Do you need to add a little sweetness to your life? I know just where to go for that. One of my favourite places in Nice is Maison Auer in the Old Town. It is a “confiserie/chocolaterie” (sweet shop/chocolate shop) – can it get any better than that? Feast for the eyes For me this shop is a “must see” on any tour of Nice for two reasons.
First of all, the architecture is beautiful. When you enter this amazing shop on rue St. François de Paule you are transported back in time about 150 years. The original Florentine style interior is decorated with stained glass, crystal chandeliers, and marble-topped display cabinets adorned with cherubs and festoons of flowers. It’s easy to imagine Victorian skirts swishing among these displays as elegant ladies and gents shopped for a few sweets before heading across the street to the opera.
Tempting treats
After you have finished admiring the architecture, you will start to notice the tantalizing products on offer. This is the second reason it’s one of my favourite places. You will see candied fruit in the window, glistening from all of that sugary goodness within. You will also find fruit jellies, glazed chestnuts, and of course, my personal favourite, chocolate. They make more than twenty kinds of chocolate here so you are sure to find something to suit your taste.
Chocolate
One of the things I love about France is that chocolate is recognised as a health food – dark chocolate, that is, with at least 70% cocoa. It is recommended that everyone eat a square of chocolate every day. (I admit that I have been known to go over the recommended dosage on occasion.) I recently read an article listing the many benefits of chocolate and it seems that one of its numerous powers is that it can act as an aphrodisiac. I don’t know if this is true, but I do know that the founder of this beautiful sweet shop, Henri Auer, had 14 children. Do you think there might be a connection?
A bit of history
Henri (the chocolate lover) was a Swiss confectioner. He moved to France in the mid 1800s and opened up several shops in the Marseille area. But when this shop came up for sale in Nice, just across from the opera, he sold his other shops and moved here. No doubt it had something to do with the boom in tourism happening in Nice at that time. In the 19th century, Nice was filled with wealthy, mainly British, tourists, looking for places to spend their money. Henri’s business flourished and has been in the same location and owned by the same family ever since. Today, this sweet shop is run by the fifth generation of the Auer family.
Can’t get enough?
Of course, Auer is not the only “confiserie” in Nice. As you wander around town, you are sure to see others with mouth-watering window displays. If you would like to see how some of these sweet things are made, you can visit Confiserie Florian, in the Port area, for a free guided tour of their small factory. This is another family business which started in 1949. You can go for a tour anytime, but if you go on the weekend you won’t see any sweets being produced. After your tour, go upstairs to the shop and taste some of their products. One of their specialities is candied flower petals and flower petal jam. Fancy a bit of rose, violet, or jasmine jam on your morning toast? This is the place to get it.
You can go here for a free factory tour and to buy your flower petal jams
Well, I hope this post made your day a little bit sweeter. Go to the bottom of the page for addresses and websites of a few sweet shops in Nice.
Addresses
- Maison Auer, 7 rue St. François de Paule, in the old town, just across from the opera. http://www.maison-auer.com/
- Confiserie Florian, 14 Quai Papacino, in the port area. Go here for a tour and to get flower petal jam. http://www.confiserieflorian.co.uk/ (site in English)
- Canel Confiserie, 21 rue de France. A charming little shop packed full of goodies www.canel-confiserie.com
- La Cure Gourmande, 2 rue Sainte-Réparate, just off of Place Rossetti and there is another one at the Nice airport for those last minute purchases. http://www.la-cure-gourmande.com/
- L’Art Gourmand, 21 rue du Marché in the Old Town. They also have a small tea room.
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OMG..I must visit Auer in Nice..
You won’t be sorry!
I visited France over the summer and stuffed as much dark chocolate as I could get into my carry on. It was amazing and I managed to ration it for a few weeks 🙂
Oh, what willpower you have! 😉 There is nothing like a nice dark chocolate!
Love the chocolates! Sign me up!
You know, this was a really tough post to write. I had to go to all these shops and sample the goods. 🙂
Lovely post, Margo! I have a question for you, unrelated to chocolate. I’m curious about Florentine design- is this prevalent in Nice? I looked this up on Wikipedia but got only slight reference to this. I love the beauty and wonder if much else has survived? Thanks for picking this wonderful subject for today’s post!
Good question, Jonelle. I had never heard of “Florentine style”, but this is how the shop owners describe it. I would describe it as maybe Baroque but I’m don’t really know. It is lovely, but it is not a style that you will see often around Nice – except maybe in some churches. In fact, I have a “Baroque Nice” tour next week, so I can see if there are other buildings with similar decoration. Thanks for the question – now I am curious. 🙂
As Margo’s husband, I must tell her deepest, darkest secret!
Ever since I met her she has loved chocolate. In fact, as a kid, she would hide her chocolate from her family, so no one else could have it!
I think the real reason she wanted to have a home in Nice is because of this article!
The sunshine helps too, but give her dark chocolate and she is a happy girl.
Great article on one of your favourite subjects.
Well, of course I used to hide my chocolate from my brothers. They didn’t know how to appreciate and savor it. 😉 And now, I am finally in a country that understands this amazing food.
How delicious! I wish I’d known about this place last time I visited NIce – definitely on my list if/when I return. #allaboutfrance
I think it should be on everyone’s must see list – Sea – Sun – Chocolate!
I always take visitors to Maison Auer, it’s a feast for all senses. I love that it’s authentic decor unlike places like the chain la Cure Gormande which seek to replicate the look. I also take visitors (or recommend they go) to Florian, but we go to the factory at Pont du Loup as it’s nearer and in such a spectacular setting in the gorges du Loup. Must have been tough researching and photographing this post Margo!! Thanks for linking up, you certainly have made my day sweeter!
Thanks Phoebe. Sounds like you make sure your visitors see all the really important sights. I’ve never been to the Florian at Pont du Loup but it sounds great.
And like you, I force myself to try the local specialties so I can tell others about them. It’s tough sometimes. 😉
Looks amazing. Somewhere I’ve never been so I will make a note to visit next time I’m in town. Thanks for a great read!
It’s definitely worth visit – tasteful decor and tasty treats!
This is awesome! Love the candy shops in France! The history and stories you share here are priceless. I can’t wait to return to Nice and taste this place for myself!
Thanks. The only problem with writing (or reading) about candy is that it makes you want to eat it! 🙂
What a sweet post Margo. Having been in and out of Nice on a regular basis over the past five years, I have never gone inside Maison Auer. This will be put right when I return [from the UK rain] in September. I know why I haven’t sought the shop out – I have NO will power whatsoever when it comes to sweeties and I really shouldn’t eat the sugar!! However, as I am always looking for little treats for others, I shall exert superhuman ‘wont’ power and go in to see the beautiful decor [OK, I bet I buy some chocolate for myself too!].
Well, you know that in France, it is recommended that everyone eat a little bit of dark chocolate every day. The trick is just eating “a little bit.”