Manuel Latruwe Belgian Patisserie & Bread Shop
Almond Croissant
Sour Cherry Turnover
Apricot Almond Danish
Mille Feuille
Still amazed that there are eateries in 2017 that scorn pictures, but finding just that as I casually snapped a photo of Manuel Latruwe’s pastry cases, it was after a brief moment browsing the shelves that the urge to leave was set aside, a good choice as the Belgian Patisserie’s Viennoiserie are some of the finest in Calgary.
Told that the warning was given due to the Chef’s policy of hiring a photographer to take promotional shots, but that I was welcome to take pictures of anything I purchased for ‘personal use,’ it was with a curtailed order of four items that I seated myself at a small table towards the back of the café, the four item spread clearly the work of someone with talent, a quick perusal of the website indicating that the Chef had enrolled in culinary school at age twelve and had thus been pursuing his craft for nearly four decades.
Now offering his confections in Calgary for over eighteen years, the season and region continuing to inspire innovation to this day, it was with a loud crack and shower of crumbs that a knife cut into an Croissant topped and filled with lightly sweetened ground-Almonds, not one drop of Frangipane to be found here or in the Apricot and Almond Danish that spoke volumes about the benefit of an early arrival as the layers were still crunchy and the filling still warm-to-touch.
Told that the Sour Cherry Turnover was a new item, the separation providing an almost a Cruller-like effect to the pastry itself, suffice it to say that those favoring tart over sweet would be well-advised to investigate this option further while traditionalist will be pleased to see a textbook Mille-feuille that would only be better if made a la minute.
www.manuellatruwe.com
