Thierry

Bakery: Thierry
Address: 1059 Alberni St, Vancouver BC
Website: https://www.thierrychocolates.com/
Style: French 
Price: $$$ 

It has always amazed me how many authentic French patisseries Vancouver has and that number seems to only go up. Take Thierry, for example. This chic, fairly new downtown patisserie, chocolate shop as well as cafe made me rethink the assumption that I had covered all bakeries downtown (well, with one or two ridiculously priced exceptions over in Yaletown...). Nevertheless, Thierry is an upscale pastry shop whose decor and pretty bags make you feel a bit like you've stepped into one of the high-end fashion boutiques lining Alberni and nearby streets, except that what you've brought out is more or less affordable and it happens to be tasty. It's bustling with people and has surprisingly long hours for a pastry shop, which is particularly nice for later arrivals. Like me. ^^

Strangely enough, if the website is any indication, Thierry seems to specialize first and foremost in chocolate and yet I don't actually recall seeing where the chocolate was in store. Perhaps it was just due to the chaotic lack of organization surrounding people standing around, ordering, waiting and picking things up, so much so that what looked like a long line upon entering ended up turning into no line at all. Along one wall, there are the elaborate pastries and cakes, available in single or larger servings, in addition to rows of macarons; right by the cash there is the slightly limited selection of baked goods; perhaps owing to the time of day (around 6pm, so not late-late and it *was* open for 6 more hours...), there were only two or three items left, one being a croissant, what I ended up taking, and a lone remaining pain au chocolat.

 Wanting something special for my last night before my Japan trip, but not wanting to carry around a fancier pastry, I was intrigued by the hazelnut pithivier ($4.95), especially when I spotted that it contained alcohol. Ooh, yes! Of course, it's always difficult to detect that hint of alcohol or what it happened to be, and there was no exception to that rule here, but it was still an interesting pastry stuffed with a sort of rich hazelnut mass and wrapped with layers of golden brown puff pastry. As nice and appetizing as it looked in-store, it was actually quite difficult to eat: the hazelnut mass crumbled and there was no cohesion with the dough that just would not break apart. Personally, for such a decadent pastry with a rather uncomplicated, nutty flavour, it would have been enough for it to be smaller and accordingly priced.

Pretty good, but next time, I'd see what else Thierry is capable of.

Rating: **1/2