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DEGUSTATION
DEGUSTATION
Le Petit Paris
in P icton
Transport your senses to the mother country
of perfect pastries, with a trip to a genuine
Parisian pâtisserie in Picton.
Le Posh Pâtisserie was opened late last year by French expats
and husband and wife team Didier and Veronica Crevecoeur.
Didier, from Normandy, has more than 40 years’ experience
as an executive French chef working in a number of
international resorts around the world, while Veronica
from Paris, has a background in tourism and hospitality
management and is fluent in four languages.
The pair have owned and operated several French Cafes,
pâtisseries, crêperies and restaurants around the world, but
recently moved to Marlborough to be closer to their new
granddaughter.
Fortunately for Picton, the passionate French foodies decided
to share a tasty little piece of their home country with
Marlborough.
Veronica and Didier work through the night in their
commercial kitchen in Blenheim preparing fresh baked
pastries and baguettes with various fillings before
transporting them to Picton, still warm and ready for
breakfast, brunch or lunch.
STORY BY KAT PICKFORD
SARAH HODGETT PHOTOGRAPHY
21 WELLINGTON ST, PICTON | OPEN: 8AM - 3PM TUESDAY - SUNDAY
The cabinets display a tempting array of pastries and sweets
including croissants, almond croissants, pains au chocolat,
pains au raisins, cinnamon rolls, mini baguettes, tarts, éclairs,
flan, clafoutis, savoury quiches and pies and many more
genuinely delicious French treats. made of a tower of choux pastry puffs, bound with caramel.
The croissant pastry is golden and flaky on the outside and
soft and chewy on the inside. In Paris, pâtisseries do not serve coffee, but caffeine loving
Kiwis demanding flat whites have finally convinced Veronica
to step away from tradition and throw a drop of Kiwi cafe
culture in the mix, and she now serves up Mojo coffee as
well.
The fruit tarts are generously portioned and look almost too
good to eat, while the filled baguettes are elegant in their
simplicity, and utterly delicious.
“Nothing is more impressive than croque-en-bouche, it’s a
real showstopper of a cake, creating an unforgettable finale
for birthdays and other special occasions,” Veronica says.
Veronica says they have received a very warm welcome from
Picton locals and holiday makers who have happily stumbled
upon their little shop in Wellington Street. Fans of traditional French fare will also be excited to learn
Veronica and Didier are planning a series of four-course
French dinners at their huge functions room at the Waterlea
Racecourse in Blenheim.
“We’re very very happy to be here, we think Picton is such a
beautiful little place, having a genuine French pâtisserie here
is like the cherry on top,” Veronica says. The monthly dinners will have a different theme each month,
featuring the traditional dishes from different regions of
France and paired with stunning local wines.
“People have been delighted to find us, we’ve had some
amazing feedback and thrilled to bring something unique to
the region - there’s nothing quite like us around the entire top
of the south.” “There is some absolutely beautiful wine in Marlborough,
that pairs perfectly with French food, we are very excited to
share a genuine French cuisine experience with everyone,”
says Veronica.
As well as fresh pastries and treats, the couple are also
available to provide tasty nibbles for catering as well as
special occasion cakes such as fraisier (French strawberry
cake) or croque-en-bouche - the impressive French dessert The dinners will be by booking only, watch this space for
more details!
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