In the culinary landscape of Marseille, a breath of renewal is blowing over a majestic and timeless dessert: the flan pâtissier. This classic of French pastry, often relegated to the status of a simple treat, regains unsuspected nobility thanks to the creativity and expertise of passionate artisans. The 2025 edition of the very first Best Flan Contest of Marseille highlighted this revival brilliantly. It was in the iconic setting of Fort Saint-Jean, a place rich in history and charm, that this unprecedented event took place, bringing together seventeen establishments competing with excellence and originality.
At the heart of this fierce competition, the Paéma pastry shop, nestled in the 7th arrondissement, emerged as the great revelation. Behind its discreet windows, this address managed to distill the essence of the creamy flan. The secret? An explosion of intense and pure vanilla, mixed with a perfectly mastered melting texture, all assets that won over the jury and the public. This distinction, beyond a simple culinary victory, is a celebration of Marseille’s gastronomic heritage and a tribute to tradition elegantly revisited.
This scented flan, the result of devoted artisanal passion, creates a rare gustatory emotion, evoking both the sweetness of childhood and the authenticity of flavors. Through this sweet adventure, an entire universe of flavors and precise gestures is revealed, highlighting the richness and diversity of local talents.
- 1 The historical setting of the contest: Fort Saint-Jean, a royal stage for the best flan in Marseille
- 2 A diversity of know-how: the 17 flans in competition illustrate the richness of Marseille pastry
- 3 Paéma, the Marseille pastry shop that conquered the experts’ palates with a creamy and flavored flan
- 4 Challenges and prospects for Paéma after its 2025 triumph: maintaining excellence and innovating for Marseille palates
The historical setting of the contest: Fort Saint-Jean, a royal stage for the best flan in Marseille
Organizing a competition as unique as a contest dedicated exclusively to flan pâtissier in the Phocean city required a setting worthy of the event. Fort Saint-Jean, with its centuries-old walls overlooking Marseille’s Old Port, offered an atmosphere blending solemnity and conviviality. This place, a symbol of resistance and the city’s memory, infused the competition with a special energy, reminding us that gastronomy is also an integral part of the local cultural heritage.
In this historic setting, the seventeen competing pastry shops presented their vision of creamy and flavored flan, each asserting its own signature. It strongly contrasts with the urban bustle and offers a space conducive to concentration and sharing, essential elements for judging such a subtle dessert. This choice of Fort Saint-Jean underlines that flan, far more than a simple pastry, becomes a true vector of Marseille identity.
The tasting day, between laughter and palpable tension, allowed artisans to deliver a respectful and passionate gustatory battle. Exchanges with the jury, composed of recognized gastronomic specialists, also enriched this event, strengthening the link between culinary tradition and innovation. A magnificent setting, powerful flavors, and a spirit of camaraderie marked this first edition, promising a rich and gourmet annual tradition.
A diversity of know-how: the 17 flans in competition illustrate the richness of Marseille pastry
The plurality of flans under the spotlight of the contest revealed how much this dessert can be adapted while remaining faithful to its roots. Each artisan brought their touch, some favoring a very crispy shortcrust pastry, others preferring a melting puff pastry. The texture – that famous balance between creaminess and firmness – varied from one establishment to another.
This diversity offered a complete panorama of Parisian and Provençal flans revisited according to local temperaments. The vanillas used, often coming from rare pods infused for a long time, gave rise to aromatic profiles ranging from enveloping sweetness to an explosion of more intense notes. The mastery of baking, crucial to obtain the famous delicately golden caramel layer, also made all the difference.
To better understand these criteria, here is a summary table of the key elements evaluated by the jury:
| Evaluation Criteria | Description |
|---|---|
| Taste | Intensity and balance of flavors, purity of vanilla, just the right amount of sugar, absence of artificial aromas |
| Texture | Smooth, melting creaminess, with a wobbling but stable consistency when cut |
| Baking | Elegant caramelized surface, perfect coloring without burning, custard cooked through but creamy |
| Pastry | Quality and baking of the dough (shortcrust or puff pastry), crispness, resistance to humidity |
These rigorous criteria guarantee that the awarded flan is both a gustatory masterpiece and a technical marvel. Each competing flan brought its personality, which made the final decision all the more difficult, enriching Marseille’s pastry culture.
The different approaches of artisans to enhance the flavored flan
While some opted for a discreet but recognizable vanilla, others bet on a concentrate of powerful aromas. There were also variations in the preparation of the custard: some chefs added a hint of cream for a richer flan, others favored a lighter custard based on whole milk. This plurality reveals how much flan is a field of expression for pastry chefs, combining technical skill and creativity.
This grand evening also allowed the public as well as professionals to exchange their preferences, deepening the complex relationship between tradition and modernity in the sweet world.
Paéma, the Marseille pastry shop that conquered the experts’ palates with a creamy and flavored flan
Beyond a mere contest, Paéma’s victory embodies the success of an artisan from the 7th arrondissement who combined tradition and innovation. This pastry shop, located at 31 avenue Pasteur, long remained a well-kept gourmand secret among locals. Its local reputation was already based on fine pastries and elegant cakes, but it is now its flan that attracts attention and especially taste buds.
This flan, elected best in Marseille, seduces by the richness of its vanilla and the precision of its texture. Head pastry chef Paul Charreau, at the helm of the house, shares a clear philosophy: respect the ingredients, master every step with rigor, and convey an emotion. According to him, the creamy flan is more than a dessert, it is a journey into childhood memories, an incomparable gustatory experience.
Here are the secret ingredients that make all the difference in this unique flavored flan:
- High-quality vanilla: a whole pod slowly infused to release an incomparable aromatic intensity.
- A balanced dairy blend: whole milk and cream provide creaminess and gustatory depth.
- Just the right proportion of eggs and sugar: to ensure good firmness without weighing down the texture.
- A touch of cornstarch: which ensures stability with softness.
- A carefully chosen pastry: often shortcrust to gently support the custard and offer perfect crispness.
This alchemy makes this flan a true explosion of vanilla, where each bite fills the palate with refined sweetness, never becoming cloying. The result is characterized by a melting texture that dissolves in the mouth, a rarity praised by both connoisseurs and amateurs.
An inherited and revisited recipe
Paéma, a contraction of the names of the founder’s grandparents, tells an emotionally charged story. The recipe for the awarded flan is a tribute to the family’s homemade desserts, mixing memories and know-how. The pastry chef rethought the traditional recipe by integrating his personal touch while respecting the soul of this childhood dessert.
His goal: to create a balanced flavor that recalls old-fashioned snacks while offering a quality worthy of haute pâtisserie. This sincere artisanal approach is the key to the success encountered and resonates as a vivid testimony to the power of flan through generations.
Challenges and prospects for Paéma after its 2025 triumph: maintaining excellence and innovating for Marseille palates
Winning this coveted title places the Paéma pastry shop before a new challenge: maintaining this exceptional quality in the face of growing demand. Indeed, since this consecration, the shop has experienced remarkable foot traffic, with queues lengthening every day. The challenge is huge, as maintaining the creamy and flavored flan at its peak daily requires unwavering rigor.
Constant mastery of ingredients, precision in baking times, and respect for dosages become essential to avoid disappointing an increasingly demanding audience. Paéma sees this challenge as an opportunity to consolidate its place in the hearts of the people of Marseille, faithful to its artisanal philosophy.
Towards new sweet creations, inspired by the flan’s success
Beyond the plain flan that made the house famous, the current success could open the way to gourmet variations, in tune with the seasons and local preferences. Among the considered options:
- A salted butter caramel flan, playing the card of comfort and intense sweetness.
- A chocolate version, using a grand cru to bring complexity and aromatic strength.
- Seasonal flans, incorporating fruits like rhubarb in spring or hazelnut in autumn, for a touch of freshness and novelty.
- A coffee variant, for lovers of strong and slightly bitter notes.
These variations could extend the gustatory experience and build loyalty among customers always seeking innovation without forsaking authenticity.
A gourmet horizon that continues to amaze Marseille
The victory of Paéma flan perfectly illustrates how a traditional dessert, both humble and refined, can become an emblem of local excellence. By combining passion, know-how, and rigor, this pastry shop has restored full status to a popular dessert and sparked enthusiasm rarely seen around flan pâtissier.
This recognition is a call to rediscover the simple yet powerful pleasures of pastry, where every element of the dessert – from vanilla to the crispy dough – participates in a gustatory symphony. A delicious celebration that makes you want to savor every bite with the same emotion felt by an attentive and sensitive jury.
