You Should Visit Moulin, a Parisian-Style Cafe in Newport Beach
One of the things we enjoyed discovering before the pandemic was Moulin, an authentic French café and bakery located in Newport Beach. Moulin itself is located in a shopping center and has plenty of outdoor seating with tables covered by red umbrellas. Inside, there are two ordering areas on opposite sides of the space, one for food (they have pre-made items you can pick up and take with you as well as items you can order off a menu and have brought to your table) and the other for French pastries and other desserts. Here is a sampling of some of the things we’ve enjoyed during our various visits …
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Back on October 13th, 2018, we stopped in for brunch. It was rainy that day – something that rarely happens in Southern California – so we ate inside at a bar counter facing one of the walls of exterior windows. During that trip, I had a sandwich consisting of a baguette, cheese, arugula, and candied walnuts along with a side of fresh fruit. It was wonderful.
Aaron had a French Toast inspired something or other – neither of us can quite remember the exact name – which was cooked and served in a miniature cash iron pan and sprinkled with powdered sugar. It also came with a side of fruit and a pat of flavored butter.
After we finished eating, we went over to the pastry and dessert display on the far side of the restaurant. Aaron ordered a chocolate dome of sort sort, while I opted for an apple tart and a cup of black coffee (which came with a sugar cookie). Both were great. We ate them at one of the regular tables, freeing up our barstools at the window for people eating lunch.
We came back a week later, October 19th, 2018, which was a gorgeous day. The weather was perfect. Light was streaming in everywhere, people were gathering, dining, and chatting with friends, family, co-workers … this was the table where we sat …
During another trip on September 14th, 2019, we had a Saint Honore (sometimes served as a larger cake and also referred to as a gâteau St-Honoré). It’s a puff pastry with cream, vanilla, and caramel. Simple but fantastic. The dessert originated in 1847 when it was invented at the Chiboust bakery on the Rue Saint-Honoré in Paris, France. Named for Honoratus of Amiens, the patron saint of bakers; a figure so revered that in 1659, King Louis XIV ordered every baker in France to observe the eponymous feast, making donations meant to benefit the community.
The pastry in front is a new one we tried called a Saint Honore (sometimes served as a larger cake and also referred to as a gâteau St-Honoré). It’s a puff pastry with cream, vanilla, and caramel. Simple but fantastic.
