Noliette, Noisettine

Due to a lingering health problem, I decided to get my cake more locally than I would have and a little out of order by going down to Shinjuku Takashimaya and visiting the Noliette counter (versus Patissieria, which also had 3 of their their cakes, but different ones). This brand is big on traditional forms and I chose Noisettine, which is hazelnut biscuit, hazelnut butter cream, and hazelnut praliné. I like nuts and this kind of tradition cake, so its not shock that I thought this was excellent, which keeps them in the quite fine category for now.

Sunday: Vincennes

Only had 13 km left in this month's running budget, which was enough to get me to Vincennes, a place I've known about for a long time and which Joshi+ finally visited, so it seemed time for me to give them a chance, despite reservations. 6.5 km of fast, which surprises me, because there was an extra slope from Meguro River to the shop. Coming back with cake, bypassing that by following the train line, was a slow 6.55 km, although there were more people and stairs involved, so maybe the hill route was the better choice.

Now I've got to figure out my weekly levels: 2.4 km very slow, 44.8 km slow, 15.2 moderate, 22.2 fast, and 0.2 very fast, which adds up to 84.8 km. Since last week's very slow was 36 km, this is a huge improvement, no matter how anything else works out. Almost no very fast+ (last week, 4 km), but fast+ of 22.4 km is still up by more than 9 km, and I had 9 km more of moderate, so about +18 km of moderate+ running. Except for at the top, huge shift upward in speed, so quite good.

The cake was Noisettine for 356 yen (not a typo). I like hazelnut cake, so this was excellent for me, so Vincennes unexpectedly becomes a high priority "worthy" shop, although I don't expect that to last (but if I consider the prices, maybe it should). Huge amount of competition around there (on my map, they are on the south edge surrounding Meguro River going past Nakameguro up to tail of Shibuya Station, east to Ebisu).

Also today, because we were in Shinbashi and I had read about this shop in Sweet Sonobe, I tried the bar at Le Chocolate de H. They have a (little) chocolate tart that is eat-in, so we got a couple drink sets for 1300 yen (the tart is 800 or 900 yen by itself, I think). It is excellent, though not really that cost effective. You have to wait 20 minutes for them to bake it, since it is hot and filled with chocolate (so great smell). Still, if you're in Ginza, have already visited Dalloyau a couple times (which is two short blocks away), and enough seats are available (only 5 total), it's probably worth having. We'd like to try their macarons some time, as would they, since they gave me both a chocolate guide and a macaron guide when I asked for their card.

20 km run to m.koide, Marjelaine and Noisettine, and La Vie Douce, La Vie Bacchus

Had a successful 20 km run (knees seem to be okay, and my foot is about the same). I ran by the once-and-future site of the National Olympic Stadium, so I took a not very informative picture. They've prettied it up and reopened the sidewalk and street here, which is much more convenient.From there, I tried going further south of Aoyama Road (青山通り) to avoid Omotesando (表参道), but even though it was a smaller road, there was still traffic and a lot of people walking, so it was not really an improvement, especially because I got a late start and it was around noon. Went down to Meguro River (目黒川) near Nakameguro Station again and followed the river and then the Meguro River Green Way (no river, just park path). I took the left/south branch at the fork, which is Toriyama River Green Way （鳥山川縁道）. Google Maps did not want me to take it beyond a certain point, but when I saw that I could continue (some was very obviously brand new, but then the next part needed restoring), I went off course and stayed on the path to "Stone Buddha" Park （石仏公園) just beyond Odakyu Odawara Line (小田急小田原線). I might have gone the last 500 m if I had known that was the official end (my map showed the winding green line continuing farther, but it was always ambiguous whether there was a path on it).

Took Yoganakamachi Rood (sign below) back to Jiyuugaoka （自由が丘）, which was okay. Just a couple-lane main outskirts road with a good sidewalk. At the Tama River Police Station (玉川警察署) intersection, the named road turns right (the road doesn't bend right, just you have to take a right turn, from the north, at the light to stay on it; this is an example of why navigating by road names in Japan, or at least Tokyo, is hard). Anyway, I did not turn, as planned, which was also complicated, because the road sorted of ended a main road and then you had to shift left a bit to continue and the sidewalk disappeared and more walkers and bicycles appears, along with cars, as I approached Jiyuugaoka Station, so overall it was not a path that I want to use again, at least the whole length I used.

With the run finished, I went to "patisserie m.koide", which was open this time, unlike Sunday (staff shortages are everywhere). This is shown below, in the center. Notice that it's hard to notice and recognize as a shop.

They sold me these beauties, which are Marjelaine (マルジョレーヌ) and Noisettine (ノワセッティーヌ) for 590 and 600 yen, respectively. These are hazelnut and almond cream. I was advised to cool them down when I got home before eating, and I told her that they weren't going to make it the far, so she gave me a spoon (usually I'm prepared, but I left in a hurry). She was nice and they were very good, high class, but she was right about cooling them down being a good idea. Next time I'll take them home first. I may have a fourth great cake shop in the Jiyuugaoka area, and I've still got two promising (and several not so promising ones) to go.

One of these promising places is Souvenir,

which had all these young women lined up. This shop is next to the park where I ate my cake (maybe never again, as the mosquitoes have arrived and find me delicious, even with bug spray). Looking online now, they seem to do "Viking" (buffet), so maybe not so promising. And they have roll cake, which is not usually a good sign (although common). Okay, there's still Patisserie R to visit, as well as four other excellent shops where I haven't tried everything yet (or at least haven't chronicled them here). 

Having had very good cake, I restrained myself and saved other places for another day. However, that did not last once I was in Shinjuku, where I went to La Vie Douce (ラ・ヴィ・ドゥース). 

Their best stuff are these kind of cakes (not a very good picture), which is a little tart on the bottom and a soft cake about the same thickness on top. This is the La Vie Bacchus (ラ・ヴィ・バッカス), for 475 yen, which is chocolate and orange, this branch shop's specialty. It was good, but maybe I've gotten tired of it or maybe I really do need to stop at two cake at day, although I ate a regular meal first before having more cake).