One of the main reasons the Missus wanted to stay in the Piccadilly area was to check out Le Deli Robuchon. She had been following a ton of influencer/social media posts hyping up the "Cube Croissants". I really don't follow those, but the Missus really wanted to try them. Which is why I went and booked the Dilly for our initial stay in London….though I'm fairly certain the Missus would have preferred the Ritz.
On weekdays this location of Le Deli Robuchon opens at 7. We walked on over and arrived at about 730am. The place was fairly busy, but not crowded.
Ordering is via a line, first past the regular pastries; I decided on some Gougeres and Coffee, Double Espresso for the both of us. You then go to a separate counter for the "cubes".
The Missus decided on the Pistachio version of the Cube which went for 9£; about $12/US at the time. We took our pastries to the table and soon after our espresso were delivered.
The espresso was a nice "jolt" to the system. The gougere were too doughy and sweet for my taste.
As for the "beast"…..
Well, I wasn't a fan, it was too sweet and doughy for me. I'm for lighter, flakier, less sweet desserts. The missus agreed as well.
On the table next to us, the woman, exclaimed in the finest British accent, "My god! This is terrible!" So, I'm guessing we weren't alone in not caring for this. At least on this morning.
In case you're wondering what story is behind the "cube", you can read this article. We would go to several places hyped up by the "gram" and the "tok" during this trip and not enjoy any of those meals. Since then, the Missus has double checked places hyped up on these sites.
Le Deli Robuchon Piccadilly
82 Piccadilly
London, United Kingdom
This being our first full day in London, we decided to just enjoy and explore before our reservation for high tea.
We headed down St James Street to Pall Mall……
Then headed toward Buckingham Palace, making a stop at the Queen Victoria Memorial.
And taking a quick look at the Royal Residence; Buckingham Palace.
We then turned around and decided to head down The Mall, the ceremonial route to Buckingham Palace. This is where you'll see all the royal processions on television.
Lots of lovely ornate gates and a wide tree lined road.
And on this morning; not only were the police marching down the avenue….but it seemed like the ducks were as well!
Down the street we noticed this column.
This is the Duke of York Column, a monument to Prince Frederick the Duke of York, the second son of King George III. It is said that Prince Frederick was King George's favorite son and did much to reform and modernize the Army.
In fact, shortly after Prince Frederick's death, in 1827 all British soldiers donated one day’s wage for the building of this monument which was completed in 1831.
We took a right on Northumberland Avenue and headed toward the River Thames. There's just so much to see in London! From the Golden Jubilee Bridge we had an awesome view of the London Eye.
We then walked along the East side of the Thames to the Westminster Bridge where we proceeded to cross back over the Thames taking in a classic view!
Crossing over, I noticed that we still had a good amount of time before our reservations for Afternoon Tea, so we decided on making one more stop. 
At a place I had always wanted to check out!
Stay Tuned!
The San Diego franchised locations seem to have disappeared and 'our' location (on Clairmont Mesa Boulevard) has been re-named Bei Yuan Tea & Boba.
The chicken pieces were quite good; larger pieces of dark meat, lightly breaded and with a proper fry (not greasy). This was quite enjoyable. 
Which turned out to be true…at least for me. Man, look at all that pork! The pork was nicely seasoned; though, at least for me, I'm all about proportion and balance of flavor and frankly, this was just too much pork, and where's the jamon? And the bread was just not up to the task as it got really mushy plus all of the pork muted the pickles. And was there even mustard on this….I do like a good counter-point to the rich pork. Still, if you want a very porky sandwich, here it is….. It's just not the kind of Cubano I enjoy.
Though it looked over-baked, the exterior wasn't flakey and crisp. The interior was on the doughy-bready-chewy side and the croissant, in my opinion really lacked butteriness. This was mediocre at best and was the same as what I'd had before from their stand. Well, at least they're consistent, right?
But the Missus cut into it and took a bite and made a face. She made me have a taste. The crust was doughy, gummy, and lacking in crispness. It was on the thick side. The filling was too sweet for my taste as well.
It was soft and doughy, lacking in that flaky-crispness that I enjoy. I'm not sure why they call this a "Butter Croissant" as sorely needed more butter flavor. The interior was a bit too "moist" for my taste as well. 
Which meant that when I bit into it, flakey croissant shrapnel flew everywhere! Also, the ham had attained almost a bacon like texture during the heating process. The ham gave the croissant a good bit of saltness; though I would have enjoyed a straonger butter flavor. The interior was light and not overly doughy. This was not bad.
So yes, this was scalding hot. Did I notice a difference? Well, 6 wings were now $9.99 and it seemed to have much more black pepper and was even saltier than I recalled. Also, the coating got soggy quite quickly. Not sure if it was just my imagination, but it seemed that way. The wings were of decent quality, it was moist, but again really high on the sodium scale for me.
Mr. and Mrs. Takeda, who opened Hogetsu in 1983, have retired and passed along their knowledge to a younger couple. The name, Hogetsu, was given by permission of the prefecture when the store opened. The name now must be retired. 
What's that in the top left corner?
They've added a neon sign! Modern times are coming…
There is always a good variety to choose from when I stop in, and everything is always fresh. 
I have purchased the frozen Komochi so I can have a savory snack at home. The container is about one pound. The texture is similar to the suwama (chewy mochi).
Here are a few of my recent purchases. Yes, one day I was able to walk in and only order one coffee and one green tea-each were gentle flavored at first bite and ended up so flavorful at the end. 
The new owners have been experimenting with the name change and did tell me that they have settled on Thank You Very Mochi and will be ordering signage soon. The Takeda tradition will continue.
The Missus loved this! And made me have a taste. While more bready than the flakey-crisp of a regular croissant; the exterior was nicely lacquered with a bit of a crunch, the inner layers not overly doughy. The pistachio filling was on the lighter side; with a mild nuttiness and not overly sweet. This was pretty good!
Well, this was pretty good. I prefer my croissant aux buerre a bit more crisp, but this was not bad. It was light , fairly fluffy, and not overly doughy with a nice, balanced butteriness, and a mild hint of salt. While not in the same league as our 
And yes, more pineapple cake to carry back with us. 
