15 Places for Tasting Best French Desserts in Paris

History: Founded in 1862, Laduree is known as the inventor of the double decker macaroon, the two sides sandwiched together with a creamy ganache filling. 15,000 macarons are sold daily which makes Laduree one of the most famous macaron makers in the world today.

The founder, Louis-Ernest Ladurée, was a talented writer. He produced plays, poetry, novels, essays, historical and scientific works, more than 20,000 letters and more than 2,000 books and pamphlets. He strongly supported social reform and wrote to promote those causes. In 1862 he founded the bakery, it was then burned down in the Paris commune uprising of 1871, then rebuilt. It wasn’t until 1930, when it became a more well known name, that the grandson of Louis-Ernest came up with the double decker macaron.

In the late 1800's Laduree provided the first "tea room" for women (who at the time were not allowed in cafés), thus allowing women to mingle outside of their homes. Their restaurant is now very good as well, if you want a sit down meal. Look for other Ladurée stores in Paris, as well as Monaco, Switzerland, Japan, Italy, Lebanon, Turkey, UAE, Saudi Arabia, Luxembourg, Kuwait, and Ireland. Highlights: Their Macaroons. I love the Vanille, Citron, and Praline.

If you have seen the 2007 Pixar film Ratatouille, you have already been introduced to Gaston Lenotre. The character Gusteau (Remi’s idol) was modeled after Gaston Lonotre. History: Lenotre, (1920-2009) was born in Normandy, France. His mother was one of the first pastry chefs in Paris and was the head chef for the Rothschild family. The Lenotres kept cooking as a family affair and at one time Gaston worked with 12 of his family members, including his son Alain, the founder of the Culinary Institute in Houston, USA. Lenôtre was a pioneer during his lifetime.

Among the accolades of firsts, he created: the first chain of upscale bakeries in Paris, a bakery-café bistro in the first French shopping mall, the first central kitchen in the country outside of Paris, the first professional French re-training chef school, the first line of frozen desserts distributed all over France, and the first International bakery franchises. Highlights: Fraiser (strawberry sponge cake) and Opera (dense chocolate cake). Lenotre also has 8 other locations in Paris, but the one on the Champs de Mars is the most picturesque.

The gourmet food and dessert store Fauchon was founded in 1886 by Auguste Fauchon. Stepping inside will make you feel like you’ve stepped into the upper echelon of French society as the decor and the food are pristine. History: Originally a street vendor and then a wine merchant, Auguste Fauchon opened this store in Paris in 1886. Due to its high quality, Fauchan became famous very quickly, both domestically and internationally.

For more than a century, Fauchon served the rich, royal, and famous. In 1968, when French radicals wanted to strike at a symbol of decadence, they broke into Fauchan and, as Robin Hood would have done, passed out foie gras to the poor. The Fauchan franchise stayed in the family, but after a fire, which killed one of Auguste's daughters, another non-business minded daughter and her husband took over. Sadly, the Fauchon empire started a rapid decline.

Luckily, it was later placed under new management and became profitable again. Pop culture: In the book "Hannibal" by Thomas Harris, the serial killer Hannibal waits until everyone was sleeping before he produced a Fauchan bag of food. In the movie Cast Away (2000) Chuck Noland (played by Tom Hanks) hands his colleague a fresh baguette in a Fauchan bag before they get on the plane. Highlights: Don’t view this stop as the best place you will ever eat at, but it is nice. I like the pain au chocolate here and have not been disappointed with anything I’ve tried.

Robert Linxe and his chocolate concoctions at La Maison du Chocolate will satiate the cravings of even the world’s most discerning chocoholic. History: After several years of studying pasteries, Robert Linxe spent a year in Switzerland to study chocolate making. He went back to pastries but in the end gave in and switched to chocolate full time. About the switch he said, "I felt that, like a musician, I had at last found the instrument that suited me perfectly.”

Recommendations: They create truffles of every flavor from hazelnut to caramel and cognac. The Delice cake, as the name implies, is also delicious. Check their website for the other locations (6 others in Paris).

Jean-Paul Hévin is a must see and goûter (taste) if you are a chocolate person. History: Jean-Paul Hévin was born into a farming family in Mayenne, France in 1957. Hevin originally wanted to be an electronic engineer, applying to a school in his area. He serendipitously missed the application date and decided to learn pastry instead, and earned his certificate as a confectioner/chocolate maker a few years later. He runs 4 stores in Paris, 5 in Japan and 2 in Hong Kong. Accolades: Meilleur ouvrier (best craftsman) de France 1986.

In 2004, the Japanese newspaper Shinbun rated Hevin the #1 producer of chocolate in Japan. In 2005, he became the winner of Paris’ best classic macaron for his chocolate flavor. Highlights: They have great caramels and I have frequently over indulged in the salted caramel milk chocolate bar. Make sure to not leave without a chocolate macaron as well!

Angelina is more than a pastry shop, it's a luxury brand that represents "the French way of life." History: The Austrian confectioner Antoine Rumpelmayer established Angelina, named after his daughter-in-law, in 1903. For over a century, the Angelina tearoom has proven itself to be one of the most prestigious of Parisian gourmet cafes, quickly becoming a must-not-miss venue for Paris’ aristocracy. Proust, Coco Chanel and the greatest French fashion designers were frequently found there, a clientele commensurate with the café. Highlights: Angelina is famous for its thick-as-pudding hot chocolate (chocolat l'Africain) and for its Mont Blanc cake, although I prefer the other pastries to the Mont Blanc cake for taste.

The oldest bakery in Paris, the Maison Stohrer was opened in 1730 by Louis XV's personal pastry chef. It was in this shop that he invented the baba au rum (dry brioche soaked in rum and sugar). Take time to admire the beautiful frescoes and carvings that adorn the exterior. Highlights: baba au rum, strawberry tarte, eclairs, and puits d'amour.

A relatively new shop in a trendy district of Paris, Didier Mathray and Nathalie Robert brought Pain du Sucre to life in 2004. History: Didier was a pastry chef prodigy. He made a name for himself in his town at the ripe age of 13 years old. Creating Pain du Sucre, he aimed to create something unique by mixing together a boutique with a dessert restaurant and in turn, give a new fresh feel to his pastry shops. His partner, Nathalie Robert grew up in Ethiopia, Switzerland, Canada, and Ireland, and used her traveling to help expand her horizons as well as her palate. Highlights: Once again, they are known for their macarons as well as pastries. For macarons: try the mint chocolate. The éclair with hazelnuts and the marshmallow cake are also delicious.

This new cream puff shop opened its doors in May of 2011 and is thriving in its delivery of bite-sized pieces of heaven. The name Popilini is kind of an onomatopoeia as well because of how “poppable” these delicious puffs are. History: The true story behind the name is that Popelini was a chef that came to France in 1540 and is credited with creating cream-puff dough. The store has many flavors but I recommend you go earlier rather then later because the selection vanishes quickly. Recommendations: We only got there in time to sample the pistachio (the rest of the flavors were gone, we got there around 7:30pm). That said, it was outstanding.

Berthillon is one of the premier ice cream and sorbet makers in Paris, and although expensive, I believe it is well worth the 2 euros for a small scoop. History: The company is owned and operated by the Chauvin family, descendants of the eponymous Monsieur Berthillon, who opened the first store in 1954.

Berthillon sells its ice cream in bulk and by the scoop from its shop on the island St. Louis, but many other retailers in Paris sell its selection of ice cream as well. Berthillon's fame derives in part from its use of natural ingredients, with no chemical preservatives, artificial sweeteners or stabilizers. Its ice creams are made only from milk, sugar, cream and eggs. Flavors derive from natural sources (cocoa, vanilla, fruit, etc.). Highlights: Everything, but my favorite is the salted caramel/chocolate or blood orange and raspberry.

This wouldn’t be a truly French list with only one Pierre in the group. Pierre Marcolini is a Belgian Chocolatier with 10 stores around the world. History: Pierre Marcolini won the 1991 best ice cream maker in Belgium, the 1995 award for World Champion Pastry in Lyon, and the European Pastry chef Champion in Rome 2000. Pastries aside, his passion - and what he is most known for - are his high quality and detailed chocolates.

Each year Pierre sends out a coco bean shopper who travels to many countries and brings back a mixture of the best cocoa beans they have found from around the world. Pierre then checks them himself and mixes the coco beans from Madagascar with the ones from Mexico etc, to find subtle mixtures to which he adds the most pure ingredients to create delectable masterpieces.

Hosting pastries in jewelry display cases, Hugo and Victor is truly a gourmet pastry shop. History: Hugues Pouget and Sylvain Blanc were childhood friends in the south of France. They went their separate ways to study and glean as much information as possible about pastries and high end shopping, with Hugues working in a 3 star Michelin rated restaurant with the renowned chef Guy Savoy, and Sylvain working in high end retail for Barry Callebaut Chocolate.

Eventually, they came back together to fulfill their dreams of opening up a dessert store in Paris. Authenticity and freshness are two of their foundations as they deliver desserts that you will be sure to enjoy. Highlights: Victor Pistache, Victor Verveine, Victor Fraise Millefeuille, and the following macarons: mangue, combawa, vanille, myrtille (blueberry), and caramel.

Pierre Hermé is a French pastry chef most famous for his macarons, often with unusual flavor combinations. French Vogue magazine dubbed him "The Picasso of Pastry." History: Heir to four generations of Alsatian bakery and pastry-making tradition, Pierre Hermé began his career at the age of 14 as an apprentice in Paris with the acclaimed pâtissier Gaston Lenôtre, who Hermé claims as his greatest influence and mentor. At age 24 he became the pastry chef at Fauchon, where he remained for 11 years.

In 1997, he was involved in the expansion of Ladurée into a chain of luxury pastry shops. Pierre Hermé was the youngest person ever to be named France's Pastry Chef of the Year, and is also the only pastry chef to have been decorated as a Chevalier of Arts and Letters in 2007. Highlights: Perhaps his most famous is the Ispahan macaron, made with rose, lychee, and raspberry. Hermé's chocolates are also renowned.

His chocolate cake made it onto the Observer's "50 best things to eat in the world" list. The cake is seasonal and when I went this week the manager said it wouldn't be in the store until the fall. But don’t worry, the cake is available through special order. There are 8 other stores in Paris, but not all of them offer cakes.

Don't let your head swirl on this carousel of cakes which is set amid this pastry boutique in Rue du Bac and capable of sweeping any "sweet tooth" off their feet easily. No wonder, many a visitor here are seen walking in circles, backtracking around, and painstakingly deciding which cake to choose, and then changing their mind again… Indeed, choosing from such a variety is tormenting.

The shop has been in place since 2009. With its deliciously colored gourmet citrus interior and a brightly-lit shop window, the Pâtisserie has been inviting those who wish to slip back into their childhood, if just for a short time. Be one of them - you won't regret!

Located on a quaint cobblestone road in Saint Germaine, this picturesque location helps you feel apart from the rest of Paris, which is the exact intent of it’s creators Pierre Cluizel and Sylvie Valette. Dimanche a Paris, a pastry, chocolatier, chocolate store, restaurant, and salon, was created to be different, to be separate, just as Sunday feels different from the other days of the week.

The store's philosophy: “sharing happiness is to give time, discover, taste, lick your fingers, laugh, learn poetry and the world of chocolate.” Highlights: Le Croustillant au Grué de Cacao, Macaron Coquelicot, Macaron Réglisse, Choux Pistache Fruits Rouges, Tartelette Framboise-Estragon, Tartelette Fraise-Coco, Hot Chocolate.