Troy McNaughtonLa Renaissance – patisserie francaise, dans La Rocks
August 29th 2006 04:12
If you walked down Argyle Street in the Rocks with your mother, looking for a quick bite to eat before heading to the piers for an exhibition, you might wander into this sweet-smelling corridor also.
At 47 Argyle Street there is: Patronage – check. Baked goods – check. Coffee – check. Seating – check, a little on the street facing west for the evening and the rest in a courtyard, dappled in the morning. It was winter, to be fair, as we were reminded by an otherwise well-dressed young woman sporting stripey socks and thongs to my great dismay – stripey socks have never been so abused and misused.
We squeezed in line and exchanged platitudes of the “oh I think you were next” variety to order at the counter along with those there for coffee and takeaway baguettes and cakes, the latter for which La Renaissance is renowned.
Secret Sydney would appear to have gone cultural this week. In this case, Le Chat Noir and other of that ilk adorn the walls, with posters for art exhibitions and the banter of the server in French to more Francos than I knew were in Sydney combining to create a thoroughly Continental experience.
Once you reach the courtyard out the back (hidden from view from Argyle Street and requiring close relations with the waiters to get through via an even narrower corridor) if it weren’t for the fig trees that thrive in our Sydney sandstone you would swear you were in Europe – complete with the overpowering pretensions of writers (or thespians) wearing more makeup than most men staring pensively into space, pen poised, and clearly not having all that many thoughts worth writing down.
Cross to my mother who drinks her coffee long and black, spurning the delights of sugar and milk, who says anything tastes good after Canadian attempts on the “Americano”, which required much modification via extra shots and the like on my parents’ recent jaunt to Canuckville.
No, my tastes are fully adjusted to the Sydney coffee-zone, and this coffee was quite lovely, complete with tasteful and well-executed coffee art.
Now, let it be testament to the pleasantness of La Renaissance that we dropped in twice in one day. Once for a light lunch (baguettes, light and fluffy and plenty crispy on the outside to the point of injury to the mouth) and later for cake. I can’t even begin to describe the beauty of this particular contribution to the Rocks collective menu. Milles feuilles, chocolate éclairs (which we sampled), brioche, croissants and all number of tarts, tortes and titillations.
Check out the website (they take orders, though these are the crème de la crème, if you will pardon the pun, and prices are reflective) – you have to respect an establishment with a separate section of Cakes for Chocoholics.
Yet there was a mortal sin committed. And I don't mean the cake. The tiramisu was laced. With no warning from the label, or even the fancy schmancy "Tiramisu" badge on top of the slice we ordered, that it contained *gasp*..... orange liquer. NOT IMPRESSED. And no, the individual serves do not look ANYTHING like the picture on the right. There is no orange colour, I swear! Do not be fooled!
Lucky for them I still had a chocolate eclair to hoe into, whilst passing the disgustingly citrus concoction off to my mother.
Mixing dairy and citrus was NEVER a good idea.
Grrrr.
La Renaissance is open seven days 8.30am - 6.00pm. Stop in and say ‘salut’ but beware the lurking liquer.
We squeezed in line and exchanged platitudes of the “oh I think you were next” variety to order at the counter along with those there for coffee and takeaway baguettes and cakes, the latter for which La Renaissance is renowned.
Cross to my mother who drinks her coffee long and black, spurning the delights of sugar and milk, who says anything tastes good after Canadian attempts on the “Americano”, which required much modification via extra shots and the like on my parents’ recent jaunt to Canuckville.
No, my tastes are fully adjusted to the Sydney coffee-zone, and this coffee was quite lovely, complete with tasteful and well-executed coffee art.
Lucky for them I still had a chocolate eclair to hoe into, whilst passing the disgustingly citrus concoction off to my mother.
Mixing dairy and citrus was NEVER a good idea.
Grrrr.
La Renaissance is open seven days 8.30am - 6.00pm. Stop in and say ‘salut’ but beware the lurking liquer.
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