Tous les Jours 多乐之日 is the French-Asian bakery, serving a selection of bakery goods and beverages made with high quality ingredients from South Korea. Beginning with its launch in the United States in 2004, and then arriving in China in 2005, they now have several stores around Beijing. I like the range of products in their Indigo Mall store, where the bread is right-out-of-the-oven fresh because it’s made on the premises. Their sandwiches and some of their other products are similar to Paris Baguette. My favorite foods from Tous Les Jours are the walnut brioche, English muffins, raisin walnut loaf, and garlic rusks.
Brioche is a pastry of French origin. It is made in the same basic way as bread, but its high egg and butter content give it the rich and tender texture of a pastry. Brioche should be light and slightly puffy, with a golden crust. Often cooked with fruit or chocolate chips and served as a pastry, or as the basis of a dessert. The walnut brioche RMB 14 at Tous Les Jours ticks all of the boxes that a good brioche should. It is incredibly light and fluffy, packed with chopped walnuts and sweet sour cranberries. Glazed with egg wash and sugar which gives it a wonderfully sticky crust. It is delicious served just as it is, alongside a really good cup of coffee.
An English muffin is a small, round yeast-leavened bread which is commonly sliced horizontally, toasted, and buttered. It’s the perfect bread for a breakfast sandwich filled with crispy bacon, sausage, or fried egg. English muffins are also the base ingredient in the traditional American brunch dishes Eggs Florentine and Eggs Benedict. They need to be light, with a good rise, and soft in the middle. The muffins at Tous les Jours are very good indeed, albeit a little expensive at RMB 12 for one muffin.
The raisin and walnut loaf RMB 28 has big juicy raisins and sultanas, and crunchy pieces of chopped walnut. Baked with whole wheat flour, it’s soft inside yet with a lovely thick crust. The slices are cut on the thick side too. It tastes delicious topped with a mild and creamy hard cheese. Alternatively, toast it and spread with salted butter, or smooth organic peanut butter. I always have a bag of Tous les Jours crunchy garlic rusks in the cupboard. They come in a 110g re-sealable bag for RMB 13. You can snack on them straight out the bag, or top them with something Mediterranean like olive tapenade or sun-dried tomatoes. My favorite way to enjoy them is to float them on top of a home-made soup. They go particularly well with a thick, rich onion soup or a creamy chicken soup.
beijingkids Shunyi Correspondent Sally Wilson moved to Beijing in 2010 from the UK with her husband and son. Her daughter was born here in 2011 and both her kids keep her happily busy. In her spare time, Sally loves to stroll through Beijing’s hutongs and parks. She is a (most of the time) keen runner and loves reading: books, magazines, news, and celeb websites – anything really. Sally is also a bit of a foodie and loves trying out new restaurants.
Photos: Debbie Tingzon (Flickr), Sally Wilson
