David, you are both lucky and fortunate! Always enjoy your podcasts and videos! Thanks for sharing! I’m making your Moist Chocolate-Beet Cake this weekend with beautiful, fresh, farmers market beets!
Really enjoyed the video! Such interesting information on the different kinds of chocolates! I'd be in that store constantly if I lived close by. Who could resist the temptation of trying them all?!!
Around ~6:50 into the video you say that you used the Chocolate Extract in The Great Book of Chocolate. I have been through it two times now trying to find the recipe for that mysterious elixir but have failed. Was it embedded in one of the recipes? I have never met a French inspired cake recipe that didn't need serious imbibing so I'm on the lookout for new options.
What an enjoyable video! I was so glad to learn about this incredible little shop and now, when visiting Paris in September, I will definitely stop in for some shopping. I just need to get some research completed so I know what to look for! And really, does a recipe developer ever really retire? Thanks much David for always being so informative and entertaining!
Lively, lovely & intersting :) i must admit, i did get a bit stuck on your comment re: getting ready for retirement! i'd be very happy for you but boy would i miss your missives <3 are you retiring?? xo!
What a lovely interview/discussion. I continue to learn so much about chocolate from you, David (and from your new book!) I loved having you hold up and show all of the different kinds of chocolate--especially things we don't have in the US. Mr. Bourloton was a delight--and so modest. (I'd love it if, sometime, you interviewed him about vanilla, too!)
I've spotted his website in the "Resources" section of your book--what a site! It has so much more than chocolate and vanilla! His jam collection is astonishing! Merci!
David great interview. Thank you! I love that shop. I took a French sauce class at La Cuisine Paris and the chef who guided us through the various sauces introduced me (and the rest of the group) to Fonds de Veau. Oh my! That concentrate is just to die for in red wine sauce. It makes me look like I really have culinary skills. He sent me off to G. Detou to buy some. I must haves spent well over an hour going through the shelves and products. I can imagine this is your favourite shop in Paris.
Are there any classes, tastings or tours in Paris that specifically cover chocolate? I am fortunate enough to live in Los Angeles, where we have Surfas, a store that sells a lot French chocolate and cocoa products for chefs, but it pales in comparison to G. Detou.
Decages ago we went to G. Detou on the recommendation of a great friend. We purchased a 3 Kilo block of Valrhona to take back to Oklahoma with us. I took a small pleasure when we came in through customs, when asked if I had anything to declare, I said;
"I have three kilos of ... (short pause as the agents all leaned forward in anticipation...) chocolate!"
I spent a lot of time in the neighborhood around Rue Montorgueil over the years and never knew this was there! For almost 20 years, I traveled with a bike tour company whose office was 200 meters away. Now I'm very sad that I didn't take advantage of visiting G. Detou every time I was in the 'hood!
That whole neighborhood/street has really changed. Lots of pastry shops have opened in the rue Montorgueil. But I recently ate here (with Benoît) which was like a blast from the past: https://lebouiboui.fr/
Christmas of ‘24 was spent in an apartment directlly over G. Detou! Talk about convenience and the offerings over Christmas were outstanding. Personally, i love the payment ritual practiced in French shops - E. Dehillerin’s being the most elegant. You even have to look up the prices on the price lists hanging here and there. It just adds that little extra bit of communication with people which I adore. I would love to know more about ruby chocolate. I like it to eat, but not so much to cook with. Callebaut claims that it is real chocolate but a secret. Do you have any inside info on it? Je vous remercie bien d’être vous!
I wrote more about it in The Great Book of Chocolate. Rumor has it citric acid may be used in the processing of it but the company isn't giving any concrete answers. I think they want to keep as much of it secret as they can.
I went to G. Detou in Oct of 2024. My heart skipped a beat when I entered. I wanted to take the entire store home with me. I grabbed a handful of vanilla beans and a kilo of Valhrona cocoa powder as well as a few other bits I couldn't live without. I could have filled a shipping container with all of the beautiful things there. Still regret not getting the candied cherries. Thanks for the trip down memory lane.
David, you are both lucky and fortunate! Always enjoy your podcasts and videos! Thanks for sharing! I’m making your Moist Chocolate-Beet Cake this weekend with beautiful, fresh, farmers market beets!
Really enjoyed the video! Such interesting information on the different kinds of chocolates! I'd be in that store constantly if I lived close by. Who could resist the temptation of trying them all?!!
Thank you.
Benoît has been so very pleasant and helpful on recent visits! I didn’t realize he was the new owner, that’s awesome.
I get quite overwhelmed there, trying to calculate what I can’t get at home, vs what looks amazing- all of it!
I am getting better at selecting a few items to help me prolong the visit back home rather than trying to “stuff it all in”.
Great video!
Around ~6:50 into the video you say that you used the Chocolate Extract in The Great Book of Chocolate. I have been through it two times now trying to find the recipe for that mysterious elixir but have failed. Was it embedded in one of the recipes? I have never met a French inspired cake recipe that didn't need serious imbibing so I'm on the lookout for new options.
The recipe is on page 139 of the revised edition of the book.
One of the sources I used to recommend unfortunately no longer sells to the public, but Nielsen-Massy sells chocolate extract: https://nielsenmassey.com/products/pure-chocolate-extract/
Hope that helps!
What an enjoyable video! I was so glad to learn about this incredible little shop and now, when visiting Paris in September, I will definitely stop in for some shopping. I just need to get some research completed so I know what to look for! And really, does a recipe developer ever really retire? Thanks much David for always being so informative and entertaining!
Lively, lovely & intersting :) i must admit, i did get a bit stuck on your comment re: getting ready for retirement! i'd be very happy for you but boy would i miss your missives <3 are you retiring?? xo!
What a lovely interview/discussion. I continue to learn so much about chocolate from you, David (and from your new book!) I loved having you hold up and show all of the different kinds of chocolate--especially things we don't have in the US. Mr. Bourloton was a delight--and so modest. (I'd love it if, sometime, you interviewed him about vanilla, too!)
I've spotted his website in the "Resources" section of your book--what a site! It has so much more than chocolate and vanilla! His jam collection is astonishing! Merci!
David great interview. Thank you! I love that shop. I took a French sauce class at La Cuisine Paris and the chef who guided us through the various sauces introduced me (and the rest of the group) to Fonds de Veau. Oh my! That concentrate is just to die for in red wine sauce. It makes me look like I really have culinary skills. He sent me off to G. Detou to buy some. I must haves spent well over an hour going through the shelves and products. I can imagine this is your favourite shop in Paris.
Excellent video. Lot's of information for me to go read up on. Thanks.
Loved this video! Thank you.
Are there any classes, tastings or tours in Paris that specifically cover chocolate? I am fortunate enough to live in Los Angeles, where we have Surfas, a store that sells a lot French chocolate and cocoa products for chefs, but it pales in comparison to G. Detou.
There are a couple of people who do chocolate classes and/or tastings:
https://www.chloe-chocolat.com/
and
https://tartsntruffles.com/
I love Surfas in LA - such a great store!
Decages ago we went to G. Detou on the recommendation of a great friend. We purchased a 3 Kilo block of Valrhona to take back to Oklahoma with us. I took a small pleasure when we came in through customs, when asked if I had anything to declare, I said;
"I have three kilos of ... (short pause as the agents all leaned forward in anticipation...) chocolate!"
Thanks goodness they didn't take it - for themselves!
I spent a lot of time in the neighborhood around Rue Montorgueil over the years and never knew this was there! For almost 20 years, I traveled with a bike tour company whose office was 200 meters away. Now I'm very sad that I didn't take advantage of visiting G. Detou every time I was in the 'hood!
That whole neighborhood/street has really changed. Lots of pastry shops have opened in the rue Montorgueil. But I recently ate here (with Benoît) which was like a blast from the past: https://lebouiboui.fr/
In fact, the bike tour office on rue Dussoubs is now a patisserie!
Christmas of ‘24 was spent in an apartment directlly over G. Detou! Talk about convenience and the offerings over Christmas were outstanding. Personally, i love the payment ritual practiced in French shops - E. Dehillerin’s being the most elegant. You even have to look up the prices on the price lists hanging here and there. It just adds that little extra bit of communication with people which I adore. I would love to know more about ruby chocolate. I like it to eat, but not so much to cook with. Callebaut claims that it is real chocolate but a secret. Do you have any inside info on it? Je vous remercie bien d’être vous!
I wrote more about it in The Great Book of Chocolate. Rumor has it citric acid may be used in the processing of it but the company isn't giving any concrete answers. I think they want to keep as much of it secret as they can.
I went to G. Detou in Oct of 2024. My heart skipped a beat when I entered. I wanted to take the entire store home with me. I grabbed a handful of vanilla beans and a kilo of Valhrona cocoa powder as well as a few other bits I couldn't live without. I could have filled a shipping container with all of the beautiful things there. Still regret not getting the candied cherries. Thanks for the trip down memory lane.