Pierre Hermé : the Haute Couture pastry chef

“I consider patisserie as an Art, with capital A. It is a way to express sensitivity the same way music, painting and sculpture do”

Pierre Hermé

Named “the Picasso of pastry” by Vogue US, or “the Dior of desserts” also “the Kitchen Emperor” (New York Times), “the King of Modern Patisserie” (the Guardian).

He has got his statue at the Musée Grévin (Paris) and his name is in the renowned Larousse dictionnary

In June 2016, Pierre Hermé received the title of World’s Best Pastry Chef, in New York.

It was awarded by the World’s 50 best Restaurants Academy (= 972 gastronomy experts across 5 continents).

www.facebook.com/PierreHermeLDN/

Pierre Hermé is pronounced : [Py-air air-meh]

The Ispahan

L’Ispahan, the iconic Pierre Hermé’ s pastry

An oversize macaron, filled with raspberries, light perfumed and dense rose crème and litchi and macaroon shells.

The Ispahan was created when Pierre Hermé was working at Ladurée.

The "2000 feuille"

The “2000 feuille”: the Pierre Hermé’s version of the French classic Millefeuille

The “2000 feuille” : a crisp caramelized pastry layers with a rich praline pastry cream and a chocolate layer

The French macarons elevated into an art form

Pistachio macaron
Mosaic macaron : pistachio, cinnamon, cherry
Madarin : Olive Oil and vanilla Macaron
Infiniment caramel macaron : salted caramel
Infiniment Rose : rose flavored macaron
Infiniment Vanilla : pure vanilla beans, rich in vanilla flavor
Celeste macaron : passion fruit, rhubarb and strawberry
Envie Macaron : vanilla, violet, blackcurrant.
Macaron Frivolité : salted butter caramel and apples
Macaron Mogador : milk chocolate and passion fruit
Ispahan Macaron : Litchi, raspberry and rose : fresh rasberries with rose buttercream inside. A rose petal on top as garnish.

Other Pierre Hermé's creations

- Ispahan cheesecake : unctuous cream flavored with rose.
- Citron tart : lemon and candied lemon zest
- Tart Infiniment Vanille : a vanilla pie with a sweet shortbread crust topped with a rich dense white chocolate ganache infused with vanilla and mascarpone.
- Surprise : a moon rock-like dome of crusty meringue
- The Rose Croissant Ispahan : a buttery croissant baked with a crunchy outside and a buttery inside. The outside is covered in a rose-flavored almond cream with candied rose petals sprinkled on top. The inside is filled with a raspberry flavored litchi paste
- Chocolates:

PIERRE HERME 's creative process

“I need to write them, to make a design, but the drawing is a sort of blueprint it lets the other chefs set the thickness for the icing, the structure and the actual building of the cake.” – Pierre Hermé

He has revolutionized pastry-making

a totally original world of tastes and sensations.
Two collections a year. Like a fashion designer, Pierre Hermé draws his ideas on paper .
Unusual mix of flavors : olive oil and vanilla, wild rose hip. He blends the sweet with the salty.
Sugar is used not a principal ingredient, but as a seasoning.
He is always on the hunt for tops end products and creates a dessert like a nose creates a perfume.

Pierre Hermé Biography

Pierre Hermé was born in 1962, in Alsace (region of Eastern France). He is heir to four generations of Alsatian bakery and pastry-making tradition.
He started his career at the age of 14, as an apprentice to pastry chef Gaston Lenotre and became a pastry chef by the age of 20.
At the age of 24, he was heading pastry production at Fauchon ( upscale Parisian food merchant).He worked at Fauchon during 10 years
Then he worked at Ladurée where he played a key role in turning the company into a global brand. Over his career, Hermé has redefined the macaron, with new techniques and creation of flavor combinations.

In 1996, he founded Pierre Hermé Paris.
1998 : First boutique in Tokyo
2001: First boutique in Paris (72 rue Bonaparte, St Germain des Prés, Paris 6).
2004: Second shop in Paris (rue de Vaugirard) and established a training workshop in coopération with the reputed Ecole Ferrandi.
2005: a chocolate bar in Tokyo and in 2006, a new boutique in Shinjuku Isetan
Since 2010, his company has been expanding strongly with several boutiques located in Europe, Asia and the Middle East.
And he now oversees 2 restaurants in the Royal Monceau hotel (Paris)

awards, prizes, official decorations

First and only pastry chef to have been decorated as a Chevalier of Arts and Letters
Awarded “Chevalier de la Légion d’honneur” by Jacques Chirac on 3 May 2007, just before Nicolas Sarkozy’s election.
Crowned best Pastry Chef 2016 by the World’s 50 restaurants

Pierre Hermé boutiques in Paris

www.pierreherme.com

Here are some of Pierre Hermé’s boutiques.

The pastries are sold in 2 boutiques only : Bonaparte and Vaugirard

72, rue Bonaparte – Paris 6 [Saint Germain des Prés neighborhood – First boutique opened in Paris in 2001] – Metro Stop : Saint-Sulpice – Open every day 10am-7pm – Telephone: 01 43 54 47 77 [You often have to wait in line to enter the shop].
185, rue de Vaugirard – Paris 15 – Second Parisian boutique opened in 2004 – Metro Stop : Pasteur (lines 6 and 12)
Open Monday-Wednesday 10am-7pm, Thursday-Saturday 10am-7:30pm, Sunday 10am-6pm – Telephone: 01 47 83 89 96
4 rue Cambon, 75001 – Macarons and Chocolates only
Metro stop: Tuileries (1)
Hours: Monday-Wednesday 10am-7pm, Thursday-Saturday 10am-7:30pm; Closed Sunday Telephone: 01 43 54 47 77
Avenue de L’Opera – Macarons and Chocolates only
This location near the Opera Garnier
Address: 39 Avenue de l’Opera, Metro stop : Opera
Tel: +33 (0)1 43 54 47 77
58 avenue Paul Doumer, 75016 – Macarons and chocolates only
Metro stop: La Muette
Hours: Monday 1pm-7pm, Tuesday-Thursday 10am-7pm, Friday-Saturday 10am-7:30pm, Sunday 11am-7pm
Tel: 01 43 54 47 77
89 boulevard Malesherbes, 75008 – Macarons and chocolates only, Metro stop: Villiers (lines 2 and 3). Hours: Open every day 10am-7:30pm. Tel: 01 43 54 47 77
18, rue Sainte-Croix-de-la-Bretonnerie (In the Marais neighborhood – 4th arrondissement) – Macarons and chocolate only. Hours: Open every day from 10:30am-10:30pm. Tél: 01 43 54 47 77. Métro: Saint-Paul or Hôtel de Ville
Galeries Lafayette : Macarons and Chocolates only

Some of Pierre Hermé books (available in English)

Desserts by Pierre Herme (on Amazon.com)
Pierre Hermé Macarons : the Ultimate Recipes from the Master Pâtissier”(on Amazon.com)
Pierre Hermé Pastries (revised Edition)
Pierre Hermé, Secrets Gourmands, Larousse, 1993
Le Larousse des Desserts de Pierre Hermé, Larousse, 1997
Plaisirs Sucrés, Hachette, 1997
Desserts by Pierre Hermé, Little Brown, USA, 1998
Chocolate Desserts by Pierre Hermé, Little Brown, USA, 2001 (on Amazon.com)
Macarons by Pierre Hermé (on Amazon.com)