Where to get these world famous sweet treats
French pastry chef Cedric Grolet is known for his incredible trompe l’oeils – which look like real fruit – as well as cakes and croissants. He now has six patisseries and three are outside Paris.
You can smell Cedric Grolet’s delicacies before you see them. Immediately on entering his patisserie in the foyer of The Berkeley hotel in London’s Mayfair, the rich, buttery aroma hits you and makes the mouth water.
On display are the French pastry chef’s more traditional croissants and pain au chocolates as well as his extraordinary trompe l’oeils.
These delicate little sculptures resemble fruit but actually comprise many layers of pastry, cake, ganache and mousse. They look almost too beautiful to eat until the first bite, when you realise they do indeed taste as good as they look.
Grolet has become a worldwide sensation since opening his first patisserie at Le Meurice in Paris, and people queue for hours to try his sweet treats.
His mesmerising 10-second videos on Instagram that show him constructing his confections have captured the world (the reel on making his version of tartes aux fruits has had 128 million views). But Grolet has serious credentials, not just social media stardom. He was the executive pastry chef at two Michelin-starred Le Meurice Alain Ducasse, and was named France’s best pastry chef seven times and world’s best pastry chef twice.
The recipe for his take on a strawberry, which has a lemon balm ganache centre, took five years to perfect. He has three patisseries in Paris; at Le Meurice, on Ave de l’Opera and his new coffee shop in the 1st arrondissement. He also has outlets in Saint-Tropez and in Singapore as well as The Berkeley.
Tell us about your famous trompe l’oeils.
I didn’t invent anything, sculpted fruit already existed in trompe l’oeil but in a marzipan form. I decided to turn them into pastries, adding a different technical aspect and taste but also a specific understanding of textures. My first creation was the cherry trompe l’oeil.
When did you first decide to put your creations on Instagram?
In 2014 to be precise. It was a friend who signed me up and she told me, “You’ve got to show the world what you’re doing!” I began posting a few photos and in 2022 I started doing the videos [that condense a very long and technical process into a few seconds]. I think I just arrived at the right time and the hard work I’ve put in has enabled me to achieve this notoriety.
How did you first get into the world of food?
I’ve been immersed in food since I was a child; my grandfather had a hotel restaurant and I used to spend my time working alongside him. I also decided to pick strawberries and sell them to the restaurants in my neighbourhood when I was seven years old to earn some pocket money. With the strawberries I picked, I kept a few to bake my first strawberry cake for my mother. I remember I put green marzipan on it, with “strawberry” written on it. I realised I wanted to do it as my career in primary school before I even started pastry school. I’ve always been creative and interested in pastry-making.
What do you think of people queueing for your creations?
I’m just grateful and thank my customers for coming every day to each patisserie (London, pictured). I very much love my job, especially the creative part, where I get to think about tomorrow’s creations.
Best region in France
I have to say my region, Auvergne-Rhone-Alpes, has the best food. It is in the southeast-central part of the country. I love travelling around France and my first stop on my next trip will be Saint-Tropez to see my team as I just opened a pastry boutique there earlier in the year.
No 1 food experience
I have had several favourite travelling experiences with food, to be honest, so it is hard to select just one but I will say Tahiti. It was where I was able to visit the vanilla bean reserves and select products for my patisseries.
What is my favourite bistro in Paris?
Paris is the capital of gastronomy. There’s a restaurant I like in the 2nd arrondissement of Paris where I go quite regularly as it is my favourite. But I won’t give the name because it is one of the only places where I can recharge my batteries.
Tell us about the sweet treats on offer at The Berkeley?
The Berkeley in London was the first European destination I opened outside Paris. You will find five creations from my Fruits and Flowers collection there. I also adapt my pastry and cake offerings according to the country, local tastes and customer feedback. That said, in London you can still find my most popular pastry, which is the Vanilla Flower, as this remains one of the bestsellers in all my stores.
If you love to travel, sign up to our free weekly Travel + Luxury newsletter here.
More Coverage
