This is the type of place that you don't think twice about as you buzz through the Paris Las Vegas casino hotel. In fact, Jamie W. and I only dropped by to kill some time before heading off to the airport. What a pleasant surprise that it turns out to be a very nice patisserie with some very decorative-looking desserts behind an expansive glass case. The rest of the place looks more like a converted ice cream parlor with a touch of Z Gallerie tackiness.
I had the glorious, supposedly low-fat mousse (...now there's a contradiction in terms) that's in the photo gallery. Who knows how many calories were knocked off of it? But who the hell cares...it was good stuff, and stop judging me. As it turns out, Le Notre (now called Cafe Belle Madeleine) has quite a pedigree back in the real Paris as it was inspired by a superstar pastry chef, and this is the one and only outlet in the U.S. So enjoy, mon ami. Life is too short to just chug a Big Gulp as you wait for your taxi.
PASTRY - 4 stars...delicieux...I need to try a few others on a binge to proclaim it as magnifique
AMBIANCE - 3 stars...geez, maybe you could dim the lights a little
SERVICE - 3.5 stars...friendly enough though the French phrases come out of them like American tourists negotiating for a half-dozen mini-Eiffel Towers at a souvenir shop along the Seine
TOTAL - 4 stars...le patisserie est tres bon