Bonjour, readers! Today, I’m here with some of my favorite picks for Paris sweets! As a French major in college, (and an ultra Francophile) I’ve spent my fair share of time eating through the sugary goodness that is French pastry and desserts. I could quite literally talk for hours on end about this stuff, so here’s a list of some of my favorite pastries and where to find them!

1. Macarons
   • Pierre Hermé. If you’re in Paris, you might find yourself getting sucked into the macaron craze. While locals don’t often seek out these little sandwiches of joy, visitors are often found in the numerous bakeries and gift shops searching for macarons. You should try out different stores during your time in Paris, but my reluctant favorite has been Pierre Hermé. I say “reluctant” because I’m usually not a fan of big, famous, everyone-goes-there stores. However, no matter how many places I try, Pierre Hermé constantly remains the best. With a denser filling and powerful flavor, Pierre Hermé has everything I want in the bite sized pastry. My favorites are the rose and chocolate. They also have fun seasonal and/or funky ones to try too! If you like a lighter filling, however, you might be happier with Ladurée. Most bakeries and pastry shops will have their own macarons, though, and they are all worth a try! If you like strong floral flavors, seek out Georges Larnicol’s floral macarons! Their rose and violet were a little too floral for me, but if that’s your jam, definitely check it out.
2. Pain au Chocolat
   • Pain au Chocolat is probably my favorite basic pastry: essentially a croissant dough on the outside with a little bit of chocolate piped in the inside. Often, schoolchildren have these as after school snacks and can even be found in mass-produced supermarket versions. While I’m sure there are some extra special pain au chocolats (like perhaps the one at Julien, near the Jardin de Luxembourg), I firmly believe the best pain au chocolat is the one that you happen upon during an afternoon stroll and feeds your semi-hungry stomach. Explore the local bakeries (look for long lines of locals buying just a baguette, or a sandwich – the line will move fast, I promise!) and see what you find!
     • Tip: once you get close to the front of a line at the boulangerie/patisserie, make sure you know what you want to order. Unless you’re comfortable with the line of people behind you and the baker giving you the side eye for holding up everybody’s day, you should be prepared to move quickly.
3. Cakes
   • Obviously, in the Land of Pastries, there’s a lot of cake and tarts. You’re bombarded with sparkling glass cases and window displays of croquembouche, opéra, fondant au chocolat, tarte au citron, mont blanc, etc. etc. Who knew there were so many different kinds of cakes! Anyway, I’m a bit biased in my choice for favorite place to buy cake because I grew up eating French-inspired cakes and pastries in Japan (Japanese pastry chefs often train with French techniques and recipes). My favorite cake place in Paris is actually a Japanese-French bakery on the Rue Sainte-Anne called Aki Boulanger. My favorite is their mont blanc cake, but you really, really can’t go wrong. All of their cakes and sweet creations are fantastic. Their lunch boxes and savory Japanese breads and creations are delicious too!
4. Gelato/Ice Cream
   • There are so many delicious ice cream and gelato places in Paris. So many. For the tourist experience, go to Berthillon on Ile de la Cité. For a very filling, rose-petal-shaped experience, go to Amorino (yes, it’s a chain, but oh so yummy). I actually never tried Gröm, but I’ve heard it’s delicious! For real though, pretty much try anything and it’s wonderful.
5. Crêpes/Galettes
   • Again, like everything in this list, there are so many crepe places in Paris. One of the really nice ones is in the Marais, called Breizh Café. They have both sweet and savory crêpes, and I remember the sweet one I tried had delicious salted caramel sauce on it.
6. Drinks
   • Okay, drinks aren’t technically a dessert, but since all my favorite drinks are sweet, I thought I’d give you a few tips. First, for a very basic apéritif, try a kir (white wine + fruit liqueur, usually cassis). For a bubbly occasion, try a kir royal (the same as a kir, but with champagne instead of wine). If you’re in the mood for a beer, why not try a monaco, a beer with strawberry syrup.
     • For kids (or for those who don’t drink), you can have a Diabolo, which is essentially an Italian soda. Diabolo menthe (mint soda) is a delightfully dark green color.

Happy traveling and happy eating!