CCU Undercover Diary: Adriano Zumbo Patisserie

CCU jumped for joy when her parents came in carrying a sweet, rectangular box, so filled to the brim with macarons that there was barely any space for air in there! She swooned, she smelled and she enjoyed, wondering when her not-so-fun studies would let up and finally allow her to visit the Patissier herself. She grasped a macaron, bit into it, the shell cracking and the soft ganache filling oozing out, and she grinned a little harder…

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All right my darlings, this is something new that I plan on introducing to you! As you well know, it is impossible to try everything at bakeries and ice cream parlours all in a quick hit, no matter how much you haunt their premises! For that reason, I have decided to do some ongoing reviews which will allow me to show you BRILLIANT EATS, but then keep adding to them as I keep visiting 🙂

Oh please, no applause, you are all too sweet *catches a rose thrown from the audience*

It is a diary – Dear diary, today I ate this from here. Dear diary, today I ate that from here. – Just much more interesting than that I assure you 😉
And I promise to keep you updated whenever I update my diary by telling you in the corresponding newest post – hope you all enjoy!

*Note: 
I will not be doing diary reviews for restaurants or cafes, even a second review of them would be a rarity.

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Dear Diary,

2nd June 2013

I have been to Adriano Zumbo Patisserie before. Anyone who lives in Australia, would probably have visited, just because he has quickly become an Australian icon after being presented on Masterchef. He is a genius. I don’t know if I have already ranted about how wonderful he is as a baker (and my friends who did work experience at his cafe, tell me) and as a person! 😀

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If you think he sounds familiar to you on this blog, I have also visited his Dessert Train Cafe in Star City! Just from those desserts you can tell how gifted Zumbo is!

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His hands are magic, butter smiles at him and egg whites. They are his baby. Simple as that 🙂

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Perhaps, no matter his incredible cake layering or choux pastry is, he is known most for his macarons. He does chocolate, he does vanilla, he does strawberry.

He also does pigs blood (which I don’t think he sells though!), hamburgers and vegemite!

A Full Flavour Chart

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Creativity knows no bounds with this man – he goes against convention in his converse! 🙂

Anyway, because he can, his macarons are not normal macarons – they are zumbarons, they are ever changing in the flavours available at his Patisserie in Balmain. I cannot offer you pictures of his patisserie in this entry, but I certainly can give you a mighty fabulous taste of all his maca…zumbarons!

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Here is a list of the current Zumbarons:

  • Blackcurrant – ?
  • Bread & Butter Pudding
  • Caramel Banana Balsamic 
  • Cherry Coconut
  • Caramel au Beurre Sale
  • Choc Pudding – ?
  • Fingerbun
  • Lychee & Coconut
  • Passionfruit
  • Pear & Almond
  • Pecan Danish – ?
  • Pineapple
  • Popcorn
  • Salted Butter Caramel on Toast

I give you this for a reason but for now, let’s get started! Texturally for all of them, they were actually perfect with a crack on the first bite, moist and soft inside and perfectly proportionate amount of filling (except for one, as you shall see, where they were a little over-generous!). If I had to comment on anything, I would say for some of the macarons, I was a bit disappointed at how their feet turned out barely risen (which happens from even slightly over-folding the batter) because when you compare them to the incredible Gourmet Getaway’s, the difference is obvious! But honestly, in the long run, quite a small thing which I am sure they will improve 🙂

  1. Cherry Coconut – This one was very soft to hold but still had a good crack and tasted a bit like a Cherry Ripe turned macaron 🙂 – I liked that the chocolate was not overwhelming and had a hint of cherry essence in it and the desiccated coconut all around it was aesthetically and texturally fantastic. And the colour, I am a girl, how could I not adore it?! 🙂
    2-maca
  2. Caramel au Beurre Sale – Salted Butter Caramel (you are glad I do French non?) – There is a big hit of strong flavour which makes the name of this macaron pretty easy to figure out. It is salty, smooth and delicious, and feels like you are spooning freshly made caramel. Certainly lives up to its name!
    3-maca
  3. Bread & Butter Pudding – The first thing I thought of when I ate this was eggnog actually but you know how bread and butter pudding has a slightly eggy taste due to pouring the dairy all over the bread before baking? Well, as crazy as it seems, all that is encompassed in this small, pure white macaron. It had the aftertaste of eating white bread soaked in milk or custard which was incredible!
    4-maca
  4. Passionfruit – It is like a big hit tropical just hit my mouth with this one, because the flavour is tingly and delicious and exactly like passionfruit without a hint of artificialness, which is so hard to find 😀 – I also loved the aesthetic seeds on top to make the macaron resemble a passionfruit, it was too cute!
    5-maca
  5. Caramel Banana Balsamic – If anyone can mix together brown sugar, balsamic, banana and caramel, it is Zumbo! On eating this, you taste sweetness with a tartness cutting through (the Balsamic) and it works really well together, As delicious as it is, unfortunately, it did overpower the initial taste of any banana, though oddly enough, I was left with an aftertaste as if I had eaten a banana lolly... 😛
    6-maca
  6. Salted Butter Caramel on Toast – This tasted exactly the same as the Caramel au Buerre Sale BUT, had flecks of crunchiness for the toast which made it live up to its name. It was quite an innovative flavour and delicious, though the caramel was a little over generous – I know, why would I even complain, but it did take away from the crunchiness in the macaron and become a little cloying in its sweetness
    7-maca
  7. Pineapple – Infused in both the cream and shell, Spongebob could have been living in this macaron! It was refreshing and delicious and definitely one of my favourites of the day!
    9-maca
  8. Fingerbun – You know how people say they have a party in their mouth when they chew bubblegum or eat bubblegum flavoured candy? THEY ARE WRONG! Fingerbun flavoured macarons – THEY are a party in your mouth! I fail to be able to explain how he does it, but in this macaron, I could feel the flavour of the soft bun coming from the cream, the delicious slightly-articial frosting coming from the macaron, topped off by sprinkles of coconut. If anyone has eaten at Baker’s Delight, this tastes equivalent to their Coconut Fingerbun, with 1/4 of the calories 🙂 – And it was a real delight when I found real raisins inside the filling – it was awesome!
    10-maca
  9. Pear And Almond – I am a huge fan of pear lollies, jellybeans, the works but they are quite the under-appreciated candy fruit. BUT NOT IN ZUMBO’s WORLD! Honestly, it was such a fresh burst of pear jelly-ish flavour, it was almost overwhelming and while delicious 🙂 How gorgeous is the colour! There was a real almond in the centre was a fantastic surprise but I wish the almond flavour had been spread throughout the macaron – personal preference!
    11-maca
  10. Popcorn – A long time ago, I made Popcorn Ice Cream. It was brilliant. The cream inside this macaron tasted exactly the same, the shell was crackling with popcorn flavour and then to top it off, it was dipped in crushed, buttery kernels – GENIUS! And I think my favourite from the box, what I would not give to have a popcorn box full of these babies 🙂
    12-maca

Now, I had two flavours that I could not name, be it bad tongue or just… it happens! 😉 – Let me describe them to you and from the list above, hopefully you will find out which ones they are – leave your suggestions in the comments below!

  1. Flaky and delicious, with a very strange, almost foreign sweet taste to me, I was hedging on it being Pecan Danish, though cannot be sure since I do not eat pecans enough. What I do know is that it was texturally and taste-wise almost perfect!’
    1-maca
  2. This one had the prettiest colour in the history of colours and I initially thought Choc Pudding from the taste but then it had a slight berry-ish tang, which made me question – Blackberry? A confused flavour, it seemed like a mix of both which made it very very delicious 🙂 There was a tangy liquid in between which was a surprise but I couldn’t tell since it was not strong and blackberry…
    8-maca

Now, do not worry mes cheris, I did not devour 12 macarons in one sitting, though everyone knows I have the capacity to 😉
I nibbled each and reported back to you, all in the name of science, research and yadda yadda yadda…

And so ends my first diary entry! 😀

Adriano Zumbo Patisserie

Address:

296 Darling St
Balmain, NSW 2040

Websites:

Adriano Zumbo Patisserie on Urbanspoon

Until next time Diary, xoxo, Choc Chip 😉

P.S I am sorry it is taking me so long to announce a winner for my giveaway and it is way overdue but I promise, by next weekend, I will announce the winner – eep!

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125 Comments

  1. Pingback: CCU Undercover: Cake, Bake & Sweets Show Part #3 | Go Bake Yourself

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  3. Pingback: CCU Undercover Diary: Patisserie New York | Go Bake Yourself

  5. Nami | Just One Cookbook says:

    Oh man… Macarons are dangerous in my house. I have a son who’s crazy in love with macarons and I have to fight the last piece. I tend to eat extra when he’s sleeping at night (what kind of mom am I…). I enjoyed eating/viewing your macarons… 😀

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  6. libishski says:

    I love zumbarons! My favourite is the popcorn one, though I also like the passionfruit and watermelon ones. I’m definitely going to pick up a box when I’m in Sydney next month, hopefully they’ll have the hamburger flavoured one then!

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  8. Monica says:

    Adore your diary entry here. : ) I love macarons – who can resist with all the colors and flavors, although I have to admit that I still love the classics the most. You are very good to simply nibble on them instead of devouring all 12 in one sitting. I try to be good, too, but it is hard, particularly as a Laduree opened up in NYC last year. : )

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  11. carla @ eat sweet. by carla sue says:

    You have been to Zumbo’s Dessert Train?! Oh my, I am so jealous! It is such a rarity for me to be in Sydney, so I have never, ever tried a Zumbo creation. BUT I was super excited to hear that he is opening a pattisserie in Melbourne! A visit to Zumbo will definitely be on my to do list next time I am there 😀 Thanks for sharing Uru, all of these macarons look ah-mazing.

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  13. Purely.. Kay says:

    Okay.. I loved this line.. Oh please, no applause, you are all too sweet *catches a rose thrown from the audience* lol. Loved it. And now I want sweets LOL. I love macarons

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  17. helene dsouza says:

    Even I have heard of zumbo in india and I remember his cool creations in masterchef. ^.^ Lucky you, I wish I could get those here! The
    Caramel Banana Balsamic one is calling my name!

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  19. jothetartqueen says:

    Anyone who receives a box of Zumbo macarons will be a happy camper! Lucky you! I really miss Adriano Zumbo’s crazy desserts!

    thanks for sharing with us the flavours of macarons. I’m very intrigued by the caramel banana and balsamic!

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  20. glamorous glutton says:

    I’ve been watching Adriano Zumbo’s amazing creations on Australian Masterchef, they’re truly fantastic. How fabulous to have a whole box of his wonderful macarons. Love the diary update. GG

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  42. Amy Tong says:

    How nice you’ve got to indulge in these wonderful macarons. 🙂 Wish I’m living closer so I can pay them a visit. I make macarons myself…but I’m always looking for new ideas and ingredients to make them. Adding coconut on the shells sounds like fun and delicious. Thanks for sharing.

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  44. girlinafoodfrenzy says:

    Zumbo is my pastry god and yes, I think I’m familiar with at least 75% of those flavours! How awesome is that dessert train and I love these amazing icecream flavours, (we once had red bull & on the second visit it was blueberry crumble!)

    Delicious! I can attest to trying Salt & Vinegar zumbaron once, it was amazing 🙂

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  48. Geni - Sweet and Crumby says:

    You are so mean CCU…to go into such great, wonderful, drooling detail. I am not famished but must only have macarons and we don’t have a wonderful patisserie like this in my town…will have to go several towns overs. What a fabulous review ma cherie.

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  60. Eva Taylor says:

    We’ve been away on a short holiday, but i am sure glad I was back to see this lovely post. Are macarons such a wonderful treat? I know I would love the salted caramel one for sure.

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  61. Donalyn@The Creekside Cook says:

    These look so good! I am working on making really good macarons, but so far my efforts haven’t quite come out as well as I would like. Though the experimentation is fun and even a not fantastic macaron is still pretty tasty, so no one is complaining about eating the mistakes! Thanks for the beautiful run down on all the flavors – very inspiring!

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  71. franflint61 says:

    That Salted Caramel on Toast Mac looks out of this world! I can tell that each one his mac’s has got the required ‘crunch factor’ by looking at your before and after-pictures- there’s no runny/slimy mac’s here! At around $2 per mac- this carton of mac’s must have cost a bit of money. However, I’m not up to trying the pig’s blood mac.

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  75. Three Well Beings says:

    Oh my goodness, these are gorgeous and just incredible. How would I ever be able to make a decision? Impossible! I love the idea of a diary of all the best. I’m only frustrated because you are going to continue to show me tempting tastes I won’t be able to satisfy! 🙂 Your photos of the macarons are fabulous!

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  76. Hotly Spiced says:

    I’m overwhelmed. If I could only choose just one, I would be in a total dilemma. I think I like the sound of the pineapple one but any of the caramel would do as well. But then again, who couldn’t resist one called ‘finger bun’ – takes me back to the tuck shop at school when we had ‘real’ finger buns filled with dried fruit. xx

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  83. Balvinder says:

    We have a similar place here by the name Thierry and I just love it. Everything taste god there, although I haven’t tasted but its my usual place to for coffee and a treat when I am in downtown. I don’t think I have tasted passion fruit macaroons in there.

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  85. My Inner Chick says:

    Incredible. Exquisite. Fabulous. Magicial. Amazing. Tempting.

    I do not have enough adjectives for these stunning treats, Choc.

    Jesus Christ himself must devour these in heaven! I’m serious.

    I want the Salted Butter Caramel on Toast one NOW NOW NOW.

    NOWwwwww.

    Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

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  92. jama says:

    OMG! I haven’t had a macaron in ages and I’m so jealous! What wonderful flavor combinations.

    I can tell I’m going to love your new diary entries :).

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  95. bec {daisy and the fox} says:

    oooo yum!! lucky you! 🙂
    he is soo creative with the flavors! i especially wanna try the finger bun 😀

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  97. viveka says:

    I love to look at them … so pretty in all the colors of the rainbow … but I couldn’t eat one even. Don’t ask me why … I just don’t like them, but I would love to get a posh box like that. Your photos and review is fantastic, as always. And I love posh shops too. *smile

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  103. Kim Bultman says:

    Uru, your CCU Undercover series has long been a favorite of mine, but doing sneaky (I mean scientific…) taste testing at home is a brilliant idea! Based on your conclusions, the popcorn “zumbaron” appealed to me, too, but then, I’m a sucker for popcorn and a chef described as: “Butter smiles at him.” 😉 Great review!

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  104. Ridwan says:

    If I have to tell you I’m in love with macarons at a first bite 🙂 when I visited Paris last year I had them for my dessert every night during I stay there, these macarons looks fantastic with different taste, i want to try them all, yummy story 🙂

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  109. Alice @ Nom Nom Cat says:

    Oh the things we do for blog research ;3 haha. Those macarons look awesome, especially the popcorn one! Macarons are pretty trendy here in LA – if you ever visit, you’ll have to try some (although I can’t say I’ve seen any quite as creative AND enticing as these). PS: Did you take those photos in a lightbox? I see hints of a white backdrop. I’m planning to DIY one to improve the look of my photos, so it caught my eye. :3 Cheers!

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  111. gourmetgetaway says:

    What a delicious story! So many amazing flavours of Macaron! If only I could try them all.

    Your macarons turned out gorgeous too, such a lovely rich colour, I bet the just melted in your mouth.

    Thank you for linking to my Macaron story too 🙂
    Julie

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  112. john@kitchenriffs says:

    Science is important! Glad to see you’re applying yourself to help all of us in finding the absolute best things to eat. I know you’re sacrificing yourself so we don’t have to – such a noble cause! 😉 Really fun read. Keep up with your research!

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