My kind of retail therapy.

Friday was hard. This turned out to be just what I needed.

Photo Essay: At the Vietnamese French Bakery

So many croissants! This isn't quite half the case of flavors available.



Raspberry Croissant!



Coconut Croissant!



Young coconut water. My 3 1/2 year old nephew is fond of this beverage. Not bad at all.



Wobbly coconut chunks at the bottom of the coconut water -- to be fished out and eaten using the fork that comes with the bottle.

This place looks like nothing special from the outside (it's in a converted fast food restaurant building on University), but the pastries were fresh, flaky and flavorful. I recommend it. I only wish I'd thought to check if they could make me a Vietnamese coffee.

Dessert for 14

At Cafe Henri for Melanie's birthday (at which dinner I tried escargot for the first time). Rich, dense pound cake (?) was shared by all. I also had an excellent citron et sucre crêpe.

p.s. Escargots are chewy and taste like butter and garlic. Fine by me. I'm just glad I didn't have to dig mine out of its shell.

Pickle Puss

I've hinted at my affection for cornichons, but I didn't go into it then. I have a deep, abiding love for these little pickles. Just thinking about them makes my mouth water.



A dill, a sweet, a bread-and-butter, or a watermelon rind pickle won't always do it. Some days I need a handful of these tiny, sour, crisp gherkins -- brilliant, intense, and brightly acidic.

No pâté necessary.


p.s. There's also something about food in miniature that appeals to me. Can't you see Hunca Munca in the doll house nibbling on one of these?