Last month, my sister Juji and I had a day off together and planned to go to Fine Food Western Australia, a trade show at the Perth Convention and Exhibition Centre for the food and hospitality industries. We expected to indulge in free tastings at the show and so met up beforehand for a light breakfast at Jean Pierre Sancho, Perth’s first French Boulangerie Patisserie. If that name sounds familiar, it’s because I wrote recently about the wonderful crusty sourdough bread they supply to Rockpool Bar & Grill Perth.
Jean Pierre Sancho’s bread is made by hand every day and comes in different varieties, shapes and sizes. Their sandwiches are made daily using crusty bread rolls baked that morning and are available for dine-in or takeaway lunches. There is a wide selection of quiches, croissants, cakes and pastries on display in the shop for your drooling pleasure, all made fresh daily.
Juji wanted a banana croissant but they were all spoken for, so instead she had a pain au chocolate (chocolate croissant, AU$3.70) and a very frothy flat white, served with a tiny buttery biscuit.
Chocolate croissant with a flat white
If I had ordered this croissant I would attempt to eat it layer by layer, slowly unravelling its scroll, working my way to the dark chocolate in the centre. I eat cinnamon buns in the same way (minus the chocolate part).
Pain au chocolate (chocolate croissant, AU$3.70)
Juji attacked her chocolate croissant with an entirely different approach. The flaky buttery pastry melted in the mouth. I thought there could’ve been more chocolate in the croissant but Juji really enjoyed it. We agreed that if a banana-chocolate croissant was available, we’d both want one.
Juji tears apart her chocolate croissant
I had a raisin brioche (AU$2.90) with English breakfast tea. According to Juji, my eyes lit up when I spotted the brioches. I’m sure my eyes not only lit up but sparkled too, as I love brioche and was delighted to see the perfect little plump raisin-studded buns. Brioches without raisins were also available. Not many bakeries in Perth sell brioche, so when I see it, I get quite excited and immediately feel compelled to order it. What’s your favourite French bakery item? I also love custard-filled pastries.
Raisin brioche (AU$2.90)
The brioche was soft and buttery, but I thought it would’ve been even better served warm and with more butter. I didn’t think about this until I started eating the brioche, and no option was offered when I ordered it.
Raisin brioche (AU$2.90)
It was a very pleasant, light start to what ended up being a glorious day of eating and fun. I try to make sure I can describe all my days off that way! I don’t take many days off work and tend to squeeze as much I can into them. On the day off before this one, I ate fish and chip gelato and went to the first Twilight Hawker Market.
Next time I’m at Jean Pierre Sancho I plan to try their macarons. Stay tuned for that – with luck, next month.
Jean Pierre Sancho, Perth
Jean Pierre Sancho, Perth
878 Hay Street Perth,
Telephone: (08)9226 2434
Opening hours:
Monday to Friday 7am – 6 pm
Saturday 9am – 4pm
Web: www.jpsancho.com.au
Macarons are AU$1.90 each – a bargain in Western Australia, the state of expensive macarons. Macarons now $2 each
They deliver within the CBD free of charge for orders over $30.
There’s a second Jean Pierre Sancho at 111 St Georges Terrace, Perth, one Monday to Friday 6.30am to 6pm.
Read Juji’s write-up of breakfast at Jean Pierre Sancho at her blog Juji Chews.
More posts featuring another Perth French patisserie, La Galette de France at the Station Street Markets, Subiaco – macarons and crepes and waffles.
As an aside, after delivering our order to our table, the staff member smiled and said in a French accent, “Bon appetit, mademoiselles.” We both had instant flashbacks to the Madeline cartoon series we used to watch on TV. Did any of you like that cartoon series too? The books by Ludwig Bemelmans which the cartoons were based on were popular items at our local public library. The original cartoons were narrated by Christopher Plummer, who played Baron von Trapp in the movie The Sound of Music.
“We love our bread, we love our butter, but most of all, we love each other.”
I'm TFP, a food blogger from Perth, Western Australia.
{ 24 comments… read them below or add one }
Hey TFP,
Speaking of patisserie, have you watched this guy make croissants yet?
http://youtu.be/hhpxkGB1OyY
Not sure what it is, but I find it enthralling. –jpv
JP thanks for the video link. Great viewing… and wishing I had a fresh croissant to eat right now. All that BUTTER!!!!!!! Instead, I think I’ll be having instant noodles. :P
Oh how I love chocolate crossaints! We don’t have a fantastic place like this near us, so I just have to get my fix from baker’s delight..
Susan,
Same, no French bakery near me. It’s probably a good thing JP Sancho wasn’t around when I worked in the city… I’d be a big butterball by now. :)
I am not a fan of sweet food for breakfast, but pain au chocolat is one of my most favourit breakfasty foods ever. I don’t eat them very often – less than once a year! – but when I do, I savour it. I’m also one of those people who eats things layer by layer normally, but I like to make sure that there is chocolatey goodness throughout my breakfast on the rare occasion that I roll with a chocolate croissant. A banana chocolate croissant would be heavenly! I often make banana chocolate smoothies (using chocolate protein powder so they’re not entirely unhealthy!) for breakfast when I’m in a rush. So good.
erin,
I rarely eat croissants – like you, less than once a yeart. I love them, but it’s too easy to want to eat them all the time, so I don’t let myself get hooked. :) Like you, I also prefer savoury breakfasts to sweet. I love ham and cheese croissants – to me, that is the best way to enjoy a croissant – hot, savoury and with a little meat. :D
Oh TFP while i was reading the paragraph about brioche’s it could have been written about me!
I feel the same way about brioche, i love how it tears apart and you get a small whiff of that super buttery pastry.
So that would be my favourite french pastry, but when dining at french restaurants i also like ordering rhum baba (i dont know if this classifies as a french pastry item hehe) :)
Simon,
:D That brioche love and pleasure is pretty special.
I haven’t eaten rhum baba before but would love to try it.
Favourite French bakery item – cute French boys behind the counter.
I love watching Madeline and Pepito too!
chubbyzebra,
Hah!
I love the girls’ little dog, Genevieve. I got all nostalgic thinking about Madeline. Thank goodness for YouTube.
How to choose a favorite French pastry? I love the bread, with butter and maybe some Brie. Iove croissants so much, I order them unbaked from William Sonoma. they are fantastic!Napoleons would be right up there and lets add a lemon tart.too!
kathy,
Oh yes I love lemon tarts, with soft gooey lemony custard filling. I could eat the lemon filling straight out of a bowl without any pastry. :)
“In the middle of the night. Miss Clavel turned on her light and said, ‘Something is not right!’”
Loved that cartoon when I was a kid :)
Steph,
Hahaha, I love that song too!
That’s one of my favourite episodes.
My favorite French pastry? Hands down, a really superb almond croissant. Living in the land of very good boulangeries and patisseries, they are easier to find than when I lived in Atlanta. I recently had a chocolate/almond croissant not too long ago. It was so good, I think I drooled a little!
Kali,
Drooling is a perfectly reasonable response to a good croissant! :D Someday I’d love to eat a croissant (and macaron) in Paris. I can’t even imagine how good they’d be from a really great bakery in France.
I would have eaten Juji’s chocolate croissant the same way she ate hers. ;-)
“What’s your favourite French bakery item? I also love custard-filled pastries.”
Custard filled eclairs or cream puffs! And I mean OOZING creamy custard, dripping down your fingers as you savour every bite. Doesn’t matter if the eclair is dusted with confectioner’s sugar or has a smear of chocolate icing…just give me REAL custard filling.
:-D Now I’m craving one!
I need to make some again, here at home. It’s been ages.
Cindy,
We learned how to make choux pastry at school and I made profiteroles (custard puffs) – brought some home and my family loved them; mum adopted the recipe and for the next few years chocolate-dipped custard filled puffs featured regularly at our house. I love custard eclairs too – or even better, chocolate topped and filled half with custard, half with cream – the best of both/all worlds.
Ooh yes, I LOVE Madeline!!!! :)
Dea,
:) I’ve been walking around with Madeline’s songs in my head since writing this post. Right now: “If you believe you must be big in order to be tough…”
I don’t have much of a sweet tooth but I would have to say almond croissants from French Quarter in Melbourne. They are rich, beautiful and oh so lovely!
Marie,
I find all that butter gives croissants a more savoury than sweet flavour anyway, no matter if they’re almond or chocolate or filled with ham and cheese, they’re all delicious!
Pain au chocolat, hands down! I love getting one fresh from the oven, when the filling is still melty. Pair that with a latte and I’m in heaven. :)
Ooh almond croissants win for me too! Or maybe brioche french toast… hmm that’s a tough call. But i guess with a pastrychef for a husband i won’t have to decide :D
Have you tried the Brioche stall at Subi, Duncraig or South Freo Farmers Markets?
We do all your favourite French pastries, including a brioche loaf and our own savoury brioche scroll. Love to meet you and get your feedback on our products – always great to chat with foodies about food food and more food!