Melbourne foodies, your feed’s been flooded with hyper-realistic desserts that trick you into thinking you’re biting into real fruit or nuts—until they ooze ganache in your mouth. Finally, you can taste them for yourself.
It all began with Cédric Grolet, World’s Best Pastry Chef 2018, who redefined trompe-l’œil at Le Meurice. His hyper-real fruits use thin white chocolate shells tinted for texture, hiding layered mousse, runny ganache cores and crunchy elements made with Pavoni molds.
Similarly, ML (Maison De Pâtisserie) french bakery in South Melbourne brings that Parisian mastery down under, serving the freshest versions of these globally viral treats and perfecting the art of deceiving the eye with desserts that mimic everyday objects.
Trained French pâtissiers handcraft each edible illusion, priced $15–$17, spending hours (sometimes days) layering mousse, silky ganache, and crisp biscuit inside custom molds. Afterwards, they airbrush life-like gradients that make them scream “real fruit.”
Consequently, these treats snap perfectly in your mouth, revealing a symphony of crunchy, creamy textures—far lighter than similar dupes at your corner Asian grocer—and Melburnians line up for ML like it’s Taylor Swift tickets, so don’t take the long way around or they’ll vanish before noon.
Meet The Ganache-Filled Masterpieces At ML
Each one’s a generous ganache bomb disguised as an everyday object. Next, check out the line-up, from the first bite to the final gooey reveal:
Coffee Bean: A glossy coffee-bean shell cracks open to a soft, moist centre packed with intense roasted ganache—basically a dessert version of your morning cuppa.
Peanut: A crisp, shell-like exterior gives way to burnt-butter ganache, delivering the nostalgic hit of a nutty, caramel-loaded Snickers bar.
Raspberry: This bright red showstopper bursts with a gloopy gel centre, balancing sharp tartness with juicy berry sweetness.
Lemon: A zesty citrus shell sits atop a croustillant biscuit base, oozing a sorbet-like, tangy lemon curd that crunches, then makes you pucker.
Mango Coconut: Firstly, a fibrous coconut shell wraps a golden, ripe mango pulp centre, which is finished with silky coulis for a full tropical hit.
More Baked Goods From ML
Beyond their show-stopping trompe-l’œil desserts, ML nails affordable classics too: flaky croissants, caramelised canelés, loaded danishes ($7.5 a pop), thin-yet-chewy cookies piled with toppings (like a Bueno dream) as well as pretty tiramisu blocks.
ML Pâtisserie is located at 108 Bank Street, South Melbourne. They’re open 7am-3pm, Wednesday-Friday & 8am-3pm, Saturday-Sunday