.png)
During our trip to Paris, we wanted to make the most of our time in the city! We both love to eat and want to try as many sweets as possible! We decided to look for a food tour in Paris, and we found Secret Food Tours chocolate and pastry tour! We paid €89 per person and got to sample sweets from seven dessert shops around Paris. Our group for the tour was pretty small, just the two of us and another family of four. The group size made it easy for us all to walk together through the city streets, and listen to our guide.
Meet Up For The Dessert Tour:
The dessert tour does not offer pick up or drop off and is a walking food tour throughout the city. We were given a meeting point and told to look for a guide with a specific color umbrella. We got there early and spotted the guide immediately as she got there. The guide told us to look for the company umbrella. We were worried we might miss it, however the umbrella was bright and easy to spot. We waited a few minutes for the other group to show up, did some quick introductions, and then began our journey.
Aux Merveilleux de Fred:
Our first stop was at a bakery called Aux Merveilleux de Fred, and we each got to try one le merveilleux. A le merveilleux is a meringue with whipped cream and then dipped in a topping like chocolate shavings. There were multiple flavors and the guide explained each to us before we chose. We told the guide which flavor we wanted and she went inside to pick them up. We tried the chocolate and the coffee, and both were delicious! We ate them outside the bakery as our guide told us about the bakery and about the process of making a le merveilleux.
À la Mère de Famille:
The next stop on the tour was from À la Mère de Famille, a well-known old-school French bakery to try a chocolate eclair. We were invited inside to look at what else the bakery offered when we arrived, as our guide picked up our eclair order. The bakery had a case of baked goods and shelves of chocolates, there was so much to look at but we did not have much time.
Our guide led us outside the bakery and gave us all our portion of eclair (we each got ⅓ of one). I have never had an eclair in the U.S. that I liked, they always have a fake taste to them, but the one we tried from À la Mère de Famille was life-changing. I still think about this eclair daily!!
La Crêperie mon ami:
From À la Mère de Famille we walked to a small creperie between an Italian restaurant and a café. We sat on the small patio of the Italian restaurant since they had not opened for dinner yet and enjoyed a freshly made crepe and a bottle of water. The shop offered lots of different crepe flavors. We tried the traditional butter and sugar and the traditional with lemon. They also had a Nutella flavor! We sat and rested for a moment at the creperie before we moved on to the next stop, Chocolate Illene. The crepes were so good! The lemon cut perfectly through the sweetness for a delightful bite!
Chocolat Illèné:
At Chocolate Illèné we were able to try multiple unique flavors of chocolate. The chocolate shop is run by two women who bring their cultural background into their flavors. They were sweet and had so many beautiful chocolates for sale. Included in the tour we got to try four flavors of chocolate, and tried to guess what they were! For an additional fee we were allowed to try a few more flavors, we opted in and they were also tasty.
Les Choupettes de ChouChou:
From Chocolate Illene we went to Les Choupettes de ChouChou to try choupettes. The dessert is the owner's take on the popular chouquette! They are crispy chouquettes topped with creamy whipped cream. We all sampled the original flavor but there were other flavors on the menu. We wanted to try the chocolate but did not have time! Our guide brought us inside the bakery to warm up and enjoy the dessert in the small but cozy atmosphere. The delightful ambiance and friendly staff made our visit even more memorable.
Christophe Roussel:
Our next stop was to sample some macarons and hot chocolate from a bakery called Christophe Roussel. We were all invited inside to sit and look at the different flavors of macaroons they had to offer. We each got to take two home (or eat them there) and tried French hot chocolate. We got to sit in the cafe for a few minutes and sip our drinks before moving on to our next location. We took our macaroons to go and tried the sea salt caramel, chocolate, double chocolate, and pistachio. They were all tasty but the sea salt caramel was our favorite!
Pierre Hermè:
Our last stop was at Pierre Hermè to sample a unique flavor of chocolate truffles. This stop was a surprise stop on the tour according to our guide. We were all given a chocolate truffle and tried to guess the flavor. It tasted sweet and fruity. We found out it had a passionfruit filling. From here the guide wrapped up the tour and gave us directions on how to get back to where the tour started or where we needed to go to get back to the hotel. We all went our separate ways outside Pierre Hermé, and the tour ended.
Need to know:
The tour was all done on foot, and we walked close to a mile round trip, maybe a little more. Some of the streets we walked around were uphill as well. This is not a good tour for those with mobility issues since it is so walking intensive! The route is doable for those comfortable walking at a medium to slow pace with some slight hills.
What to bring:
Walking shoes
Money to buy extra goodies
An appetite
Summary:
This was our first tour with Secret Food Tours and based on our experience in Paris we would go out with them again in another city! On their chocolate and pastry tour in Paris, we sampled sweets from seven dessert shops around the city! We paid €89 per person (€178 total), and included in that price was all of the food we sampled, and the tour guide. We got to see a different side of the city that we probably would not have seen if we did not go on this tour and it was nice to have a guide as we meandered through neighborhoods trying different sweets. We enjoyed all the food we tried on the tour, but we especially loved the chocolate eclair from À la Mère de Famille. Do you think a chocolate and pastry tour with Secret Food Tours is worth your wallet? Let us know below!!
Comments