Inspired by my friends A and N, who are staying at a hotel in Soho in June, I have spent many hours wracking my brain, trying to remember the places I’ve discovered during my wanders around there, some dating back 30 years. Trying to transform a very fuzzy memory into concrete details has been an interesting process, kind of like watching a Polaroid photo develop from abstract blurs and blobs into a defined image. But the Internet (and Google) make it so much easier to do now.
So, for example, I’ve been trying to remember the name of a french pastry shop I look for – and usually find – in Soho. At first “Patisserie Valerie” popped into my head – but when I looked at photos of it online (and it’s now a chain) I thought “it’s either changed completely” or “it’s completely the wrong place.”
Turns out it was the latter. Because when I googled these words “french pastry” “London” “Soho” “July 14” I found exactly what I was looking for – and “July 14” was the key phrase! What I remembered most about the shop is once stumbling upon it when – oddly – a play was being staged all around it. Turned out I was there on – or near – July 14 (i.e. Bastille Day) and the pastry shop was staging its annual reenactment of the French Revolution. No joke. It was quite a show. Turns out the pastry shop is called Masion Bertaux and it’s run by an actress who puts on a show every Quatorze Juillet. Bottom line: go there for a pastry and coffee. It’s one of those one-of-a-kind places. And A and N – it’s a two minute walk from your hotel!
Two more tips. During this little mental adventure, I stumbled upon what looks like my kind of guidebook – City Secrets London. There were only a few excerpts of the guidebook offered on this web page (http://www.littlebookroom.com/citysecretslondon.htm) but they include several of my London haunts (including Gordon’s Wine Bar. more about that in a later blog.)
Here’s the blurb from City Secrets London about Maison Berteaux (I shouted “YES!” when I read it – so relieved that my fuzzy remembrance was confirmed as fact.): “…the oldest French patisserie in London, Maison Berteaux (founded by communards in 1871), for a coffee and the best chocolate religeuse you will taste outside Paris. Maison Berteaux is run by the eccentric Michele Wade, an actress, who every 14 July performs a tableau vivante of the French Revolution in the street outside, complete with a guillotine, tricolores and a glimpse of carefully arranged nipple.—Fidelis Morgan, writer ” (Don’t know what chocolate religeuse is- a religious experience with chocolate? Sounds do-able…)
Another good resource, judging from its description of Maison Berteaux (below) is londontown.com (alas Alexander McQueen is no longer w/us.)
“A Soho landmark since 1871 – when Soho really was the only place in Britain where you could eat decent continental food – Maison Bertraux is a charming little French deli and patisserie, with half-a-dozen mismatched tables and an eccentric accordion-playing owner. Delicious cakes, croissants, croques and pastries are part of the appeal, but it’s the atmosphere that makes all the difference. Not surprising, then, that every Central Saint Martin’s art student sips their tea here including fashion designer Alexander McQueen – he’s been coming here since his impoverished days as a tailor on Savile Row. Recently, the upstairs space has become an art gallery run by Tania Wade, typically showing the work of the arty types who populate the cafe downstairs. They, at least, won’t have far to go to see their fellow students’ work. For the rest of us it’s a perfect slice of Soho life.” http://www.londontown.com/LondonInformation/Shops/Maison_Bertaux/5a62/
TakeBetsywithyou 