Patisserie Du Liban

Lebanese$$$$

The name translates as “Lebanese pastry shop” in French but Patisserie Du Liban charts a much wider flight path. There are Levantine sweets, European treats and a pistachio tres leches (three milk) cake worth your time. Owner-chef Zakaria Ali has three decades of industry experience (including 12 years in Lebanon), and daughter Rukaya and wife Maissa also help convey the store’s charms.

Rukaya might talk you through the baklava varieties, cheesy knafeh that evokes her father’s schooldays, or a Biscoff version of basbousa semolina cake. Then there’s the bestselling znoud el sit, made by filling pastry with ashta (clotted cream), frying it and timing the syrup-dip to ensure it stays crisp. This process “takes true skill and experience”, says Maissa.