LE Miél means ‘honey’ in French, and honey is sweet, nourishing and delicious. So, when husband-and-wife John Paul Chua and Gayeon ‘G’ Lee decided to open a café and patisserie of their own at The Hub of Greenfield District in Mandaluyong City late last year (2014), they called it Le Miél Café & Pâtisserie. Aptly so, because the place serves only the most scrumptious cakes, breads and desserts, personally made by G, to go with coffee concoctions whipped up by John Paul.
What a team, you might say, and, yes, they are quite a team!
John Paul, who is of Chinese descent, worked as a barista for a popular coffee shop some eight years ago, so he knows how to prepare the best hot and cold coffee concoctions served in cafés today — be it Café Latte, Cappuccino, Caramel Macchiato, Mocha Frappé or Cheesecake-Matcha Special Frappé.
G, a Korean, is a child psychologist by profession, but since baking has always been her hobby, she went on to take up a professional pastry course, first in Korea and then at Ecole Lenotre in Paris, France. So she makes classic French breads, pastries and cakes. Working with 100% pure Belgian chocolate for her Gateau Fudge and other chocolate-based cakes, as well as other natural ingredients such as freshly squeezed lemon juice, she creates magic that are just pure pleasure to partake. They taste as good as they look, and there’s so much variety that you’d wonder if she ever stops baking. Being Korean, she has added a favorite Korean dessert, Bingsu, to the menu. Bingsu is Korean halo-halo, which mixes very fine and smooth ice with milk, condensed milk and ingredients like red beans for the Classic Bingsu, matcha green tea powder from Japan for the Green Mountain Bingsu, and strawberries and raspberries for the Very Berry Bingsu, served in a glass measuring cup. The couple acquired a special ice snow maker machine to enable them to serve the Bingsus with very fine and smooth ice that’s almost like snow.
John Paul and G met each other on board the Royal Caribbean cruise ship, fell in love and got married, and when they decided to turn entrepreneurs, a café and patisserie was the most logical choice. Committed to each other and to their new-found business, they both personally serve customers even if they have hired staff to do so.
It is, however, not difficult for them to convince people to try their products. The cakes look so good and taste as good, too. A must-try is G’s specialty, Gateau Fudge, with other top picks being Tarta aux Citron, Charlotte aux Fruits Rouges, Red Velvet Cake and Le Petit Anthonie. G uses only the freshest and finest ingredients for her cakes. No compromises. She does not serve anything less than perfection.
As for the breads, G does not use yeast on ciabatta, her specialty, and she makes her focaccia (there are four varieties—plain; with tomato, basil, mozzarella and bacon; with basil, pesto and garlic; and with black pesto and black olives) in batches so it’s always fresh.
Whether it’s breads, cakes, pastries or desserts, which is best with a cup of real good coffee, the dainty little pastry shop called Le Miél is certainly worth a visit… and another… and another.
(Le Miél Café & Pâtisserie can be found at The Hub, Greenfield District, Mandaluyong City. It has both indoor and al fresco seating, and it faces the Greenfield District Central Park.)
