chocomoo

I agree with gingerpeachy. Thierry's macarons met my high standards when I tried them a couple months ago - flavours included lime (there was lime zest in the buttercream), passionfruit, strawberry rhubarb, apricot pistachio, coffee and milk chocolate. The vegetable quiche was surprisingly excellent - the consistency of the egg was flan-like (not overcooked as it often is), and the crust was buttery & crumbly but not heavy, with a layer of toasty cheese on the bottom. As for croissants, lots of people feel that Thomas Haas has the best almond croissants - they are double-baked, flaky & so rich. Bonus: you can call & order them ahead of time so you don't have to wait for them to bring out the next batch (they often run out).

Update: Their last day will be August 26 - phew! One more month left. I just tried the blueberry brioche today - not very brioche-like, but delicious nonetheless, filled with blueberries & cream cheese custard.

Kei's Bakery is closing at the end of July They're moving back to Japan, and are planning to open franchises with Kaori's pastry teacher in Fukuoka, somewhere in the south of France (Hiroshi likes Arles), and somewhere in Italy. They hope to open a combined boulangerie/patisserie in Japan. I'm hoping to visit Kei's again before they close so I can nab some of those Mt. Tea and Mt. Matcha buns. The seasonal strawberry & cream buns are pretty yummy too! They will be selling their business to their friends, who will most likely be converting the space into a cafe.

Thanks for all your suggestions!!

Hi, 4 of us will be going to Paris at the end of May. We're looking for suggestions for restaurants where we can share tables with strangers. My sister & her bf went to Chartier a couple years ago and shared a great conversation with a Jamaican guy & a Parisian guy. Anyone know if Daniel Rose's Spring (1st arrondisement) has re-opened yet? Thanks!

So sad!! First Rare, now Parkside Does anyone know exactly when their last day is?

Yay! I'm so glad - I was worried about them! I've been totally craving the Mt. Matcha & the green tea rusks!

I tried the muscat Kit Kat & the McFlurry caramel macchiato Kit Kats. I thought the muscat flavour tasted pretty fake, but both my friend and my sister liked it. The McFlurry Kit Kat just tasted of caramel. So far, I think my favourite limited-edition flavour of Kit Kat is kinako (bought last May). That isn't saying much though, because I didn't love it & probably wouldn't buy it again. Still waiting for yuzu Kit Kat here! For some reason, the regional flavours of Puccho are available in Canada now. Among the flavours are Hokkaido milk, Okinawa pineapple, some kind of melon, tangerine, strawberry, and grapes.

If you do go to Arashiyama, there's a branch of a shop that sells little figurines that are made from silkworm cocoons They're actually quite cute - I bought a figure of couple of koi for my uncle (who has a pond in his backyard) but now I regret not buying one for myself!! There's also a branch of a store that sells figurines made from Japanese cloth (I don't remember the name of the kind of cloth) - my friend & I bought a whole bunch of cute veggies (bamboo shoot, a bunch of asparagus, eggplant, lettuce, radish, and something else I'm forgetting) and a basket to put them in.

Oh Suzy, I am so sorry to hear about your loss Looking forward to your photos though! I was at Tsukiji around this time last year (on my birthday, no less!) and I had the best birthday breakfast ever! I wish I were back in Japan! I wish I'd spent more time wandering around Kiyomizu-dera & in Arashiyama - so much to see & buy!

Oh no! I hope they're ok... Maybe they went back to Japan for an extended visit?

Pork floss sandwiches!! I should make some for work next week, since I won't be buying deli meat for a while You can also put the pork floss in noodles, as in noodle soups or "lo mein".

Sorry, I can't type Chinese on this computer, plus I can read more Chinese than I can write! Along the lines of "daan ngaa", there's "ngun" (tough & chewy), or "you jiew tou" (has a nice chew). I think "soong" can be used to describe two different kinds of textures: one of which Dejah has mentioned, flakey; the other, to describe a tender cut of meat, as in, "Wow, this pork chop is so 'soong' ". The second one, for me, is harder to describe in English. And to expand on "ngaang" (hard), there's "ngaang gwuk gwuk", which is even harder ("gwuk gwuk" being the sound that the hard food would make if hit against something). Oh, one more! "Meen", to describe a cottony-softness ("meen" is actually the word for cotton). Usage: "This congee is really 'meen' ". Come to think of it, what is "meen" used to describe, other than congee?

We should totally compile a list of textural descriptions! Maybe "song" or "cheui" would be a better describing word for fresh shrimp? Speaking of "daan nga", man, I miss the good fish balls in HK...

Thanks barolo!