Le Petit Four Patisserie – Little French Bakery

Le Petit Four Patisserie is on Old Beach Street in George Town, Penang.

Back in the day, Beach Street was well known for its godown – the last thing you’d expect to discover is a little French bakery.

As much as I love a good French bakery—the croissants and chocolate eclairs—I am always attracted to the menu of a French café.

I am a massive fan of the captivatingly beautiful and renowned French Paul Bakery—I visit it whenever I’m in Singapore, Jakarta, and Manila.

My trip with Veronique was an introduction to all the French-baked goodies.

What to order always gets me excited, even the French Toast.

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Le Petit Four Patisserie – Little French Bakery

It was a long time ago in Paris when I stared at my breakfast of a tiny croissant with a small glass of orange juice in the morning.

I remembered half wishing that I was in Stateside with a full American breakfast of thick fluffy pancakes, sausages, and eggs.

Veronique merely laughed and ordered a classic French Croque Madame – the perfect combination of ham, cheese, and cream for me.

If you know me well, you will know that my go-to in Bangkok is a 7-Eleven Toastie!

So apart from chomping down on crispy, extra flaky, golden brown, unbelievably warm croissants, I have had just a few French pastries to savor.

First of all, they are just too pretty to eat.

Trying to understand the nuances of the French language is one of them.

Today, Murf and I decided to look for a pretty French pastry and Le Petit Four Patisserie, to be precise.

With a menu that includes everything from croissants, tarts, and eclairs to macarons, madeleines, and names, I couldn’t roll off my tongue—we shall resort to pointing and smiling.

It feels like being in pretend France.

For me, simple.

Anything with the highest amount of cocoa will do nicely.

I know I have been complaining for a long time about the lack of good pastry chefs in little Penang.

The pretty pastry graduates working with precision and creative flair, just like their cuisine, proved me wrong.

Le Petit Four Patisserie’s croissant is good.

The croissant at La Vie en Rose Patisserie is also good.

And I was also told that the owner is a patisserie master chef trained in Le Cordon Bleu, Paris.

Go early if you want Le Petit Four handcrafted French pastries, cinnamon rolls, and scones!

Le Petit Four Ambience

Smallish and unusually packed over the weekends, the café is nice and calm to meet with friends on weekdays.

You get to enjoy the soft light music with the only competition from the sound of the coffee machine whirring.

The Pastry at Le Petit Four Patisserie

One look was enough to cut through my cheeky queries if the pastry was fresh.

Once, I was at dinner, and the owner decided to treat my friends to 3-day-old cakes.

I remembered the Aunties gushed at his generosity.

I merely kept quiet and refused to eat cake for once in my life.

That memory haunts me.

Murf and I nearly pressed our faces onto the glass case; the delicate and intricate pastry items showcase essential techniques in creativity and decoration.

At a glance, I knew that everything was made fresh—without stopping by to see the pretty pastry chefs at work.

Le Petit Four Patisserie Is Pretty Instaworthy

“Isn’t it pretty?” Murf smiled indulgently.

The smoky grey-blue shopfront, reminiscent of 19th-century French infantry uniforms, and the antique French hexagon floor tiles spelling out “Bonjour” immediately caught our attention, enticing us before we even looked into the glass showcases.

A little café with industrial theme wooden furniture, adds up the ambiance of our Tai Tai tête-à-tête.

It translated to gossiping and complaining bitterly interspaced with rambunctious laughter.

What We Ordered at Le Petit Four Patisserie

Just two items this time.

I had gone for scones once when half the happy people on Facebook heard of my quest for the best scones in Penang.

One fine hotel got the pastry chef to bake me a few—happy days for the little travel and food blogger – SmartDory.

Scones at Le Petit Four Patisserie

I found the scones a tad crumbly with a strawberry jam that was too bright.

Now, thinking back to Saturday’s teatime, the names of the pastries have eluded me.

Just as I was trying to order a little cake, I misread it as French Guy, which turned out to be French Earl Grey.

What was I thinking?

<palm face>

So again, I resorted to my fail-safe order of anything with the highest chocolate content.

The lovely young man tried to introduce us to the delicious French pastry and confectionary world, which has something for every palette, whether you are a dessert person or not.

In our case, whether we are full or not.

Women (and some sophisticated men) are inadvertently drawn to French desserts.

It feels like a budding torrid romance.

It is a rich, decadent, delicious, sweet course with no comparison in the world cuisine.

Like a lover with only eyes for the beloved, French desserts have developed into a scrumptious art form—think romance novels and teenage angst all rolled into one.

Black Forest RM22

Like my Chocolate Forbidden Apple with a 750-year history.

I stared at it, reading the nuances of the chocolate glaze with the chocolate stem – and wondered if my beloved’s confession of love was true.

Indeed, it is impossible to create this apple, perfectly coated with ganache and highlighted with a speck of gold leaf.

Stunning.

I felt pain cutting into it.

It was sweet, smooth, rich and the way I like my chocolate – Fattening.

Mont Blanc Chestnut RM28

A Mont Blanc is a sweetened chestnut purée, topped with whipped cream, created in nineteenth-century Piedmont, Italy.

The name comes from Mont Blanc, as the dessert resembles a snow-capped mountain.

While most are appropriately shaped like the beautiful Mont Blanc, this classic French pastry at Le Petit Four Patisserie sports a flat top.

I was looking for the sweetened chestnut purée piped and piled high like strands of vermicelli.

I am neutral when it comes to Chestnuts.

My insane love for all things chocolate eclipsed every other dessert, cake, and pastry in the room.

I may run away from two things—Macaroons and Madeleines, which I will buy for people I like but never for myself.

As for the most delicious Chestnut dessert in the room, it was just too coyly sweet for Murf and me.

One of the jokes we made about living frugally in our retirement years is not buying an RM28 cake the size of a cupcake.

What were we thinking?

Coming out of MCO does that to you – for me, it was an exercise in futility when it comes to chocolate, sweets, chocolate, cakes and chocolate ice cream.

We like Tai Tai Lifestyle (who doesn’t?) afternoon teas and just about any chance to hang out for desserts and coffee.

Flat White RM12

The coffee is strong and very smooth and has a good milk taste.

The flavor leans towards a slightly milder rounded taste.

Croissants

I swear that I will succumb and order the flaky, buttery Croissants one of these days.

Maybe tomorrow.

No Food options are available.

Le Petit Four specializes in French pastries and French desserts.

Occasionally, you may find a small quiche.

Other than that, there is no lunch menu.

Review of Le Petit Four Patisserie

Parking at Beach Street is very challenging at best.

I’ll gladly park far and walk if it is not too sunny.

If you have a sweet tooth and love to spend your weekend sipping on coffee and savoring pastries, you will love to hang out at Beach Street.

Le Petit Four Patisserie is a treasure trove of the ultimate pastry ecstasy.

You indulge in too much sugar, butter, and puff pastry swirls – for me, it’s just chocolate, anything, and everything.

Le Petit Four Patisserie Fair Warning:

Apart from compliance with SOP for MCO – I highly recommend coming to the cafe EARLY.

As the pastries are hand-rolled every day and limited, these are usually sold out by the afternoon.

Think buttery croissants and coffee – you get what I’m saying – Go Early!

But if you only want French desserts, it is okay to go just after lunch, as most are made for the afternoon crowds.

Pastry Price

Prices $$ French Desserts Start at RM 20+

These are pricey to many, but each little pastry is made with much attention and love for detail, technique, and creativity.

As such, the price should not be a factor.

If you appreciate the craftsmanship, it is not that expensive.

If you’re looking for a one-off treat, these are delicious and worth the calories!

Yes, I will return, but not daily – the pastry tastes very fresh and is addictive.

You’ve been warned.

The pastry is small and deceptively innocent, but it is so wantonly delicious.

Several Penang Cafes have notable artisanal bakeries (yes, actual in-house bakeries) with cakes and bread worth checking out when you’re on a dessert binge.

• Le Petit Four Patisserie
• Narrow Marrow (next door)
• China House and
• Black Kettle (near Bomba)

Le Petit Four Patisserie
Address: 310, Lebuh Pantai,10300 George Town, Penang Malaysia
Tel: 016-4093918

Operating Hours: 9.00 AM to  6.00 PM (close Wednesday/Thursday)

Photo Source: Le Petit Four Patisserie Facebook