Just Desserts: Madison's Apple Tarte Fine

No matter which way you slice it, dessert is a sweet way to end a meal. Each month, Talk serves up a deliciously decadent meal-clincher. 

Austin Hu is known for changing his menu – there are slight updates every couple of weeks and seasonal overhauls to keep regulars happy and new diners coming back for more. But there’s one dish on the menu that is still there in its original incarnation after more than a year. In fact, nary a tweak has sullied the classic French flavours of the Apple Tarte Fine since former pastry chef Siobhan Gough (now of Downstairs) first served it piping hot fresh out of Madison’s oven. 

The tarte starts with a puff pastry, lovingly folded over on itself, for hours (and sometimes days) to a formidable 400 plus layers in a delicate oval. Then green apples from Xinjiang are sliced thin, carefully tiled on top of the pastries, lending the look of rose petals to the dessert. Brushed with butter and sprinkled with vanilla-infused sugar, the tarte is a classic beauty, but Madison doesn’t stop there. They add a dollop of goat cheese ice cream, a salad of mint and a saucer of brandy caramel to round it out. 

The finished product comes out warm and melts quickly, but rarely as fast as it is eaten. The browned apples on top give way under a steak knife, crisped to perfection with its made-to-order baking. It’s all delicately French, with a richness that is only strengthened by the goat cheese ice cream. A touch of sour that adds creamy depth to the dish, the ice cream might scare some off – in which case vanilla ice cream is a suitable, if safe, replacement – but try it at least once. This one will haunt your palate for months to come. 

RMB 78. 3F, 18 Dongping Lu, near Hengshan Lu. Tel: 6437 0136