Which is the Best Galette des Rois in Montmartre?
Do you like delicious buttery pastry and frangipane, and a bit of fun with your decadent French pastries? You’re in the right place, especially if you’re in France in early January!
What is a galette des rois?
Traditionally eaten around Epiphany, galettes des rois or King cake is a round cake made of puff pastry, and filled with almond frangipane filling. While that is a treat in itself, there is also a fève inside (originally a bean, but these days usually a small ceramic token or toy). When the cake is cut, the youngest member of the party, usually a child, sits under the table and chooses the order in which people are served pieces of the cake. Whoever receives the part containing the fève is declared King for the day (and gets to wear the paper crown provided with the cake!)
This year, my partner and I decided to fully embrace the galette des rois tradition and test several from our local bakeries in Montmartre. So, based on our completely unscientific research, here is what we found!
Alexine, Rue Lepic
Our first galette this year was a treat for the eyes, with a careful design carved into the light top crust, and a delightfully smooth frangipane filling. The fève was a small glass cockerel.
Coquelicot, Rue des Abbesses
Disney’s 101 Dalmatians branding on the crown and paper bag made this very appealing to the youngest member of the household. The pastry was a little denser making it a heartier offering and the frangipane was slightly coarser. The fève was – surprise, surprise, one of the 101 Dalmatians!
Gilles Marchal, Rue Ravignan
From what many consider to be the fanciest bakery in the neighbourhood, the galette from Gilles Marchal featured extremely puffed pastry, making it seem taller but, in fact, leaving the inside largely hollow. The pastry was a bit dry and flaked everywhere when cut. The frangipane was smooth. The fève was a little tablet in the style of an old-fashioned poster advert featuring a smiling madeleine.
La Mère de Famille, Rue Lepic
One of our go-to shops when we need cakes or chocolates, we were keen to try the galette from Mère de Famille. The pastry was rich and buttery but, like the previous one, very puffed and a bit dry. The frangipane had a stronger almond flavour than some others. The fève was a golden pebble with ‘2022’ carved into it.
Grenier a Pain, Rue des Abbesses
The galette from this franchise bakery featured light buttery pastry and a smooth frangipane. The fève was a little old-fashioned VW Beetle.
Au Levain d’Antan, Rue des Abbesses
This bakery boasts having supplied the Palais Élysée (the French President’s residence) so we weren’t surprised their galette was slightly more expensive than some other local contenders. The pastry was light and the frangipane rich and smooth. The fève was a small cup of coffee and a croissant, with ‘Paris’ written below, which would be a great souvenir for tourists and visitors.
While many different flavours and elaborate designs are available these days, we stuck to the traditional recipe in order to make a comparison. Each galette served four people and prices ranged between €16-25.
Which would you choose?
