Bien-être, Chiboust au Pistache Framboise

Back in April (not sure whether I'll ever get caught up with no running to speak of to write about), I got a cake-off reward from Bien-être, Chiboust au Pistache Framboise. I had seen this when I was last there. Two other chiboust au pistache cakes are among my favorites, but they already changed the base recipe in a way that I like less, so I wasn't raising my hopes up too high. It was good, but I was correct that I'm not that into this new version, also the ones I liked most went with sourer fruits.

Sadaharu Aoki, Tarte Caramel Framboise Pistache

I couldn't, or didn't resist getting more cakes during the week despite already being one ahead, though I did hold off until Wednesday. I'll catch up in a couple weeks, by which time I've finally start on the just fine shops, which have interesting points but will be something of a slog. Anyway, Sadaharu Aoki is a quite superb shop with not so many new cakes, so I got this one when it was available, still looking for a great tart from them. This is at the other end of their range, but still definitely good: Tarte Caramel Framboise Pistache. Under the pistachio cover is a fairly thick layer of fruit (and caramel, I think, which balances out the fruit well) sauce. 

Pascal Le Gac, Chocolat Framboise

After finding that the current address for Schloss Backerei is a residence, so they don't even have a Tokyo shop (though they are selling packaged sweets online and as shop-up/visiting counters at department stores, so they haven't given up), I decided to visit Pascal Le Gac for a 4th cake from a maybe quite fine shop. I went with the Chocolat Framboise, as being reasonably priced while most cakish. On the way back, I looked at various places for scones without finding anything I was satisfied with. I have enough cake for today, so I should probably do scones tomorrow, when I want to go out to Omotesandou anyway, though I was hoping for something new from a bakery. Few bakeries deal with them, versus coffee shops. Speaking of both, the bakery next to Starbucks at Shinanomachi has cake. It's a pretty low-level bakery chain shop, but on the root local course (which I'm not running, but still using for reference) so it should be my next new cake shop visit.

I'm delaying saying that I wasn't into the Chocolat Framboise at all. The flavor is fine, but I don't like the gummy texture of the frosting (though not outside the normal for a certain kind of glazing) or having a gelatinous raspberry layer in the middle (but still a pretty standard cake thing, e.g., the mille-feuille of F. Cassel) and too much raspberry with the chocolate for me (with that much raspberry, I'd rather lose the chocolate completely). Still, objectively, it's completely reasonable, so I can say it's good, but not for me. This shop may not make the next cut, but only if I can find enough that can. 

Camélia, Reine

I was free from late afternoon on Sunday, so I half ran half walked to Ginza and visited P. Camélia and got Reine, so a princess cake, perhaps. Anyway, lots of pistachio, including a nicely textured biscuit and a suitable balance of red fruits and a touch of chocolate. No surprise that I found it excellent, which makes four in a row from this shop. Still, haven't found a great cake yet, so it's staying in the quite fine group but I might get back to it sooner than otherwise from getting cake for two, as they'll have a counter at Isetan from April (I assume it's a 6th-month gig).

 

Blondir, Chiboust Framboises

Thursday last week, I took the morning off and did some errands, but only after bicycling for cake to Blondir for a fourth cake from this shop on the quite fine list. I've never actually been out there before, at least not since starting to keep track. Other cakes were presumably from a Shinjuku department store. This is actually my first time to use a Nerima-ku tag, so it's been a long time since I've been out that way. The route was complicated trying to follow the Google Maps recommendation, since it's going diagonal relative to the usual roads. Though on an unexpectedly narrow road, it's a really nice looking shop inside and out, had a good spread, and is probably the first place I've been served by an older man (I don't think he was the pâtissier, who's supposed to be only late forties). I went with the Chiboust Framboises, still looking for a great chiboust like I had several years ago when they were more of a thing apparently. This was basically, a raspberry tart with a "chiboust" layer on top. The tart was definitely good, but the eggy topping really doesn't add anything, unfortunately. Looks like Blondir won't make the next cut, but still a fine shop.

Sadaharu Aoki, Cheese Cake Fruits Rouge

Tuesday last week, I optimistically went down to Tokyo Midtown to see whether they would have a Ryoura cake on a Tuesday, which is actually crazy because the shop is closed Tuesdays and Wednesdays (they didn't have any cakes a holiday Thursday morning either, so I won't try that day again). If I had researched and thought ahead, I could have saved myself a trip (which I did using 1-min intervals of walking and running, which is all I'm managing these days, but I'm working on it) and gone to Isetan, since the other purpose was to check whether Sadaharu Aoki had a particular cake that I want for a cake-off versus a seasonal JPH cake. They didn't but instead had the rare new cake, as shown. It's Cheese Cake Fruits Rouge, versus their standard citrus one. It's not a flavor I associate with cheesecake or one I seek and is mild as accents go, but actually turned out to work, so I wasn't disappointed at all. And it was the usual SA quality, so I'm fine saying it was excellent. I'm assuming that the red fruits are raspberry and cassis, as that's what was in the Noel Cheese Cake (as an online item last year). 

Now if I can just get Millefeuille Mâcha, which is still on their site as at Marunouchi, but last time I checked it was suspended due to pandemic state of emergency, maybe.

Viron, Tarte au Chocolat Framboise

Saturday, between appointments and walking back from getting a cake from an excellent shop, I took the path by Viron. Actually, I was looking for scones, though the French-style bakeries don't usually have them, so I wasn't surprised that Viron didn't, however, I'm still several cakes short from them, so when I found they had something new, I got it: Tarte au Chocolat Framboise (which might have lost a particle in transliteration). It was definitely good, but the limitations on chocolate tarts as cakes I mentioned recently extend to ones that include fruit flavoring. Still, a high quality product for those looking for a chocolate tart, so my respect for Viron as superb shop remains, though it's getting close to it's challengers at the top of the quite exceptional group.
 

Lenôtre, Schuss Fraise

Monday, because of a cake-off win with a seasonal cake, I went to Lenôtre at Ginza Mitsukoshi for a new cake, which was also seasonal. My target was actually a different cake that I had only imagined, having not looked closely apparently (or just misremembered), but the real cake, Schuss Fraise, looked fine (there is a season glass dessert, but never my first choice). This is a "rare" (unbaked) cheese mousse cake. I'm usually more a baked cheesecake person, though the dual rare+baked one are often the best. Anyway, their usual is citrus, but this one uses strawberries on top and strawberries and raspberries (for some tang) for the sauce. Definitely excellent, though when I reviewed, the Schuss Citron was also definitely excellent, so I shouldn't have been surprised. It doesn't get them back into the quite exceptional category, but they aren't far off, so something will eventually slip low enough that they'll get another chance at a new cake.

The exercise was running there and fast walking back, followed by dancercise, though I skipped other indoor exercises.

Presqu'île Chocolaterie, Ruby

I took advantage of Presqu'île Chocolaterie being at Isetan to pick up a 4th cake from them, which is my goal for the 48 shops in my quite fine category. Ruby chocolate is still rare, and it can be great, so I went with their Ruby, though it's closest relative is probably Mure, which was my least favorite of theirs at the time. Nevertheless, it turned out well, as this was excellent, which means it will make the next cut (32 shops is the target number for this category, but just 3 cakes wasn't enough to make that fine a division). Besides being ruby chocolate with the traditional raspberry addition, the center is lychee liquor marinated grapefruit in lychee cream. It works. These days, I'm working late and doing more indoor exercises, though I still got in some running (not that I can remember now whether it was a 30-min or 45-min day).

  

Frédéric Cassel, Mille-feuille Colette

As I posted previously, I loaded up on cakes Saturday, out of efficiency, though my cakes/week is fixed. At Ginza Mitsukoshi, besides the JPH cake for the cake-off, I got Frédéric Cassel's latest seasonal mille-feuille, Mille-feuille Colette. In this case, the cream is cinnamon cream and the gelatin middle is fig and raspberry, which was an interesting combination that harmonizes well, so I would say this is excellent, which most of this series is.

 

Frédéric Cassel, Framboisier Vanille

 The other cake I got three Sunday's ago from Frédéric Cassel was Framboisier Vanille, which had been my target during the previous week when I went to Ginza Mitsukoshi. Unfortunately, while good, vanilla is pretty weak as a flavor, so naturally then held back on the raspberries, which is fine, but the cake was still lighter than my preference.

Tarte (Framboise Pistache)

This is the sad story of a cake that traveled by bicycle, though in my defense, it was a blog to begin with, just a round one instead of a square one, and maybe taller. This is a tart, in that there is a hard slab underneath. The flavors aren't terrible, and I don't to punish it for my hard handling, so I'll say it's good but still not post this to Twitter. With this case Au Bon Viex Temps looses it's chance to take over the superb cake shop spot temporarily held my Viron. Instead, it goes to Bien-Étre, which I've tried more cakes from than either of those.

Aigre-Douce, Mousse Chocolat Framboise

 This is going to be really short. I went for a new cake to Aigre-Douce because its caramel tart won a cake-off. I've had one other perhaps great cake from there, which I've never seen again, and a couple excellent cakes, and a couple good cakes. The other four were all just ok. I got the Mousse Chocolat Framboise, and this makes a fifth ok cake. The chocolate mousse is inside a sponge exterior, which is a terrible idea. Plus, too much raspberry for me. So soft cake which adds no texture other than to destroy the mousse effect, which is anyway already pretty destroyed by raspberry that includes seeds. And yet, I might be back there in another year if their great cake wins again. I should say, though, that their pastries seem pretty top class, even if I can't understand the appeal of most of their cakes.

 

Frédéric Cassel, Framboisier

I'm so behind, and Blogger is now disabled the old editor, so I'm stuck with only the one with the broken label adder (unless you want to have just one label, and then it's just inconvenient). Anywa, at least my map updating is finally coming along for the first batch of neighborhoods. I'm not changing the route, just I'm tired over overlapping lines. For created new routes, I've done all three for top sites, cake shops, and major parks, which go from as far northeast as Yotsu Sta., as far west as Harajuku Sta. (only the subway station), as far south as Omote-Sandou Sta. and as far southeast as Gaienmae Sta. I'm updating the calculation, but they all time me about 2.5 hours, with standard stops.

This cake as from a visit to Ginza Mitsukoshi. This replaces an almost identical cake with mixed fruit, which replaced one with strawberries. It's equally great in any case and apparently this one is going to stick around a little longer, so I hope to get in a first-round weekend (the real next weekend). Starting tomorrow, I need to catch up on two weekends, though I was working ahead with this one and didn't try to do the full week in the weekend last (real) weekend, so it's less than a week behind.  

Frédéric Cassel, Jardin d'été

The other cake I got in the running on the afternoon of Sunday from Frédéric Cassel was Jardin d'été, which poses a problem, as it seems to be exactly the same as Fraisier, which I just confirmed was a great cake, only with different fruit. The different fruits are at least as good, probably better, so I guess this one qualifies as a great cake too, which is not after all a problem, except I still need a cake from another shop to do a first-round cake-off.

Viron, Rouge

Last week, wasn't quite so late, so one day, I managed to get to Viron early enough to get cake, though I failed three days with Sadaharu Aoki and F. Cassel. Actually, even that one cake was one cake ahead, but since I expected to busy the next week, and it felt like Tokyo could go back into shutdown, it was justified. Actually, this was the cake I expected to get on Sunday, but I found something else. This time I was getting from the Marunouchi shop, which is more focused on the restaurant side, so maybe they don't have as many take-out cakes. Anyway, it's Rouge, which is obviously a fruity cake, and obviously has some gelatin, from the shape. An unusual point is that this is coconut cream, rather than some other medium. The fruit is specifically raspberry, I think. The reality isn't so exciting or different from other fruit dome cake, but it was good.

Jean-Paul Hévin, Verrine Framboise Litchi

As with other cakes last Sunday, the evaluation is based on half, in this case of something that is pretty small to begin with. This is Jean-Paul Hévin, again from Ginza Mitsukoshi (I was busy, and bought everything in one go) chocolate mousse with raspberry and lychee: Verrine Framboise Litchi. I can that it was excellent, keeping in mind that it's a verrine, so only marginally cake. Nevertheless, it holds of the standard of JPH.

I'll insert here, that there was running, probably in the neighborhood. I'm mostly abandoned my old neighborhood maps for the time, or at least the routes, as I try to great more reasonal paths, plus I worked late most days, so I had less than am hour run. Mostly I ran in the Yotsuya San-choume Sta. south areas, either along a path connecting up the 4 cake shops or the top site course, that includes whatever I judge the most worth visiting in each neighborhood, down to the choume level, which includes some but not all the cake shops. I'm still refining the course, and have it down to the part north of and immediately north of Sendagaya wrapping around to the extreme southeast of Shinjuku Sta., and I've identified the sites down through Jinguumae, but not completely gotten the course yet.

Frédéric Cassel, Addiction

Finally, the last cake of May was Addiction from Frédéric Cassel. This is coconut mousse, passion fruit, mango, lemon biscuit, and raspberry. It's a cube held together by rigid wall and is really white. It definitely would be about the last cake I would choose from anywhere else, but it was a new cake from Frédéric Cassel and I just couldn't get that excited about the strawberry rollcake. As it happens, this was a great cake that I could recommend to about anyone, though maybe someone who wants something light, because coconut is high in fat and there's plenty of sugar as well, so I'm not saying whether it's healthy. If I'm lucky it will stick around long enough for me to find another cake to do a cake-off with, as right now I don't have anything to match it with.

Ladurée, Saint-Honoré Rose Framboise

My last cake, bought and eaten, of the weekend was a new cake from a reopened shop on the exceptional list, Ladurée. Usually I would buy from Ginza Mitsukoshi, which was still closed, so this is from the Aoyama shop, which also has indoor and outdoor eat-in space, which was in use, though I got take-out. This was the only new cake, as they were keeping their line-up lean for the first weekend reopening in a neighborhood that's still mostly closed. It is the Saint-Honoré Rose Framboise. I like saint-honoré, but I've had one from them before, and the pastry is different from what I'm used to. For example, the large bottom is flaky, which seems impossible, though I haven't experimented with choux pastry that much. Anyway, the rose and raspberry flavors were sufficient rich, that I forgave them this time and allowed that maybe this pastry could be allowed, at least enough to call this an excellent cake.

I had after an evening running where I got maybe 60% through my 13 km neighborhood running course around Daikanyama. I was coming up to a turn and noticing a red brick tower in the distance ahead and had trouble thinking what building by the station it might beyond to. Then I noticed a cross on top and realized that I had missed a church on a side street. It's a nice building, too, though there a couple bigger ones in this neighbor (which has more churches than any other I know in Japan), so I was happy to find it, and quite my run, went back to my bicycle, and got some photos I was missing for Shibuya sites.

En Vedette, Fromage Blanche

Saturday's other cake (cutting down on trips) was Fromage Blanche (I know, but that's the logical interpretation of the phonetic Japanese; if only there was some Chou pastry, it could be Fromage Blanc Chou). White cheese is pretty tasteless, so I wasn't sure what to expect, but the raspberry was just the right amount, and cheese mousse has a great texture, so I'm much more confident calling this excellent than the previous cheese cake I reported. Also, it didn't suffer from the travel by bicycle as much as other cakes last Saturday.