Learning more about French Pastry and Bread-My visit to Caramel French Bakery and Pastry, Muscat

What does it really take to perfect a flawless chocolate éclair? A delicious baguette?To pipe dozens of macarons? To bake an amazing 'melt in the mouth' Opera cake? Questions like this have come to my mind frequently, and in order to find answers to all these and many more, I spent a delightful morning at the Caramel French Bakery in Muscat yesterday.

The first thing that hit me as I entered the bakery in Al Ghubra, was the delicious aroma that floated all around. It was a combination of bread, pastry, chocolate and cheese all rolled into one. Must confess, if I hadn't eaten breakfast before setting off, it would probably have had me salivating! 

Caramel Bakery-Packed with the best quality eclairs, pastries, cronuts, tarts, breads and so much more

I was greeted by the very polite French manager Mr. Pacombe who gave me a short brief about the place and introduced me to Eloise Traboulsi, the owner of Caramel. Caramel opened its first boutique and kiosk in Muscat in January 2010.  The initiative of Eloise Traboulsi, a French citizen living in the Gulf for the past 7 years, was the driving force and today Caramel combines her passion for pastry and bakery into a very successful business model for aspiring youngsters.

I was informed that in order to make such exquisite creations possible and produce the very best of traditional French bakery and pastry products, Eloise has introduced top of the range equipment and the finest ingredients coupled with the long experience of Caramel’s professional team.One look as I entered the Bakery and Pastry sections and I knew that it was truly a labour of love combined with the highest standards of professionalism reflected in the cutting edge technology of the machines and equipment being used by them. 

Eloise Traboulsi -the founder 

With their  motto,' Your satisfaction is our challenge' Caramel takes pride in sharing the fact that they cater to many Corporate and Private companies around.They have a standard menu for customers ready reference or their product range can be catered based on personal preferences as well.

Tempting treats and breads 

It was only 10 am and the shop was already packed with goodies.
In addition to  breads, and regular pastries I found cronuts, a new addition.
The Cronut is a unique creation by Chef Dominique Ansel that many have 
described to be a croissant -doughnut hybrid.After its launch in May 2013, 
cronut pastry fans were created all over the world, making it the 
most virally talked about dessert item in history.

A wide range of cronuts

I was introduced to the team working at the bakery and just ten minutes 
later, I understood exactly why Caramel is such a success.
Simply put, they have the most dedicated team of professionals
and the bakery works 24 hours a day. Add to it
smiling faces and effortless ease at their job and
there you have it!

  

Breads which taste even better than they look-The Bakery works 24 hours a day

Spinach Quiches just before baking

Pastry Chef Sebastian Gomes working on a Birthday Cake 

 

 All Smiles- while Chef Makram works on the day's plan 

Thank You Mr Pacombe- I really enjoyed the visit!

You really could be in Paris

I really could have spent a lot of time there 

but since I had other things planned, I had to leave.

I was really and truly happy, having learnt a great deal 

as well  tasting some French delights.

  

And if any of you are wondering how you can 

make your way to Caramel 

I've added the location map just below for your convenience. 

Would love to know what you thought...

The Location Map- Caramel

'Anar'- A Lovely Little Cafe opens up at The Wave, Muscat

Word of mouth is one of the most powerful testimonials and I'm firmly convinced that it works beautifully in the food business. Which is exactly why I found myself driving all the way to The Wave, Muscat this morning  because a lady I know had told me about this "great little place" that had just opened up there and since I love to check out new places, this had to be a 'must do' on my list.She was right- it was and I loved it! 

Located just ahead of Costa Coffee  and Shang Thai, it looks cool and pleasant and is done up in the shabby chic style.  The fabrics are primarily in  cottons and linens, with linen being particularly popular. Pure whites, as well as ecrus and worn or bleached pastel colours have been used.The overall appearance 'looks' as well as 'feels' right for a perfect morning out. There are tables as well as sofas and looking around at the customers already seated there, I could see that it's already well on the way to becoming a hot spot for all those who live on that side of town. Currently open from 0900 -1800 hours, the plan is to be able to stay open for longer once all the staff and other misc requirements are in place.

I was lucky to have an opportunity to meet and interact with the cheerful team there and learnt a lot by a little chit chat. Aberrahim Zouda ( centre in pic below) is the Operations in charge, Thomas Mocock is the Head Stand in Chef, while Roland is Pastry chef.

All Smiles- Some of the team members at Anar

My first question was- why 'Anar'? The answer was clear and simple- Anar meaning pomegranate has been chosen as the name of this cafe after a great deal of deliberation.In almost every religion the pomegranate has been used as a symbol of humanity's most fundamental beliefs and desires, life and death, birth and eternal life, fertility and marriage, abundance and prosperity. To the Jews, the pomegranate represents righteousness, to the Christians, it means life and hope of eternal life and to the Chinese, wealth and many sons.

Taking on from that Anar in the context of the restaurant means an abundance-of everything. They encourage all customers to give them feedback, their suggestions for items on the menu with Abderrahim going so far as to tell me that any recipes given by the customers  and approved after a taste test by the team would be put up on their menu with great pride. That's a real opportunity for all aspiring chefs if there ever was one!

A Super Display

On the menu at present is a range of hot and cold beverages, freshly baked breads, tarts, pastries, cookies. They have recently introduced sandwiches and will continue to add items to the menu on a regular basis. 

Just some of the freshly baked goodies

My 'Danish' with a Cappuccino- I loved both!

I hope to make another visit in the near future and have an opportunity to see the chefs at work in the kitchen, so do watch this space for more ..

Cheers!

In the meantime, do yourself and your friends a favour- head to The Wave and check out Anar for yourselves...