KL Patisserie, a modern tea room and pastry boutique in the 17th arr.
When I reached the KL Patisserie in Wagram my initial reaction was that of a surprise. I did not expect such a place in that neighbourhood, which is not particularly known for its pastry shops. I was taken aback by the combination of a modern but comfy and super spacious tea room with the sleek display of haute patisserie. I actually did not know how to categorise it for the purposes of this blog. Is it a salon de the or a patisserie? Given the vast space dedicated to the salon aspect of the offering, I decided to present it in the "best cafe" section of the blog.
KL Patisserie is the brainchild of young pastry chef Kevin Lacote (photo credit KL Patisserie). His resume is impressive having worked in places such as Hotel Georges V, the Ambroisie and the La Grande Cascade restaurants, HUGO & VICTOR, La Table du Kilimandjaro in Courchevel. He became Executive Pastry Chef under the aegis of Yannick Alleno, while his work at Sofitel Faubourg cemented his passion for seasonality and exciting flavour profiles. But at KL Patisserie, it is not just excellent pastry on offer. Chef Lacote's vision was to offer high quality gateaux in a beautiful lounge where the creations are paired up with wines, coffee and teas from excellent sources such as House Jugetsudo, a renowned Japanese tea company that dates back to1854 and G.Cannon, a famous luxury French tea company that dates back to 1898.
The lounge is stylish and modern but also snug and relaxed, in yellow and grey tones. It is very spacious with about 14 tables available while the big bay windows bring lots of sunlight in making it feel even bigger. It is tranquil and spacious enough to visit with a baby or a toddler. It is actually a great place to watch the world go by. And if that is not enough voyeurism for you, the lounge is divided from the on-site pastry lab just by a big glass wall allowing you to catch a glimpse of the chefs preparing your treat.
In addition to the freshness and seasonality you would expect from an on-site production kitchen, there is another surprise! Certain items are made to order on the spot! For example there is a mille feuille that is assembled last minute to guarantee maximum crispiness of the pastry and airiness of the cream. Most noteworthy, the house specialty the churros!!! Can you imagine having fresh churros in Paris? But you need to come in after 11am to sample those. In addition to the specials and other pastries, there are also viennoiseries, teacakes, biscuits, madeleines, financiers and jams. Not to forget the offer of breakfast, a combination of musli, toast, juice and coffee/tea. And I heard somewhere that their hot chocolate is divine too made by a special blend relying simply on the quality of the beans to deliver flavour and no additives or spices.
I visited KL Patisserie with a friend who unfortunately did not have time to hang around for churros so we opted for pastry instead. We had excellent coffee and tea along with a coffee eclair and Kara Damia one of the signature pastries of the boutique.
The eclair was deeply satisfying, with excellent coffee cream and crisp but fluffy pastry and caramel shards but the real epicurian moment came with Kara Damia. A dreamy combination of oozing salted caramel with macadamia nuts inside a shortbread case, topped with crunchy coconut dacquoise, followed by another layer of caramel (thin this time) containing macadamia praline (I think). These jewels are then hidden under a mountain of milk chocolate mousse (which I think had a hint of caramel) and jelly caramel glaze. How can you say no to this? I so enjoy desserts that play with textures as much as flavours. Crumbly shortbread, brittle nuts, viscous caramel, light and crunchy dacquoise, soft velvety mousse, sturdy but discreet gel, snappy chocolate collar.. And yes perhaps my favourite words as far as flavours are concerned may be chocolate, caramel and nuts (let's also add aromatic coconut) but it takes great skill to balance them and create something that marries well together without one ingredient overpowering the other. Certainly joyful sublimity was achieved with Kara Damia.
Another surprise by this boutique? The chef offers patisserie courses on-site for a maximum of 5 participants. There are courses for adults (plated desserts, choux pastry, chocolate souffle, verrines) and others for children of 7-12 years old (biscuits, cookies).
This is a delightful patisserie/salon de the. The lounge is contemporary and welcoming but also spacious and relaxing which is quite a find in Paris. The pastry standards are reassuringly high featuring classics such as Saint Honore, Mille Feuille, Religieuse, Mont Blanc etc with modern twists but also original creations such as the Kara Damia and others such as the Muscovado cheesecake, the Raspberry Piper (raspberries, biscuit, mousse with pistachios and red pepper from Kampot), the Choco Mani (shortbread, salted peanuts, coconut mousse, chocolate and lime). The on-site production kitchen and the seasonal menu guarantee products that are fresh and taste their best by taking advantage of in-season ingredients. In short, good cake in an easy-going and pleasant environment. This place might become my regular spot!
Address
78 Avenue de Villiers,
75017 Paris
https://www.klpatisserie.com/
Transport
Metro Wagram (line3)
Bus 31 RER C Pereire
Opening hours: Monday: 10am–6pm Tuesday-Friday: 8:45am–7:30pm Saturday: 9:30am–7:30pm
Sunday: 10am–6pm
Photo credit: all photos are mine unless otherwise stated