Paris Baguette ♥ 파리바게트

Paris Baguette 파리바게트 ( pronounced Pa-ri  by Koreans vs the American English Par-ris)  is a huge Korean bread and confectionery chain here~ It is really hard to walk a block without seeing one in Seoul.  I mean it, just try!  Paris Baguette is the actually the younger sister store of Paris Croissant (파리 크라상) which was founded in 1986 and is a more upscale cafe version with made-to order items, drinks, catering, and overall just feels a tad fancier… you see it around, but not nearly as much as PB. This chain has become so successful that it has opened up 17 shops in select locations in the USA over the last few years~ hurray!

Paris Baguette announced on Thursday that it now has 3,010 stores in the country, passing the 3,000 mark some 23 years after it began doing business. The franchise opened its first store in 1988, two years after its parent company, Paris Croissant, was first established. It now ranks as the only food franchise business in the country with this many outlets.   - via Chosunilbo newspaper 2012

Some Paris Baguette stores have a bit more selection vs others, but overall everything in this chain is very delicious and tastes fresh, so its no wonder that the store is so successful in modern Seoul.  I have been to MANY over the past several years and now regularly buy my breads and breakfast from this chain, I have found it always to be very FRESH and made daily + while some things taste better vs others~ generally everything is pretty yummy!  Nothing goes on sale at the end of the day, and selections do get lower the later you stop by!

Larger locations sometimes provide a small cafe area for you to eat, but generally the majority of the places are meant for take-away so you can chow down someplace else or on the go.

When walking in everything is generally set out for you to pick and choose before bringing to the register, but make sure you USE THE CLAMPS and place them on the trays they provide.  Usually right when you walk around the door area in they will have a little area of claws to grab and trays to use, don’t forget ♥  Sometimes I have been in there and witnessed a tourist or two just grab it with bare hands not realizing~  almost all bread shops in Korea are like this, perhaps some of us back home are just so used to it all being behind a counter where we just point and pick VS getting it ourselves.

The usual at these stores are traditional breads, lunch box sandwiches, cakes, like hotdog bread, cheese bread, cheese stuffed bagel, croquettes, garlic sugar toast, some traditional Korean treats, seasonal specials and the list goes on. If you have never been in an Asian bakery, but love bread…. well you will fall in love with all the unique bread snack choices they offer here.  Who needs mini microwave pizzas when you can stop in here and get a hotdog+cheese+ corn bread?  They are amazing, just go into one and try a few things!!

♥ ♥ ♥

Bagel stuffed with cheese, baked, topped with cheese, and baked again. OMG YES.

The prices overall are affordable, but not as cheap as some of the small local bakeries that are also still around in the side streets and worth a look.  Things can range from around 900won (90 cents) to a few dollars for larger breads or 10,000 won and up for sandwiches + lunchbox sets.

The sandwich lunchboxes/wraps are hit or miss (some taste a little bland) but the ham egg salad one is suuuuper yummy IMO!  Good sandwiches can be a little hard to find in Korea, so its nice that if I crave one really bad I can just swing in to Paris Baguette and grab one to satisfy my stomach.

If you are meeting friends and need a fast gift as a guest, Paris Baguette can be a great place to grab a small cake or some treats if its a more casual/everyday occasion.  They say that you should never visit someone’s home empty handed here, so if you do not know what to get or are short on time a pretty roll cake box is a nice solution!  This is also a good place to pick up birthday/celebration cakes if you are meeting up for dinner or drinks~  you will often see groups of Koreans get a table at a restaurant or club and bring a cake box with them from Paris Baguette since its so convenient.

The cakes themselves range in price and are all decorated beautifully + hold up ok when traveling.  PB will also provide you with some skinny candles and a large plastic knife to cut the cake, usually you will have to ask for those or they may ask if you need them so heads up!  Its really handy and appreciated for sure.

While I love the breads, the taste of cakes here varies a lot.  Overall I really love the CAKE part of the cakes here its always nice and fluffy with a great flavor, but the icing is always too light… like a air whipped cream or super sweet fondant/white chocolate.  Cakes here lack a balance for me… they are way over sweet or under sweet IMO, but at least they are lovely to look at and that may be what most people care about anyway~ Right?

 

Paris Baguette has a “Happy Point” card that you can apply for (OR is sometimes included/built in to Korean debit cards here) and use to accumulate purchase points that in turn can be applied to a future purchase.

Point cards are awesome and really add up fast if you remember to use them, so if you live here make sure you get those cards!  The point system can be used at all Paris Croissant, Paris Baguette, Pascucci, Baskin Robbins, Jamba Juice, Dunkin’ Donuts + prob several other chains here~ just hand it to them before you pay and your point total will usually appear on the receipt.

WHAT ARE YOUR FAVORITES FROM PARIS BAGUETTE?  I’LL MAKE A LIST OF THE TOP ONES TO TRY WHEN VISITING♥

CuteinKorea.com


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