Panade Puffs & Pastries

The owner Yvon is very nice and kind, as you open the door to the shop you could smell fresh puffs! However, this place has switched over to pre-​order-​only, it’s still very easy except for you won’t be able to just stop by at any time when you feel like having some nice puffs. I tried their vanilla, black saseme and caramel flavors, they were wonderful, but could have been better. Now it’s time to go on a hunt for great cream puffs.

Clearly the lady who owns this shop doesn’t want to do business. Currently at the moment it’s closed for reconstruction. I can’t even begin with how irresponsible this bakery is.
First off, I tried calling to check out what their inventory had and if there were any new items. Guess what? Nobody picks up and there’s a recording that hasn’t been updated since August 2014. Great, so basically no way to reach this place. I show up at the shop and found out it’s closed for reconstruction, luckily the owner was still there and she tells me to call in to do a preorder or email it to the shop. I took down the email and sent her my order a few days later. We set up a time to pick up the order. I told her I was available after 3:30. She confirmed it would be ready for pick up after that. The next day I was ready to go pick up my pastries. I was on my way around 5 but I received emails from her saying she was leaving the shop at 4:45 and I had to get there soon. I don’t understand why she didn’t call me earlier to let me know? I didn’t see my emails until it was too late. I tried calling her but again it was the same thing again, the machine answered and it was a message from August and how they would be on vacation for the rest of the month. Her final email to me was that I could reschedule it and she apologized for not being able to wait for me and she would offer a complimentary pastry to make up for it. I emailed her to set up a new pick up time for a later day in the week to which she never replied to.
Sorry Panade, you just lost my business, I would’ve passed the word around about your bakery if you ever gave me the chance to do so, but clearly it’s non existent.

I was really looking forward to trying this place out for a while. When I finally did, it didn’t live up to my expectations. The pictures look really good and tempting, but sadly the texture and flavor lacks to deliver. I tried their green tea and vanilla flavors. The cream puff is is quite dry and cold, while the green tea is bland. It was quite a disappointing journey to this place. It’s a very small shop that specializes in cream puffs so you would think they would be amazing, but sadly not. I prefer Beard Papas over this any day!

Love the cream puffs! My favorites are the green tea, vanilla, and passion fruit. Also love the pecan bars. Will be a returning soon! And the owner Yvette is super sweet.

Coffee is not bad, but it shouldn’t be Starbuck prices! Cream puffs are good, but price double than dumplings across the street is suicidal. In other words, why your desert is more expensive than your meal?
An advise to the owner. If you wanna be rude, at least learn to speak French to us.

Got green tea, chocolate and vanilla.
The vanilla one was the best. Green tea was bland and chocolate was flavorless as well. The biggest problem I had was the puff is dry. Also there wasn’t enough filling in the green tea and chocolate.

Really warm staffer (sole proprietor?) dished out a vanilla + strawberry panade (’twas the season, even if they were almost certainly not local) for $ 2.25. Would consider a return to the cozy space if and when chocolate AND banana are back in stock.

After another satisfying meal at the Dumpling House, I came here for dessert. The concept is interesting…“puffs”. Cream puff, breakfast puffs and lunch sandwich puffs. I tried coming here once but the owner tends to close on the early side. Anyway, the owner (Yvonne) is not the warmest person in city. Platitude is not her strong suit nor charm. I asked which fruit she like best and she reply «I like them all… if I didn’t like them, they wouldn’t be on the menu». That was very helpful. Anyway, the strawberry vanilla was okay but not as good as Bear Papa’s. As for coffee, it was okay… similar to that of Dunkin Dunuts.
Overall, I’ve experienced better… and the owner can loosen up and benefit from Charm school :)

Got green tea cream and vinella banana cream puff — the banana one exceeds my expectation and will give the green tea a try shortly as well. You have the flexibility to put in different types of fresh fruits which is a plus comparing to other puff places I have been. The puff pastry was pre-​made and the owner puts in the cream upon your request. She also had breakfast puff (put in egg, ham etc) which I wanna give a try later on.
FYI the shop is small and doesn’t have an obvious sign for a first time visitor — it’s also more like a grab and go place and doesnt have much sit-​in seats.

Stopped in to get my latte fix and of course I had to try a cream puff. Had the cutest mini vanilla puff with a blackberry and it was a perfect little snack to satisfy my sweet tooth. I live a block away so I’ll definitely be back for another latte and to try all the different flavors of desserts. Will also be a great place to bring out of town visitors. A great NYC hole in the wall type place!

The owner isn’t very nice.
I came here early in the day this week just to try her cream puffs. Guess what? She didn’t have any cream. What the hell? I would expect that all the cream supply is replenished in the morning. But no, it isn’t. So I really don’t know when I should go. It’s true that I didn’t try any food here but just the mere fact that she didn’t have cream within the first hour of opening says something.
I ordered a cup of coffee. It was worse than Starbucks. I couldn’t even finished half of it. I threw out the rest before I even got to work four blocks away.
The front door is begging people not to come in. You have to push hard because the wood expanded so the door is a little too big for the frame. But of course the door has a sign that says push lightly and gently.
By the way, the prices are more expensive than it is stated on the website.
Overall, I won’t make another attempt to try the cream puffs. Now I understand why this place gets low stars.

So far, I have only visited this place on the Tenement Museum’s Foods of the Lower East Side tour. And I’ve only tried the Green Tea Cream Puffs. But they were the most delicious cream puffs I have ever tried! So delicate with such sweet filling. Yum! The owner, Yvette Ho, was kind and interesting. She delivered us some cream puffs just outside of the store and spoke with us briefly.

Last two times I attempted to go here, the store closed early. This time I finally made it when they were actually open.
All together… not impressed. I check in for my free mini cheese puff but wait, there’s no cheese filling left so I can only have an empty puff if I wanted. Gee, thanks.
I ordered two mini’s and two regular puffs. The sizes are not much different. I got the last bit of chocolate filling from the bag and as a paying customer, I want appropriate amount of filling. Instead I got what’s left and was charged regular price.
Filling was good but I think I will be going somewhere else.

I think if I truly loved cream puffs, I would have given this place a 4.
My first problem with this place is the signage. Had I not known the exact address of this place, I would never be able to find it. There is no sign indicating the name of the place until you get really close and see a small sign in the window. Even inside, I was unsure if I was at the right place. No display, nothing. There was a menu on the counter but again, you had to look for it. I had to ask if I was at the right place.
The baker (and I’m guessing owner?) was super sweet and she made the cream puffs fresh. That is always nice.
I tried almost every cream puff on the menu: classic vanilla, bittersweet chocolate, banana (vanilla cream with slices of fresh banana), chocolate banana (bittersweet chocolate cream with slices of fresh banana), and the specialty of the day caramel (with strawberries). The only one I didn’t get was green tea because that’s not my thing.
They all kind of tasted the same to me. I guess I prefer a richer dessert. I inhaled all of them and still felt unsatisfied.

these cream puffs are filled to order with your choice of filling.
the fillings available were classic vanilla, bittersweet chocolate,
green tea, banana (vanilla cream with fresh slices of banana),
chocolate banana (bittersweet chocolate with fresh slices of banana),
and black sesame.
the regular ones cost $ 2.25 each, mini ones cost $ 1.50 each.
classic vanilla is called classic for a reason. it has an extremely
delicate aroma, yet rich flavor. green tea and black sesame were
flavorful as well. the cream puffs are filled with additional fresh
fruit (blueberry or blackberry during this visit) upon request.
the cream puffs have rather a hard exterior, so i recommend
letting the freshly filled cream puffs sit for a little while to let the
cream soften the shell for a better taste.

Delicious little puffs plus coffee and tea selections. Seating room for only 5 and there’s no wifi, so you probably won’t be sticking around for long.
The regular cream puff and the green tea one were both amazing despite my spilling most of the sugar onto my lap. They have mini sizes, so you can try even more if you so choose. I got the prosciutto/​mozzarella/​basil half sandwich which was a nice snack. The only caveat is that they make their chai with a real tea bag so it’s pretty weak when steeping in whole milk. I’ll grab a coffee next time.

Pretty good! Panade is great for a snack. It’s this tiny place but it’s really cute and homey, and there’s a nice spot by the window to read.
I got a savory «half» puff sandwich (black forest ham, brie cheese, cucumber), and it was fresh and refreshing. Everything is made to order, meaning the owner stuffs the puffs after you order. I also got a sweet puff– black sesame, as they were out of green tea. I think I like Panade’s crème over Beard Papa’s, because Beard Papa’s crème tends to feel a little heavy. The black sesame crème was light and delicious. On the sweet side, but you could still get the sesame flavor. I also really liked the puffs themselves, airy and light.
I’d say the only downside is the price to size for the sweet cream puffs. Also, I think if you want to eat this for a filling meal, you should get the full puff sandwich (versus the half, which is more like a snack).
Panade has a great trail of regulars that troop in in the morning and it was quite amusing to watch. The owner is very friendly and makes you feel right at home.

Came here a few nights ago, right before heading to The Boil for dinner. I had a little bit of time to kill, so I decided to pass some time here by grabbing a cream puff from this little shop while I wrote a letter (yes, I still write letters).
I suppose the woman who served me was the proprietress, Yvette. I decided to get a plain vanilla cream puff. This was quite tasty and fresh. Seems like the earlier you go in the day, the more likely you’ll be able to grab a cream puff with the ingredients and fillings that you want, as several other patrons came in after me to order things that the shop had run out of.
Other than that, a tiny shop where you may be able to get some work done. Not bad overall.

«Just how many did you buy?!» he asked as Yvette carefully taped up a large box of cream puffs.
«Just three. And one strawberry ginger muffin. It’s for breakfast!» I said in defense. Three is not much. Especially when there were only three flavors available and there were two of us. When in doubt or debate, just get one of each.
I have been stalking Panade Puffs & Pastries for the past year. Finally I had made it to the café, a little hole in the wall in the LES right by Chinatown. If it were not for the little chalkboard sign, one could easily miss the place. It is small and without presence or even visible street number. Forgive me, I may need stronger glasses. Also if this is the new and improved café from across the street, it’s not saying much. Perhaps they only grew/​lost 50 square feet. Ah but it is filled with goodness!
Coffee to your delight and cream puffs and cookies galore! Really cute tea cookies and cream puffs in small and large. But why would anyone get a tiny cream puff?
The flavors were vanilla, lemon, and black sesame. I love the Asian twist. Black sesame was amazing, light, and nutty. The lemon was tart and maybe a bit too strong for a delicate cream puff but just as satisfying. The vanilla was just perfect. I have tried the other cream puff flavors (chocolate banana and green tea). They were brought to a party once. And honestly, I love them all. They are the most underrated desserts in NYC. The cream puff itself is thin and eggy. It’s crispy on the outside and dusted with powdered sugar. Yvette even offers fresh fruit in them.
I will be back and I will buy more. These things are far better than Beard Papa’s. I always ended up taking out the filling of Beard Papa’s. Panade’s is just right.

Panade is all about the Pâte Choux (or Panade. or Puffs!). And the two ladies work the counter like Panade Goddesses. hand made, small batches… producing the most delicious– and cheap– sweet and savory puffs.
I especially go for the savory varieties. the ham and cheese. or romantic herb. or the fierce rosemary. They also make the best little panade sammies. with thinly sliced meats and cheeses, sandwiched between your choice of puff (or, their suggested designs, which rock!)
***
HOWEVER! The highlight of any of my trips to Panade: Their incredible chocolate chip cookies! I prefer them even over Levain, which is a big statement.
They are made in such small batches– with so much love and care. The outside bases are crispy and buttery– but the inner core is puffed up, dense and chewy, super chunk chocolatey and with an after taste of vanilla, buttery delight. For $ 1 a piece! Pair that with some of their delicious coffee drinks. Perfect! They are kinda small. but I deem them the perfect size for a small indulgence.
This café makes me happy to live in the neighborhood.