PAUL Kingston

Always a pleasure… The food is fresh and the coffee great! The staff is always friendly and helpful even when very busy. I specifically like this branch is the seating has a nice view…

Had a nice macaroon and chai latte here! I think it’s probably going to save you from the other less attractive places around to eat from. There is, however, a costa and a pret nearby. They’re good too. Especially the Pret. The macaroon I had was very nice but a bit different from the only other macaroon I ever had before which was better. I’m going to sound ridiculous but I was a chai latte virgin before today. Haha It was alright. Overall, I’d say its a good place. BUT, it’s a bit warm in there and there were little flies flying around the food. I only noticed this when my sister came by and decided she also wanted something. The women working there were nice and one was absolutely lovely!!! Just so nice! For service.

A cute little high street French patisserie, filled with freshly made sandwiches, speciality breads and beautiful cakes. I was particularly tempted by the large macaroons, yum!
It did take a long time to heat up my sandwich though, around ten minutes, so it’s possibly better to opt for the eating in option. It’s not cheap either, but nice for a payday treat.

Paul serves perhaps the best sandwich and best pastry I have ever eaten. The Pavot Poulet Sandwich is amazing as are the Strawberry Torts. The chocolate torts are pretty good as well. Actually, everything I ever had there was pretty good. The line does get pretty long sometimes around lunch hour, but its worth the wait. They do occasionally run out of their baked goods which is an ultimate tragedy.

Paul coffee shop and patisserie is a welcome addition to Kingston, which seems to have fallen victim to the rise of the supergroup chain of coffee bars, and has not managed to retain that many smaller, better quality coffee establishments. Although Paul is part of a chain, the food, pastries (done with a French twist) and coffee tastes fresher and less mass produced than its rivals.
I popped in here to try one of their macaroons, which was winking at me suggestively in the shop window. These are the multi coloured confectionaries which have a soft biscuity shell and a creamy filling that practically melt as they hit your lips. The one that I tried was very good; not quite a sublime as the macaroons in Harrods (ohh, get me!), but tasty nonetheless.
I also ordered a skinny vanilla latte which came without the vanilla.
When I pointed out this to the staff, they made me a new one, which I thought was very nice, albeit a bit wasteful, because the old untouched latte got chucked. It was a very well made coffee, so I might just add this place to my list of local coffee establishments that are worth a trip.

Enticing aromas assail your senses as soon as you approach this French patisserie. The window displays are pretty tantalising too.
My recommendations for a true taste of ‘la belle France’ are the ‘macarons’ (delicieux!) light almond and egg-​white based individual cakes which come in several alluring flavours, including pistachio and chocolate. The mini ones are only available in multi-​pack boxes (sadly!) which should probably be avoided if you are on your own but would make a welcome gift. The larger individual ‘macarons’ really ought to be saved for a treat as they are definitely on the naughty side and assuredly nice…
My other special French fancy, here, is of the savoury variety and would be a brilliant party-​piece. Known as a ‘Pain Surprise’ — the surprise is that it’s a hollowed-​out pain de campagne (country bread) filled with mini emmental, ham or salmon sandwiches. Looks impressive and tastes great. As a bonus, service here usually comes with a smile…