Maison Blanc Patisserie

I have been going to Maison Blanc on and off for the last 3 years since we moved to Oxford in 2007. My biggest complaint about the shop is that they seem to be mixing 'old' bread with those freshly baked on the day. Take the Campaillou I purchased today at 9 a.m. for example. The ones I had been purchasing at 11 a.m. on last two consecutive days were perfectly fine. Today however the crust did not have that signature taste of crisp, freshly baked bread, it seemed to me that it was a day old. Why would they want to mix the two? If they claim to sell freshly baked bread, they should only be selling those made and delivered on the day. There are quality control issues at hand I'm afraid, which is a shame as the bread is as good as anything else we've tasted in Switzerland, where bread indeed is baked and offered fresh every single day.

Remy (Unverified), 10/04/10

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Dear all, I am french, and I lived in London for 4 years, I love cake! So I was very pleased to discover Maison Blanc when I arrived, especially " the concerto" and "the eclair", but over the last 12 months I was very disappointed by the cakes, the crème patissière in the eclairs was not good. I went back and told them that I bought 4 eclairs, and there were not good, the staff did not do anything, that was bad. For sure the quality is not as good as before! Too expensive for what you get. Such a shame!

Aude (Unverified), 04/07/09

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The cakes are still unsurpassed, every bit as intense in flavour as they are seductive to the eye. The service is excellent too. However, don't expect too much from the savoury fare: the baguettes lack that early-morning crackle and the side-salad is perfunctory (although the dressing is good). The hot chocolate doesn't deliver the dark rush that I expected either. Maison Blanc is the ideal place for an indulgent pastry, but maybe not for a meal.

Paul O (Unverified), 06/04/09

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Delicious, and hard to resist.

I decided to give Maison Blanc yet another chance and for once it paid off.

I am not sure whether the new make-over also included a new "Chef Patissier" but on my last visit, at the week-end all was finally very well indeed with this very popular (and until now IMO grossly over-rated) Oxford French Patisserie.

Having spent years being disappointed at every turn on each of my visits I was pleasantly surprised at the quality and authenticity of the cakes on offer.

My "Delice de Poires" was a triumph of subtle flavours and very light and the "Mille-Feuilles aux Framboises" divinely flaky, crisp, tasty and moreish. The hot chocolate was the best I had had in the UK in over 20 years (apart from the now sadly defunct "Plaisir du Chocolat" in Edinburgh) and tasting of actual darkish chocolate, rich and frothy, an absolute delight.

The tearoom is pleasant and surprisingly light considering there are no windows and there is definitely a feel of a French tea-rooms about it. Service was pleasant and efficient and I might have to try some of their savoury offerings if the quality of the patisseries was anything to go by.

I has almost given on MB but if this is the sign of things to remain then I shall become a regular customer. Satisfied at last. :)

Pamplemousse (Unverified), 12/01/09

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I am French and been living in uk for the last 10 years. When I have discovered Maison Blanc for the first time in Guildford 8 years ago, I was delighted. Since then, I have been a regular customer and always recommended Maison Blanc to my colleagues. The cakes were delicious, their lemon tarte was orgasmic. But since 6 months ago, I find the quality went down. They surely changed their Chef patissier. Some of the cakes, especially lemon tart, do not worth the price you pay for it anymore. I have been more disappointed during these 6 months than satisfied. You may say that I am a fussy lady, but at that price I do expect impeccable quality. Still, they do have delicious salads, but is it patisserie? I dont think so, I think they should concentrate again on the patisserie! I heard that they are a franchise now since few months. I wonder if it has something to do with the drop in quality?

Celcat (Unverified), 11/07/08

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Maison Blanc cakes are orgasmic and unlike anything other bakers can produce, certainly in Chichester. I am Scottish, therefore cakes of a sweet and gooey nature appeal to me. They are pricey but like most things in life you pay for what you get. Mind you, for bread I agree with others who have written here: any instore bakery has bread as good.

Annie (Unverified), 16/05/08

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My view on Maison Blanc is that one should have a cherry picking approach to it. Don't bother trying the breads and the viennoiserie - it's just not worth paying so much money for something only marginally better than what you can get in the bakery section of a supermarket. But, and here I beg to disagree with the two reviers below me, the rest IS worth trying. All the cakes I have tried were indeed very, very good - I am not French, but i am Italian, hence also hard to please. I'd particularly recommend the chocolate and raspberry cake, the pear and almond tart, and the raspberry millefeuille. Also, I have recently tried their chocolates: wow! Try the coriander ones.

Miriam (Unverified), 30/04/07

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Having recently sampled Parisienne croissant and pain au chocolat, I was hoping that Maison Blanc would be able to make similarly tasty pastries. Perhaps my thinking that a French chef would be able to produce fresh pastries was a tad presumptious, as Maison Blanc's fare on 3 occasions has always been slightly on the stale side; tough pastries more suited to roadside fare than a French patisserie.

Anyone willing to produce decent French pastries would be onto a winner.

Slam (Unverified), 21/07/06

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As French person having lived in Britain for 18 years some of the things I miss the most are good croissants and fresh bread as well as good patisserie cakes.

Viennoiseries (croissants, pains au chocolat, pains aux raisins etc...) should always be melt in the mouth, buttery, flaky and moist and Maison Blanc just fails to deliver on all of these requirements.

I have tried them over and over for the last 18 years and each time has been a disappointment. I have always found the Viennoiseries dry and bland at best and at worst slightly stale.

The cakes look absolutely gorgeous but sadly do not live up to the hype...

The bread fares no better which is a real shame as I was looking forward to decent French specialty bread such as walnut and pain de campagne.

All in all a pretty dismal experience, considering the prices.

It all looks wonderful and certainly promises much but sadly I can't help feeling that its popularity may mainly be due to its superb window displays and presentation as well being an "aspirational "shop catering for the North Oxford crowd wanting to be seen with their pretty little bags...

I'm afraid M&S freshly baked croissants or even Tesco Express freshly baked croissants (Witney store,I can't vouch for other stores) are much much better.

Pamplemousse (Unverified), 10/03/06

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Maison Blanc is a great patisserie. You only need to walk past to see people with their noses pressed up against the glass, looking hungrily at the piles of chocolates and pastries at the Vienoisserie to know that this is a place where people come to indulge. Never one to turn down the chance, I went for breakfast in the Salon du Thé. The Salon is at the back of the shop, past all the counters of cakes and breads. There are arty photos of gateaux on the wall, all icing swirls and inedible looking chocolate sculpture. The whole place is actually quite arty, a place that constantly reminds you that every mouthful is something to be savoured because it's just so special. I ended up feeling simply uncomfortable and self-conscious on their hard maroon chairs and marble effect tables.

You also need to be craving a quite serious sugar hit before you go; the hot chocolate is bittersweet, dark enough to take the edge off the sugariness and creamy enough to make you swoon (£2.70 for a pot). I added a Pain aux raisins aux amandes (£2.25) to this, a huge butter pastry swirl with juicy raisins and flakes of toasted almonds. I think the icing sugar overkill was to disguise the fact that it was actually slightly overcooked at the edges rather than for taste or even aesthetics, so the whole thing left me on a bit of a glucose high, far more so than my usual marmite-on-toast affair. Nevertheless, it was fantastic. It is rich, but that's why you're there, right? My breakfast buddy opted for a Grand Cappuccino (£2.50) and her early morning caffeine requirement was adequately sated, with just the right amount of froth and chocolate to keep her happy. A croissant aux amandes (not so sugary or burnt) brought our total to around £7.50, which doesn't seem too unreasonable.

If you want to impress someone but can't quite stretch to dinner, drag yourself out of bed and make a breakfast date - it opens at 8.30am. Alternatively, you could just buy the necessaries (the patisserie opens at 8am) and make it breakfast in bed. Maison Blanc does not sell just sweetstuff however. The sandwich menu is impressive if a tad pricey. The Bressan sandwich is a baguette filled with roast chicken, sunblush tomatoes and roquette for £4.45, the Normand is filled with brie, apple and cider confit and mixed leaf (£3.75) and the Tarte Provencale is stacked with emmental, fresh tomatoes and herbs (£4.95). Eat in or take out, Maison Blanc offers some of the very best in bread, patisserie and sandwiches.

Abby Chicken (Unverified), 03/08/03

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