This lovely little Parisian-style bakery is the realisation of French-born Audrey Kriel?s dream of escaping the drudgery of the office to work with her hands.

Perfect pastries in De Pijp

After a career in marketing for the Antipodean art-house film industry, Kriel enrolled at the Ecole de Boulangerie et de Pâ:tisserie in Paris and began a new life as a pastry chef. She gained experience at various bakeries, such as the prestigious Pâ:tisserie des Rê:ves in Paris and Petit Gâ:teau in Amsterdam, before opening this, her first shop, in De Pijp. Kriel specialises in cream-filled pastries (think: millefeuilles, eclairs and choux). The light-as-air chocolate eclair, with its hefty hit of Valrhona chocolate tempered by rich cream, and the crispy choux crammed with lemon cream, a citrusy sugar bomb, come highly recommended. There&rsquo:s also a little window seat where you can kick off the day with viennoiserie, such as pain aux raisins or pain au chocolat, and coffee made with a blend of Ethiopian and Brazilian beans from renowned Amsterdam roasters Lot Sixty One.