Maison Aleph: where Eastern charm meets French excellence

Maison Aleph is a Levantine pâtisserie opened in late June by Myriam Sabet in the center of the Marais, a short stroll from the BHV department store. Originally from Aleppo in Syria, Myriam now lives in Paris and combines Middle Eastern flair with contemporary French pastry-making techniques. She only uses the finest ingredients from both cultures, including controlled-origin butter, Normandy cream, Damascus rose, bitter oranges, sumac, Iranian pistachio nuts and citron, which she uses to make everything from garnished angel-hair nests and ‘Mille et une feuilles’ – a modern take on the baklava in filo pastry with dried-fruit cream containing walnut and cinnamon, peanut and Arak, pistachio and orange blossom, hazelnut and lemon, or sesame and halva – to kadaïf chocolate bars with dried fruit and chunks of candied fruit, drinks flavored with Damascus rose water and homemade lemonade. When Eastern charm meets French technical excellence, it’s hard to resist!