Where am I??

A charming little Patisserie in Paris? Brussels? Switzerland? Nope, I’m in downtown La Crosse Wisconsin, at a shop called Bijan’s Patisserie.



Bijan Jidali, a native of Romania, and his wife moved to La Crosse from Syracuse, NY, and he opened the bakery early in July. Trained as a French Pastry Chef, he creates these lovely pastries along with breads.





After pondering the selections, I chose an “Apricot Sunrise’ and a Latte.



It was all I could do to muster the strength to destroy his artistry by taking a bite. What a feast for the eyes. Food can be so beautiful. The remorse passed quickly as the pastry yielded to the tooth with a slight snap, then came the silky soft, sweet layers of pastry. Then the tart apricot (sunrise) awakened the taste buds with the acidic full flavor of the apricot. To die for. In Wisconsin.

Okay, Guess Again:



A South Carolina Barbeque? In Texas? Maybe Alabama? Nope, in Onalaska (nearby La Crosse). The local high school dance team was having a fund raiser, and besides the usual car wash by the young ladies, Rooster Andy set up shop in the parking lot and cooked up the poultry (hopefully not roosters). The clouds of smoke concealed the birds, occasionally affording a view



We of course got a “lunch”, because you have to support local causes. The chicken was good, although you needed a full roll of paper towel to get through the bird. There is no other way to eat a barbequed chicken than with the fingers. Just ask Rooster Andy! In Wisconsin.

Last Chance:



A little marché in Provence? A stall in Amsterdam? A street seller in Oslo? Wrong again. It’s a parking lot in Onalaska. There is a large community of Hmongs in the area, and there are “farmers markets” where they offer the products of their efforts.




Not only are there the lovely bunches of flowers available ($4 per bouquet), there is also all manner of produce available





Besides the things we’re familiar with (onions, peppers, leeks), there were also things like “Chinese Eggplants”, a small shiny fruit like orb with gorgeous coloring. I asked one farmer about them and got a verbal recipe on how to prepare them. I don’t remember. As with all farmers, they were friendly and would talk to you as long as you wished. Another example of local people producing local products for local consumption. Beautiful. In Wisconsin.

That day pretty much concluded our visit to MFO’s mom, who was pretty much holding their own. The next day we again loaded the Momster with much lighter load and began a quest for another local product on the way home – stay tuned.

while I

DFD