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Ever since we first heard intel about Dominique Ansel's upcoming French-Asian bakery in downtown Manhattan, the anticipation has been high for the sweet new concept—and now we've got a delicious first look.
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Ansel—king of the Cronut and founder of one of the best bakeries in New York City—will expand his NYC dessert empire with a brand-new bakeshop called Papa d'Amour, debuting at 64 University Place (between Tenth and Eleventh Avenues) next Thursday, May 22. Named for the sweet sobriquet his two young children call him, the bakery pays tribute to his kids' Taiwanese and French heritage with a spotlight on Asian bread culture—think fluffy shokupan and pillowy milkbreads, steamed buns, rich egg tarts, flaky layered pastries, and more.
And this being an Ansel property, of course there will be plenty of playful inventiveness on the menu, too. There will be mochi doughnuts inspired by the chef's favorite dim-sum dish, the taro puff: vanilla mochi and strawberry guava jam center surrounded by creamy taro and that flaky crispy lace batter crust that shatters with each and every bite. A Danish gets a savory twist in honor of Ansel's favorite late-night meals, filling flaky laminated brioche with a center of sticky rice (nuo mi fan) seasoned with shallot oil, soy-glazed Kurobuta pork hot dogs, furikake, and nori. And a classic, silky egg tart gets a nostalgic nod to New York with pretzel salt for a bit of saltiness and crunch.
Clotted cream to spread on the shop's shokupan loaves—which will also be used for savory sandos and toasts—will be made in a rice cooker, and a steam station will turn out things like a steamed croissant bao (filled with soft scrambled eggs with blistered tomato and vermicelli) and a banana-bread version of a fluffy steamed Malay sponge cake.
You can take a gander at some of those tasting-sounding creations below ahead of Papa d'Amour's opening next week:
