Whether you call it Bavarian cream or Bavarois, the classic dessert generally isn’t much to look at. Since traditional Bavarian cream itself is just a beige lump (being cream, after all), many chefs choose to drizzle a brightly colored fruit sauce on top of it. And while that definitively adds some much needed visual pizzazz, if you’re after a dessert that’s as captivatingly beautiful as it is mouth-wateringly tempting, this Tokyo pastry shop’s Bavarian cream that includes edible flowers is basically a work of art that you can eat.
You can find these amazing-looking treats at Havaro, which takes its name from hana, the Japanese word for “flower,” and a corruption of babaroa, itself already the corrupted Japanese pronunciation of Bavarois. Havaro recently opened in the TOKYO Me+ section of the Ichibangai shopping area inside Tokyo Station, and is already attracting customers eager to buy Bavarian cream that looks like no one else’s.
And when we say “like no one else’s,” we’re not just talking about other dessert makers. Havaro’s Bavarian cream contains edible flowers, and thanks to the subtle differences in coloring and petal shape between individual flowers, no two Havaro desserts ever look exactly alike.
Havaro’s product range consists of three types of Bavarian cream. The largest, multi-flower ring-shaped desserts appropriately called bouquets, vary in price depending on the exact flowers used. The smallest treats are bite-sized cubes called pétals, which come eight to a pack for 1,800 yen (US$15). Between the two are the fleurs, domes 70 millimeters (2.8 inches) across that sell for 350 yen each.
Peering into Havaro’s in-store display case/flower field, we picked out three fleurs: orange, cream cheese, and fraise (French for “strawberry”), sadly not having room in our stomachs to also fit the vanilla yogurt, chocolate, and matcha green tea flavors.
Each and every one of our taste-test candidates turned out to be delicious…once we could bring ourselves to stop gazing into the light sparkling off the surface of the gelatinous cream long enough to take a bite.
▼ Cream cheese: delicate and elegant on the palate
▼ And also mesmerizing to look at in cross-section
▼ Orange, with a refreshing citrus sensation
▼ And finally, the fruity fraise with its strawberry puree, our personal favorite of the bunch
If you find yourself intrigued by the appearance of Havaro’s Bavarian cream, don’t let any squeamishness you might feel about eating flowers stop you. While there’s a momentary suggestion of bitterness as you bit into the petals, the sweetness of the cream is more than enough to keep it from being unpleasant, and the flower itself has a pleasingly crisp texture.
As you might have guessed, though, these beautiful desserts are neither quick nor easy to make, and the quantities Havaro is able to prepare tend to sell out just about every day. So go early if you’re looking to treat yourself, try something unique, or kill two birds with one stone by buying a friend or family member a gift that’s flowers and sweets all in the same package.
Shop information
Havaro / 花のババロア Havaro
Address: Tokyo-to, Chiyoda-ku, Marunouchi 1-9-1, Tokyo-eki Ichibangai 1st floor, inside Tokyo Me+
東京都千代田区丸の内1-9-1 東京駅一番街1階 TOKYO Me+内
Open Monday-Friday 9 a.m.-8:30 p.m., weekends/holidays 9 a.m.-8 p.m.
Website
Photos: ©RocketNews24
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