LADURÉE - WHAT'S THE BIG DEAL?

*Originally published 1/16/18.

Earlier this year I found out about Ladurée, a famous bakery and tea house founded in 1862 that invented the gorgeous colorful French macarons that are sweetening up lives around the world! So of course as soon as I got to Paris I ran to the original Ladurée at Rue Royale to validate myself as a pastry student and try their famous macarons – I was not disappointed. Of course I bought a box of 12 to try almost all the flavors they had that day!
Here’s 5 reasons why they’re so amazing: ​

1. Flavors are out of this world!
Not that lemon and chocolate caramel aren’t flavors you can get almost anywhere but man they sure did make sure these bite sized beauties tasted out of this world. Sometimes it’s the simple things that are the hardest things to accomplish and each flavor was great! They have 10 classic flavors: Chocolate, Rose, Orange Blossom, Liquorice, Pistachio, Salted Caramel, Coffee, Lemon, Raspberry and Vanilla. Each season they release a new flavor, I’ve tried Passion Fruit. It’s delicious. ​

2. Locations around the globe
As of 2018 there are 90 locations around the world! In France alone Ladurée has 30 locations. If you’re in the U.S. you can find Ladurée in New York, Los Angeles, Washington, and Miami. Unfortunately no Chicago location yet but hey maybe they’re just waiting for the right person to open a location there… like me! ;)

3. Macarons aren’t the only star desserts– Croissant aux noix and pain au pistachio
Besides the fact that the macrons are amazing they also have other awesome desserts! Pain au pistachio (think croissant with pistachio filling) and croissant aux noix (croissant with walnut filling and sweet glaze) were my two favorites! Where can you go wrong with a croissant much less a sweet croissant!?

4. Beautiful picture perfect packaging 
Can we please take a second to appreciate how adorable this packaging is? I felt like I was getting a present. Now that I think about it I kind of was! There are a variety of colors for their branded boxes which you get to choose when purchasing your macarons! Your sweets are kept fresh inside the box with a piece of parchment sealed with an elegant Ladurée sticker and then placed into a branded classic mint colored gift bag. Oh and they give you a little info sheet with the different flavors (just in case you forget) and a brief history!

5. Rich History
As I mentioned earlier, Ladurée has been around for quite a while, 156 years to be exact. When Louis Ernest Ladurée opened his bakery doors in 1862 I really doubt he could imagine what the future would hold for his bakery. Less than 10 years after they opened, a fire destroyed the bakery and placed Ladurée on its new path to success with a gorgeously decorated interior by famous painter Jules Chéret. In 1930, Pierre Desfontaines, Ladurée’s grandson took two macarons and sandwiched them with ganache in the middle creating the macaron we know today. Pure genius. He also opened a tearoom (known in France as a Salon de thé) where women could gather together in a place other than their house and enjoy tea. Back then this was revolutionary because women weren’t allowed in cafés so the Salon de thé at Ladurée became popular quickly.
Read more about their story here.

​So there you have it! Five reasons why Ladurée really is a big deal. Trust me, when it comes to famous things I’m hyper critical and Ladurée didn’t disappoint! I guess I’m going to have to make it my personal mission to make sure all the other locations are as consistent as the original…
Does anyone want to help me eat a ton of macarons?