Angelina Paris: House of Thick Chocolate and Mont Blanc

Have you ever tried hot, thick chocolate with a serving of mont blanc? The Angelina Tearoom and Café in Paris is the place to go.



I refer to this place as a tourist destination and take all my visiting guests here, just so they can experience what real, good hot-chocolate is like.



There is a bit of history to this place. It used to be called "Rumpelmayers" when it was first established in 1903, and was once a favorite hangout place of the likes of Audrey Hepburn and Coco Chanel.


Located in the arcades of the rue de Rivoli, behind the Jardin des Tuileries in the 1st Arrondissement of Paris, it is a convenient food stop before going to or coming from an exhibition at Musée du Louvre. They serve breakfasts, lunches and desserts. You can order salads and quiches plus light dinners, all served in old-world elegant setting.



But the chocolate lovers who come, regularly, know exactly what to order: their signature hot chocolate called chocolat L'Africain with the incredible mont blanc gateau.



The chocolate order is good for 2 half cup servings, with cream on the side. This cup is good to go.


Angelina's was taken over by the Groupe Bertrand in 2005 and has since undergone renovations. A shop was put up next to the entry, so one can buy all their favorite pastries and chocolate drink in dry form.



You can purchase a tin of chocolat L'Africain to take home, so you can make your own Angelina chocolate by simply using a one to one ratio: 1/2 c. of chocolate to 1/2 c. of water or milk. Place these 2 ingredients in a small saucepan, simmer until little bubbles appear.


The mont blanc pastry has a meringue base, a whipped creme center, and puréed chestnuts.


When in Paris, do drop by and experience chocolate heaven:
Angelina Tearoom and Café
226 Rue de Rivoli 75001 Paris France
Telephone: 1 42 60 82 00; Fax: 1 42 86 98 97
The closest Metro stations are the Concorde or the Tuileries


As I happened to be a chocoholic once upon a time, I made this thick-chocolate drink at home, with my own choiced ingredients:
I use all organic ingredients...

a chocolate bar and some milk.


PROCEDURE:

1. Break up the chocolate bar into squares.

I this case, I ran the pieces through my manual-vegetable grinder, then cut up the bigger pieces by hand. On second thought, I could have chopped up the chocolate pieces. I am using a 100gm. chocolate bar which is equal to 1/2 cup.

2. In a saucepan, add half a cup of milk (or water) and add the chocolate pieces. Cook in low heat until the milk begins to simmer and the chocolate pieces melt into one homogenous mixture, while stirring constantly.

3. This quantity is normally good for two-cup servings. I, instead, used three cups to cut down on calorie intake.

4. As it is typically served in Angelina, this cup has been topped with a dairy whipped cream, bought from the super market.

5. For another serving, I have opted to replace the mont blanc pastry with fresh, organic strawberries...

and use my chocolate drink for dunking them in. This was so incredibly good, especially, on a cold day like today!


Calorie wise, each cup had,  from the chocolate alone, 190 calories; plus some from the milk, that's not too bad for something that looks and tastes decadent. Using a 70% dark-chocolate bar will be healthier as the sugar content will be lower.


If you can't make it to Angelina Paris, go ahead and make your hot-chocolate-drink treat at home!