, a saint honoré with vanille custard and strawberry cream, as well as strawberry slices, was definitely excellent as expected. This is despite having no chocolate, caramel, or nuts,

so my tastes are not completely narrow. I notice that I did designate it great, but I may need more experience with this type of cake to make that determination. I may have it, because I've given up on Henri le Roux ever having cake again, so they are off my cake index system and Frédéric Cassel joins Dalloyau in the Quite Superb category, where actually it has already passed it (not sure when that happened). Actually, I have about the same number of cakes from both, but I have more non-cakes from Dalloyau and fewer unsampled cakes (currently, two available, which somehow I have not managed to get to, though the month is half over). Now I'll figure out who to bump up to Superb from Quite Excellent, and I have an extra one there, but the top contenders are still under visited, so first I have to rectify that, which is going to take some time.

Note, one reason the return trip was shorter is, since I was carrying cake, I decided to use the tunnel system as far as Hibiya Park, since it's much less crowded than the street level.

Full disclosure, yesterday was a 17 km round trip run with no fresh cake, but rather just research and a pastry-type cake, a Canelé from Clair de Lune (it was a more specific type of canelé, a region of France I think, but I'm not confident so I'll check or ask when I go back next).

Two trains passing at night on Chuo Line

Between the canal and main road.

Another 9 km/h run, about half along the train line/canal.








Also, I baked an apple tart again. Unfortunately, it leaked, but I verified that there was no problem cooking it the full hour, that I could make the glaze better than the previous time (too runny then), but that the apples shrink so much, that the overhanging crust creates a hollow. Since there's a pause in the apple season, according to my local supplier, I plan to move on and try a cheese-cake tart with the same dough and also try another dough.

Paris S'éveille: Comme Newyorkais

Went to Paris S'éveille and actually parked my bicycle at a legal parking spot. I've never used there and did not really realize it was so close (although it is on the other side of the RR crossing). I also obeyed the little sign on the table that I had not noticed previously, which said don't take pictures, as it disturbed other guests, which is reasonable but unfortunate.   

I got their New York style cheese cake, Comme Newyorkais. Here's what it looks like:

I have no complaints, as far as it being as advertised. The little cookie-like topping tastes like my traditional pie crusts, so I assume it is oil-based rather than butter-based, whereas the bottom of the cake is a sponge to soak up some of the moisture, which works. I'd say it was excellent, but still not a priority for me. I tend to like it more during than after. This was 580 yen and they let me not order a drink, which I appreciate, because the drinks are more than the cake, so presumably that's where the profit is.

Later, I also got a Choux Creme from Glycine for 380 yen, which was very good, but I realized that I need to stop getting these, because I don't really like Choux Creme that much, or at least, I don't like them enough that I want to eat a whole one, but I would split one with someone, much like ice cream (which they are closer to in taste than cake).

I also went to Cuoca, mostly hardware but some chocolate and decoration-type cocoa powder. I stuck to the about 1000 yen/200 g chocolate rather than the 4000+/200 g stuff because, wow, that's why chocolates are so expensive.

Ryoura: Tarte Chocolat Caramel Salé

Cycled out to Yoga in western Setagaya to visit Ryoura, which seems to be a hot topic right now, seemingly for good reason. No line near opening time, which is late, 11:00 am, but it's a nice shop. They had Tarte Chocolat Caramel Salé and I read the description as far as "nuts", after which there was no reason for me to resist my impulse for chocolate. I'm very biased, but think this is great. If other places would make more chocolate, salt caramel tarts with nuts, maybe I would become more discriminating but until then, I'll appreciate this shop's accurate anticipation of what I want. Also, the price was 520 yen, which is reasonable for great cake. This is basically a standard chocolate mousse dome, complete with (bavarian) cream, on top. The base is a tart shell, a layer of chocolate biscuit/cake, and then the caramel. Also, the outer coating is obviously very reflective; not sure what I could have done about that for the photo.

I was cycling, so my route was somewhat random and I ended up going past Patisserie Main Mano again, so I decided to stop and see what they had. I was thinking they were more a bakery, because their other shop nearby (both in the Yoyogi area) is a boulangerie and café, but they had some cakes. I had already had cake, so I got a choux cream for 200 yen. It was good. Also, they filled it after I ordered, which seems to be the best way. It rolled around a little before I took this picture, so don't judge to harshly.

Went over to Takashimaya and verified that they have Ma Priere cakes, so I don't need to run out there tomorrow. Already have plans to visit L'Abricotier on Saturday and expect to get cake at Isetan earlier in the week, so my best bet for unvisited places hard to go to on a workday is Avranches Guesnay. I got it from Joshi+, which isn't that reliable (since its priority is to go some place new and it's been running for a years now), but the online info looks okay and it's close on a rainy day. Guess I need to dig further into Sweet Sonobe to make a plan for Sunday, unless I want to get out to Eclat des Jours, which didn't look quite as good, I think, but still worth visiting.