If I could eat only one food for the rest of my life, I would probably choose macarons… the Parisian almond sandwich cookie, not those dry coconut monstrosities.

I finally made it out to Paulette the other day, Los Angeles’ own macaron specialist. I have actually had their macarons before, in San Francisco, in the macaron-triangle that is Hayes Valley, where from a single intersection you can see three shops that sell incredible macarons. It was nice to see the point of origin for those giant plastic cases of macarons that are brought out from the back in San Francisco to replenish the display. While Paulette’s are not my favorite macarons… a friend and I determined that many of their varieties had an overly sweet and unappealing flavor we were able to identify as Fruit Loops… it is, hopefully, a fad that will catch on down here as much as up north, because I realized the last time I was in San Francisco that I don’t eat nearly as many macarons as I should. In a pinch, Paulette’s will do I suppose… they are at least better than those grotesque macaron-themed cookies that Starbucks had at Christmas time, which I somehow managed to get myself to choke down two boxes of out of desperation.

While on the topic of macarons, what is up with the macarons at Figaro? I am terrified to try them. I don’t understand how every single one of them could come out of the bakery so misshapen, and each in totally different sizes, all way too big. I can’t imagine they would be very good. Although, to be fair, almost everything else I’ve had at Figaro has been quite delicious—especially their almond tarts, which are exquisite and reasonably priced compared to the rest of their baked goods. I mean, I think their croissants are like… $4.

I wonder if Susina decided to start baking macarons, if they would be any? A French-styled bakery, it has a certain charm that is missing from a lot of places in Los Angeles, but the coffee is merely adequate and the desserts, while delicious, are a bit too heavy.