Wednesday 3 September 2014

Ladurée Parisian Tearoom in London

Happy Wednesday! 

Hope everyone is having a lovely day. I was very blessed to spend my afternoon at Ladurée. One of my favourite spots in town plus its central location -the Harrods branch- makes it great to meet people from all over London. 

Ladurée is a French brand with a rich history and a charming story. It was established by Louis Ernest Ladurée in 1862 as a bakery, but an unfortunate fire burnt down the place. It was reopened in 1871 as a pastry shop with fabulous paintings by the famous painter of the time, Jules Cheret

Paris was becoming a more of a destination for luxury, art and literature. Ladurée's wife, Jeanne Souchard, came with the idea to turn the pastry shop to a tea salon. The first of its time. Then the place was handed down to family and each added to its development and growth. Their delicious macaroons were introduced by Ladurée's cousin, Pierre Desfontaines in the early 20th century. 

Later, it was bought by David Holder and his group in 1997, where it was promoted and taken internationally (more on the story on their tumblr website). 

The interior design of the place is a mix of simple and elegant. The white and the pastel colours gives the place its simplicity, but the chandeliers and the sculptures gives the place its elegancy and class.  


Their deserts were a work of art and looked and tasted divine. 
Their macaroons have the perfect texture!
There are three main seating spaces. The first two spaces are facing the deserts bar. One is downstairs and the other is just above it upstairs. The third space is inside the sculpture room with the black velvet. I like the third space the most. 


Their menus and cutlery are in pastel colours as a continuation of the branding. The menu had some good choices and my highlight was that their meat and chicken was halal! That made my day! It's a luxurious cafe in Harrods, so the menu prices match the location. 
I had their jasmine ice tea, but couldn't drink it without the added sugar syrup and lemons. The waiter made sure I enjoyed it. I liked that a little extra bit of care. 
I ordered the mini burgers and they were really nice. 
Then came tea time! I tried their speciality tea with cinnamon and orange blossom *perfect blend for fall* that complimented the desert well. We ordered the Ispahan. It was a "smooth rose flavoured macaron biscuit, rose petal cream, fresh raspberries and lychees" This one tasted SO GOOD! Light, the right level of sweetness and the rose petal cream was amazing! We also ordered the chocolate cake; Tentation. It was very chocolaty, rich, moist and full on. I think these are my two most favourite deserts they have.   

Update: the Harrods Laduree branch is very UNfriendly towards kids. I took my almost three year old nephew there and they didn't even give us a baby seat and they tried to let us leave when we got there by saying the waiting will take long when they had tables available. I was very disappointed.  

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