la voie française is a badly kept secret. this wonderful french patisserie in the most unlikely of location (the quiet end of dominion road), has queues lining up for baker tetsuya namekawa’s breads, pastries, sandwiches and all manner of delectable baked treats. tetsuya trained in paris under the famed pierre herme (the undisputed king of macarons).
the team of bakers bake throughout the day as well, so there are fresh, warm baked goods coming out of the oven at different times of the day. these breads and pastries are served at some of the top restaurants (e.g. meredith’s, the grove, clooney) and cafes (e.g. the grassy knoll) in auckland.
their baguette is justifiably the best in auckland (and probably new zealand). i am addicted to their baguette rolls (5 for $3), which are a perfect portion for one. they are brilliant for dinner parties, and i buy them in lots of twenties for when guests come over. they reheat beautifully, and have the perfect crust with a fragrant chewy centre. i have converted several people; or rather i have ruined several guests’ ability to eat mediocre bread.
for a treat, i indulge in their croissant aux amandes (almond croissant). i could wax lyrical about the perfection of the flavour of the almond paste, crunch and buttery-ness… there is also a selection of pastel-coloured macarons ($1.70 each) in flavours or pistachio, blackcurrant, hazelnut, lemon and others.
their sandwiches are excellent as well; my favourite is the roti poulet ($5), which has chicken shreds in a peppery mayonnaise dressing, lightly pickled carrot ribbons, mesclun salad between slices of their pain de mie (soft white bread). the croque monsieur is cheesy, mustardy and just plain delicious warmed up.
for the rest of the review and more photos, see http://easyfoodhacks.blogspot.co.nz/2013/12/la-voie-francaise-mt-roskill-auckland.html