Ladurée

Most famously known for its double-decker macaron, Ladurée is a world renowned French sweets and pastry house. Since its creation in 1862, the store sells around 15,000 of its signature macarons every day. The interior of the stores are more than just a pastry house, instead you will find a luxurious tea salon to indulge your time in — preserving the 20th century Parisian luxury lifestyle.

On the 19th November 2019, Mr David Holder, owner of Ladurée made a special visit in person to Niko Neko The Concept Store, Bangsar. Mr Holder’s main purpose in Kuala Lumpur was to attend Ladurée’s 2nd year anniversary, which was where he had coincidentally sampled one of our collaboration pieces. As a matcha lover himself, the delightful taste had brought him to stop by our humble store.

To welcome Mr Holder as our guest, traditional REN matcha tea was prepared in front of him. It is a Japanese tea ceremony tradition for the host to serve tea to the guest, as a sense of hospitality and respect. The tea was served alongside with matcha crunch cube, a sweet dessert to balance out the bitterness of the tea.

The second drink served was an unsweetened iced REN latte. As he mentioned that he is a vegetarian, we prepared the drink with soy milk to suit his dairy-free preference. Of course, as it was Mr Holder’s first time in Malaysia we couldn’t miss out on letting him try our local flavours infused in our signature drink; the Budak Melaka. This matcha mocktail recipe combines YURI matcha with gula melaka and dehydrated coconut shreds reminiscent of the Malay dessert “onde-onde”.

Next up was the houjicha cheesecake, a collaboration between Niko Neko and The Tokyo Restaurant. The soft, gooey texture and deep houjicha flavour were present together as he took a bite. Finally, he was served the ice GENMAICHA latte with soy milk. His eyes lit up with delight, a sign that it quickly became his personal favourite.

After the omakase session, Mr Holder received a special chasen (bamboo whisk) as a token of gratitude and respect for visiting our store. The chasen was carefully hand-carved by a master of the chasen art, Tango Tanimura who continues to preserve a 500 year-old tradition at Nara, Japan to this day. With only five of these chasens specially-made for Niko Neko, it is a gift that reflects the true appreciation for matcha.

To celebrate the Christmas season, Niko Neko developed a Ladurée-inspired matcha latte recipe. This latte includes Ladurée’s home-made strawberry jam, which creates a layer of red and green perfect for the Christmas mood. Incorporating Ladurée’s own flavour to the drink, the Strawberry Compote Matcha Latte brings out a charming new flavour as well as signifying a meaningful collaboration for both parties.

Together with Matcha Mini Cake and Matcha Sablé, the Strawberry Compote Matcha Latte is served as part of a Christmas set at the Niko Neko store.

While in the kitchen, head patisserie chef of Ladurée Malaysia developed two types of matcha pastries using YURI / Matcha powder by Niko Neko. These matcha pastries were successfully created and approved by Ladurée Paris for this special season.

Coated with YURI / Matcha infused with white chocolate, the Matcha Sablé is baked until it achieves that crumbly yet melts-in-your-mouth texture. This simple and elegant cookie-like pastry is served at both Niko Neko and Ladurée Malaysia stores.

Created for matcha fans to enjoy, the Matcha Mini Cake is a moist and soft texture madeleine cake with an intense matcha flavour. It is baked using extra YURI / Matcha to achieve that deep matcha aftertaste and is available exclusively at the Niko Neko store.

In anticipation for the gift-giving season, customers are also able to buy the Matcha Mini Cake and Matcha Sablé as a set together in a Christmas Gift Box. For a personal touch, the Christmas Gift Box includes a message card in which customers can send their heartfelt message to their loved ones.