Cookies/Biscuits - Paris

Well, Paris isn’t exactly famous for cookies as understood in the USA. but it is famous for macarons… and they are DIVINE.

Ladurée is the most famous purveyor of macarons in Paris. The flavor choice seems almost infinite (think rose, passion fruit, raspberry, caramel, pineapple, orange blossom, coffee, “Marie Antoinette tea,” and of course chocolate, to name just a few) and the resulting colors are a magical rainbow of joy!

That said, they are pretty perishable, so I’d wait and buy them at the airport. I think I have seen a Ladurée shop at Charles de Gaulle. A quick check on Google indicates that La Maison du Chocolat definitely does sell macarons there, and I am sure they are lush.

Happy yummy!

The supermarkets have pretty amazing food courts/stores, you should find all manner of items there. Bon Marche for instance.

Thanks, I just modified my post as some people may refer to cookies as biscuits.

I was in the Loire valley about a month ago and found them in most gift shops and specialty food stores, but figured the best must be in Paris.

They are easy to take home as opposed to other sweets.

Alain Ducasse has ‘biscuit’ shops in addition to his chocolate shops. There are a few locations.

I have always loved that grocery stores have all sorts of cookies that are different from the ones I can get at home. And as an added bonus they are very cheap compared to bakery items.

Bonne Mamam has lots of cookies -- I like their tiny citron tarts -- one bite individually packaged. I also really like the St. Michel cookies. There are many varieties of mostly butter cookies but I particularly like the slightly salty grande gallettes, but you can experiment with different brands and styles. There is a type of cookie by Gerbles -- we just call them gerbils -- and we like them because they come in smaller packs of 4 or 5 within the box and they are less sweet and work for hunger when you aren't going to get a meal when you hoped to. Great travel cookie -- I like the Sesame ones but there are a dozen or so varieties.

but any grocery store will have a lot of choices different from what is generally available at home.

Like Janet, I rely on supermarkets for sweet treats and always do a sweet through the cookie aisle on our last day. They make great inexpensive souvenirs and gifts for people back home.

FWIW. One of my grandkids is sort of obsessed with the lollypops with the flower pattern in them -- cheap bags and like Kinder Eggs, a much loved but cheap treat for kids. I also buy advent calendars in the fall for the grandkids.

does US Customs / Ag Dept still pull out KInder Eggs as a forbidden item?

I don't think they ever actually confiscated Kinder Eggs. The kind with prizes are not sold in the US but we have hauled them back in luggage for decades -- But of course luggage is also not routinely searched and candy even when things had to be declared is not a banned item that would trigger a search like meat products would.

Fresh cookies are baked, therefore, they're not restricted by US Customs.

But yes, EU Kinder Eggs will be confiscated, period. https://www.cbp.gov/newsroom/local-media-release/importation-advisory-kinder-eggs
Any food you bring back needs to be declared to CBP, they'll determine if it's ok.

I second Alain Ducasse. I go to the location on Rue de Roquette in the 11th for their very delicious biscuits (cookies) and chocolate.

I find it hilariously stupid that kinder eggs would be confiscated. I know they cannot be imported for sale, but am surprised they would actually be confiscated from individual travelers. Since luggage is virtually never searched (and candy is not forbidden nor are cookies, sniffer dogs are not relevant here -- for meat or dope yes )-- it is unikely that many of the tens of thousands brought back by parents and grandparents for their kids are actually intercepted.

Large French supermarkets distinguish biscuits from cookies, putting American style chocolate chip and such together on one shelf and the traditional biscuits together on a different shelf. The Chamonix and orange-chocolate concoctions are somewhere in the middle.

To answer the Kinder Kerfuffle: the European Kinders are not imported into the US due to the size of the toy prize. They are considered a choking hazard for young children. That’s why if they are declared, they will be confiscated.

It's been a few years, but I found the best macarons in Paris at Pierre Marcolini and they were less expensive (€1.50 vs. €2.00 back then). In general macarons are best eaten in 2 days. At the airport they are undoubtedly much more expensive than in the city. I also found that macarons at chocolatiers were much better than any at pastry shops.

@janetravels - if you don't declare what food you have and CBP discovers it, hope you don't have Global Entry, because you'll lose it and end up in secondary forever.