[Paris] Dessance

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Dessance

Add: 74 rue des Archives, 75003
Tel: 01 42 77 23 62
Hours: [Wed-Thu] 2~11pm [Fri-Sat] 12pm~12am [Sun] 12~11pm
Website: www.dessance.fr
Price: [dessert menu] €19~42
Visited on: Jan 2013

Dessance, Paris’ first gastronomic dessert bar, opened quietly about 4 weeks ago.  I say “quietly” because until very recently, I could barely find any information about it on the internet.  Curious, I dropped by on a Saturday afternoon with Lindsay to find out what it’s about.

The two-floor space consists of a bar+open kitchen on the right as you enter, and about ten tables on the left and up on the mezzanine.

Right behind the bar is pastry chef Christophe Boucher, previously at Ledoyen (three Michelin stars) and Le Grand Véfour (two Michelin stars).

There are two menus to choose from. The smaller menu (€19) includes a mise en bouche, a dessert of choice, and mignardises. The larger “carte blanche” menu (€36) includes a mise en bouche, 4 desserts at the chef’s choice, and mignardises. Thirsty? Non-alcoholic and alcoholic beverage pairing available at additional prices. There are also two savory options for those who need a bit of salt to balance out the sugar.

Our mise en bouche was composed of clementines, quince compoté, vin chaud sorbet, and coriander foam. I’m not a huge fan of coriander, but the flavor is subtle and nicely weaved in with the rest of the ingredients. And vin chaud sorbet? Love.

Then came the real deal.

At the waiter’s recommendation, I ordered a plate of beetroot, white chocolate cloud, cranberry compote, bergamote sorbet. The flavor combination seems unlikely at first glance, but works out surprisingly well with a clever contrast of sweet and sour, and a small dose of creaminess injected into an otherwise very light dish.  Also liked the cacao bits for the extra of flavor and texture.

I also tried a bite (or two…) of Lindsay’s chocolate vanilla croustillant with bitter caramel cloud, which was at the same time intense in flavor but not overwhelming in the least bit. The croustillant base is slightly salted, which both balances and highlights the sweetness of this plate.

To finish, we were served a trio of mignardises. Most memorable was the spoonful of sweet clover cream with kumquat confit (memorable because I didn’t quite like the flavor of sweet clover), most tasty was the glazed chestnut marshmallow, and lastly there was the sesame tuile with kumquat confit.

I liked what I saw and tasted on this first visit. Christophe Boucher’s plated desserts are creative, balanced, and light – all these little sweet bites will pleasantly surprise you without giving you a sugar overload. Will be back!