If you’ve ever wondered what $60 of macarons looks like… this is it. I literally planned to spend $30 max at Zumbo’s “Zumboron Day”, but in the frenzy of flavour-choosing, i went OTT. I’m most excited about trying the baklava, custard crunch, gin & tonic, finger bun, PB & J, rice pudding (they had it last year but it’s amazing), redskin (same story), licorice and margarita pizza.

On Saturday I went to see the delicious movie Patisserie Coin De Rue (part of the Japanese Film Festival). Because we knew the film would make us crave all manner of cakes, tarts and patisserie-style treats, Lee Tran, Ben, Anna and I agreed to a pre-movie dessert date at Azuma Patisserie. I tried their Pistachio and Strawberry Tart (above) and a matcha latte. They have a cake & hot drink set for $8.90! In a reversal of when I arrived in Japan and was enthusiastically biting into green cakes assuming they were pistachio flavoured, on first glance I thought this tart was green tea flavoured. The decadent pistachio créme is balanced by fresh, juicy strawberries, while crunchy chocolate balls and a biscuit base add yummy texture. Anna sampled their baked cheesecake and white hot chocolate, while Ben and LT enjoyed their green tea & vanilla frozen yogurt with chopped strawberries, which looked almost as cute as Pinkberry.

We were glad we had indulged because the film included a dizzying amount of extreme close-ups of cakes being slathered in glossy ganache, creme brulees being torched, vanilla bean custards being stirred over a hot stove and Marie-Antoinette grade millefeuille being constructed. I think the lead actress, Yu Aoi from Hula Girls, is lovely, and she was very convincing as a wide-eyed but whiny Gen-Y apprentice, as I don’t think she’s the slightest bit whiny in real life. I’d give this movie 4 stars out of 5. Watch a trailer for it here.

This is my first attempt at creating a post using the wordpress app for iPhone… I am being lazy and blogging from bed instead of walking over to the computer. On Sunday it was about thirty degrees in Sydney so I was easily tempted by this blackboard sign at cafe jen in balmain. Eating mulberries reminds me of summer days as a kid and I’ve been lucky enough to reawaken my taste for them coz there is a huge mulberry tree near my house. The milkshake was awesome and the peeps at the next table were enjoying mulberries in a berry frappe. Yay summer.

Good news for Balmain residents… Adriano Zumbo has opened a patisserie in the Star, so the queues at the Darling St store should fizzle out a bit. Thanks to Lee Tran I scored an invite to the recent launch. We felt like we were in Charlie & The Chocolate Factory, everywhere we turned there was a waiter offering us a tray of bright and beautiful cakes and desserts. We loved the new display cases for macarons (below), and also that the staff told us to open up the cabinets and taste as many as we liked. The new macaron flavours are wackier than ever, from ‘Lavender, Green Chilli & Coconut’ to ‘Sweet Corn With a Hint of Mango’.

This tangy lemon-themed parfait includes 5 or 6 layers of citrus flavours and textures.

Love the tuxedo detail on this brioche-style gateaux called “Ssnowmanorr”, which is filled with ‘bubble tea custard’.

Just like its inspiration, this watermelon dessert was pretty fun to eat. Twist open the green shell and you’ll find gooey pink melony gel.

The macaron wallpaper is super cute!

From the outside of the store you can see all the cakes in their display cases, an improvement on the other stores, where customers can’t see what’s on offer till they get to the front of the line.

Another fun addition to the store at the Star is the conveyer belt, where you can scoop up plated desserts or boxes of macarons.

This red handbag cake was adorable. For lots more images and info from the launch, check out Lee Tran’s review at The Unbearable Lightness of Being Hungry.

I tried a “Hero or Villain” paddle pop over the weekend – and I landed a villain!! Arghh! The flavour is chocolate and orange and it tastes like the yummiest jaffa icecream you could imagine. It’s creamier and softer than a regular Paddle Pop and, controversially, has a Magnum-style stick instead of traditional paddle pop stick.

My first mango of the season!

We stopped by Bowen, where Baz Luhrman’s Australia was filmed, and checked out their ‘Big Mango’ (above) and frosty mango sorbet.