Day Three: Tarte au Chocolat, Thevenin

On Day Two of what seems to be a three-day Valentine's celebration (why not?), we've finished lasagna, a 2002 Vintage bottle of Veuve Clicquot (a nice combo, I must say) and are tucking into today's entry, a Tarte au Chocolat from Thevenin. Thevenin is a bakery on Notre-Dame-des-Champs in the 6th, a cute boulangerie/patisserie that I always happen to pass on the way home from the gym. Today I stopped to grab baguettes for the abovementioned dinner, and was completely charmed by the heart-shaped raspberry meringues in the window. However, given our framboise extravaganza of last night, I went instead for a classic: Tarte au Chocolat.

The Tarte is nicely presented (though said presentation now includes a big chunk of Jeff's caramel "bombe," as you can see by looking closely at the tarte's rear end, so I think we should probably at some point discuss the finer points of packing pastries for l'emporter), with half a chocolate macaron on top. The pastry itself is quite nice - the chocolate is dark, mostly bitter and just a hint of sweet. And a really nice consistency - creamy, not too sugary. Delish. And the crust, especially compared to the Tarte Citron from Thursday, is sturdy, a bit crunchy. The macaron is an afterthought and not a particularly germane one. Its chocolate flavor is a bit stale - I brush it to the side and don't even finish it.

However, the rest of the tarte is terrific. A really nice chocolatey flavor and the perfect finish to a spicy dinner -- and really lovely with good champagne. But really, what isn't?

Off to spend the rest of the evening with Nicolas Cage, Sarah Jessica Parker, and James Caan. That's right, Honeymoon in Vegas. A Valentine's classic. Bonne nuit, tout le monde!