Pasteis de nata (little Portuguese pastries with a custard filling) were created in the far western corner of Lisbon at the world-famous Pastelaria de Belém, which still heaves with tourists every summer. Served slightly warm, dusted with cinnamon and made with crisp puff pastry, this delicacy is now popping up all over the place thanks to the Nata Lisboa chain of patisseries, which has opened branches in Braga, Porto and now Paris (see also Comme à Lisbonne). Neither too sugary nor too creamy, the pastries are exquisitely baked at this 9th arrondissement outlet, avoiding the rubbery pastry and strange aftertaste you often get at cheap local boulangeries.
A single pastry will set you back €2 (double what it costs in Portugal), so you may as well make the most of the trip by grabbing a chair and pairing the pastry with a cup of very decent Delta coffee. It’s the next best thing to hopping on a flight to Lisbon.